British brigadier's death sparked battle

In the recent history of Surabaya there is no more famous -- or infamous -- Briton than Brigadier General A.W. Mallaby.

He was the unfortunate officer who led the Allied forces trying to clear the way for a return to Dutch rule after the Japanese capitulated in 1945.

Mallaby landed in Surabaya in late October with troops from the British 49th Indian Infantry. Their job was to restore order, but independence fighters loyal to President Sukarno's proclamation of the Republic two months earlier were not about to open the door to Europeans.

The situation was chaotic, with the fate of many Dutch prisoners of war and former Japanese soldiers in the balance.

Sukarno flew to Surabaya and negotiated a truce with Mallaby. The cease-fire was proclaimed the following day but five hours later an unknown gunman shot Mallaby dead close to the Red Bridge. A major monument records where he fell.

The assassination maddened the British who demanded the partisans surrender their arms by 9 November. They refused, and on 10 November the Battle of Surabaya began with the defenseless city bombed by aircraft and shelled by warships. The Institut Teknlogi Sepuluh Nopember (ITS), the beneficiary of the British Council's closure, has been named after this event.

Despite their firepower and war-hardened experience it took three weeks for the British to gain control. The young Indonesians fought with great ferocity and retreated slowly, but they paid dearly for their bravery.

The many war cemeteries that dot the suburbs of Surabaya are testimony to the terrible slaughter. The toll has long been disputed, but late historian and former government minister Dr Roeslan Abdulgani told this writer that more than 6,300 Indonesians died in the battle.

The last British troops left in November 1946.

-- Duncan Graham