Change of Jakarta's anniversary date
I support the idea of reviewing Jakarta's anniversary date, as proposed in The Jakarta Post on June 26.
It has always been my belief that June 22, 1527, is not the right date. The Portuguese fleet entered Sunda Kelapa harbor on that date, so it is illogical to say the date of the arrival of Francisco de Sa should be considered the anniversary date of Jayakarta.
According to history, Sunan Gunung Jati, or Falatehan, controlled Sunda Kelapa harbor in 1526 or early 1527. I believe it is more precise to say that this happened in the second semester of 1526 or in the first quarter of 1527. My argument is as follows: Sunan Gunung Jati was a haji, an expert on Islam, a statesman and a warrior. He was appointed the representative of Demak in 1526 to protect the Javanese living in Banten and Sunda Kelapa. After staying in Banten for some time, Falatehan took over Sunda Kelapa harbor.
Before falling under Banten's control, Sunda Kelapa was a harbor of a city/area known as Surakarta. When Banten assumed control over it, its name became Jayakarta, which signified Falatehan's victory. (The word "jaya" means "victorious" or "glorious".)
As for Banten, it was originally called Surasaji. Then, the name became Surasowan. Cirebon used to be called Surawisesa. As for Surabaya, even in the 14th century the city was known as that.
I do not agree with Ridwan Saidi, who has said that Falatehan destroyed the buildings and locals' houses when he attacked Sunda Kelapa. My assumption is that Sunan Gunung Jati took over Sunda Kelapa peacefully after the Pajajaran port administrator was converted to Islam. If the takeover had involved a battle, Pajajaran would have certainly tried to win it back. In reality, up to 1570 Pajajaran did not dare to fight a war against Banten.
Finally, the Pajajaran Kingdom was destroyed by Panembahan Yusup, the grandson of Sunan Gunung Jati, in 1570, In this attack nobody in the kingdom's Pakuan palace was spared. Panembahan Yusuf made the attack from behind the palace, namely through Leuwiliang. Pajajaran troops reinforced their defenses in the northern part of Pakuan as they thought the attack would come from Jayakarta.
SUNARTO PRAWIROSUJANTO Jakarta