Battle of Margarana

The Battle of Margarana (Indonesian: Puputan Margarana) was a battle fought between the Netherlands Indies Civil Administration (NICA) and the recently created, rebelling Ciung Wanara Battalion that occurred in Marga, in Bali Indonesia.

Battle of Margarana[1]
Part of the Indonesian National Revolution
Date20 November 1946
Location
Marga, Bali, Indonesia
Result
Belligerents
Netherlands Indies Civil Administration (NICA)  Indonesia
Commanders and leaders

Lt. Colonel F. Mollinger

Capt. J.B.T König		 Lt. Colonel I Gusti Ngurah Rai †
Units involved

Y-Brigade[2]

  • 8 (IV) Bataljon Stoottroepen[3]
  • Gajah Merah KNIL Battalion Infantry X[4]
  • Gajah Merah KNIL Battalion Infantry XI[5]
  • Gajah Merah KNIL Battalion Infantry XII[6]
  • 1 Plane (from Makassar)
 Ciung Wanara Battalion
Casualties and losses
400 killed 96 killed

Prelude

As World War II ended, the British Army landed in Bali, disarmed occupying Japanese troops, and returned to Batavia. Some Dutch KNIL battalions under Gajah Merah, however, stayed in the city. When Gajah Merah's Infantry landed, Ciung Wanara commander I Gusti Ngurah Rai went to Malang to discuss Bali's condition with the head of the Republic Indonesian Army (Indonesian: Tentara Republik Indonesia), who placed one ALRI warship in Gilimanuk Harbour.

On 28 May 1946, I Gusti Ngurah Rai led the army's long march to East Bali. Skirmishing began at Tanah Aron on 9 July 1946, moving later to Penglipuran. The long march then resumed until they had arrived at Tabanan. On 20 July 1946, the NICA Y-Brigade first landed at Benoa.

On 11 November 1946, the battalion and defected NICA head police officer Wagimin arrived at Dangin Carik, Tabanan, planning to disarm the regency's NICA Police by the night of 18 November. On that day, the combined 300 men of platoons Barisan Banteng and Anak Banteng arrived with weapons.[7]

Battle

On 19 November, the Y-Brigade arrived at army posts in Perean, Baha, Kediri, Tabanan, Penebel, and Jatiluwih to reach Marga and block the Ciung Wanara battalion's movement. Rai knew about the plan and commanded the battalion to disband, with 95 men remaining with him to commit puputan (last stand) in battle. These remaining troops moved to Banjar Kelaci, Marga.

On the morning of 20 November 1946, KNIL troops arrived before sunrise to block the remnant of Rai's troops as planned. The battle began at 8:00 AM. At first, KNIL troops thought the battalion's defense was too strong, so they fell back.

At 12:00 PM, the Dutch troops were helped by a bomber from Makassar, and resumed the attack after the bombing. The battle ended at 5:00 PM, with 400 Dutch soldiers and the entire remaining Ciung Wanara battalion (including Rai) killed in action. NICA was commanded to bring all of the corpses to the Marga Market, but only 86 bodies were taken.[8][9][10]

Since Rai's entire force was wiped out, including the military leadership, the Dutch forces were subsequently unopposed and were able to regain control of Bali. This may not have been possible had Ngurah Rai adopted a guerrilla strategy.[11]

References
  1. Wirawan, A.A Bagus. "RESPONS LOKAL TERHADAP REVOLUSI INDONESIA DI SUNDA KECIL, 1945 – 1950". Retrieved 30 July 2018.
  2. "Y-Brigade".
  3. "8 (IV) Bataljon Stoottroepen".
  4. "Infanterie X Knil".
  5. "Infanterie XI Knil".
  6. "Infanterie XII Knil". Archived from the original on 2017-06-28. Retrieved 2018-07-31.
  7. Sutaba, Made (1983). Sejarah Perlawanan Terhadap Imperialisme dan Kolonialisme di Daerah Bali (in Indonesian). Jakarta: Direktorat Jenderal Kebudayaan. pp. 143–151.
  8. Geoffrey, Robinson (1995). The Dark Side of Paradise: Political Violence in Bali Front Cover. New York: Cornell University Press. p. 149. ISBN 9780801481727.
  9. Pendit, Nyoman S. (1979). Bali Berjuang (in Indonesian). Jakarta: Gunung Agung. ISBN 9789799954114.
  10. Petrik Matanasi. "Atasan dan Bawahan yang Saling Berhadapan dalam Puputan Margarana". tirto.id. p. 89. Retrieved 30 July 2018.
  11. Ide Anak Agung Gde Agung (1996) [1995]. From the Formation of the State of East Indonesia Towards the Establishment of the United States of Indonesia. Translated by Owens, Linda. Yayasan Obor. ISBN 979-461-216-2.
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