Yogyakarta

According to the Canggal inscription dated 732 CE, the area traditionally known as "Mataram" became the capital of the Medang Kingdom, identified as Mdang i Bhumi Mataram established by King Sanjaya of Mataram. The inscription was found in a Hindu temple in Central Java, 40 km away from Yogyakarta and 20 km away from the giant Borobudur temple complex. This Hindu temple itself was on the border between the area of the Hindu Sañjaya dynasty and the area of the Buddhist Shailendra dynasty. Mataram became the centre of a refined and sophisticated Javanese Hindu-Buddhist culture for about three centuries in the heartland of the Progo River valley, on the southern slopes of Mount Merapi volcano. This time period witnessed the construction of numerous candi, including Borobudur and Prambanan.

Around the year 929 CE, the last ruler of the Sañjaya dynasty, King Mpu Sindok of Mataram, moved the seat of power of the Mataram Kingdom from Central Java to East Java and thus established the Isyana dynasty. The exact cause of the move is still uncertain; however, a severe eruption from Mount Merapi or a power struggle with the Sumatra-based Srivijaya kingdom probably caused the move.[12] Historians suggest that some time during the reign of King Wawa of Mataram (924–929 CE), Merapi erupted and devastated the kingdom's capital in Mataram.

During the Majapahit era, the area surrounding modern Yogyakarta was identified again as "Mataram" and recognised as one of the twelve Majapahit provinces in Java ruled by a Duke known as Bhre Mataram. During the reign of the fourth king of the Majapahit Empire, the Hindu King Hayam Wuruk (1350–1389) of the Rajasa dynasty, the title of Bhre Mataram was held by the king's nephew and son-in-law Wikramawardhana, later the fifth king of Majapahit.[13]

Kotagede, former capital of the Mataram Sultanate.

Kotagede, now a district in southeastern Yogyakarta, was established as the capital of the Mataram Sultanate from 1587–1613. During the reign of Sultan Agung Hanyokrokusumo (1613–1645), the Mataram Sultanate reached its zenith as the greatest kingdom in Java, and expanded its influence to Central Java, East Java, and half of West Java. After two changes of capital—to Karta and then to Plered, both located in present-day Bantul Regency—the capital of the Mataram Sultanate finally moved to Kartasura.

The Yogyakarta sultanate palace's main pavilion

The Taman Sari Water Castle, the former royal garden of the Sultan of Yogyakarta

A civil war in the Mataram Sultanate broke out between Pakubuwono II (1745–1749), the last ruler of Kartasura, and his younger brother and heir apparent to the throne, Prince Mangkubumi (later known as Hamengkubuwono I, the first Sultan of Yogyakarta, and the founder of the current ruling royal house). Pakubuwono II had agreed to cooperate with the Dutch East India Company, and ceded some Mataram territory to the Dutch. His younger brother, Prince Mangkubumi, stood against the agreement, citing concerns that the people would become slaves under Dutch rule. During the war, Prince Mangkubumi defeated Pakubuwono II's forces and declared sovereignty in the Sultanate of Yogyakarta, occupying the southern parts of the former Mataram Sultanate.

With Pakubowono II dead from illness, the Yogyakarta Sultanate was established as a result of the Treaty of Giyanti (Perjanjian Gianti), signed and ratified on 13 February 1755 among Prince Mangkubumi, the Dutch East India Company, and his nephew Pakubuwono III and his allies. Ascending to the newly-created Yogyakarta throne with the name Sultan Hamengkubuwono I, Mangkubumi thus established the royal House of Hamengkubuwono, still the ruling house of Yogyakarta today. Sultan Hamengkubuwono I and his family officially moved into the Palace of Yogyakarta, still the seat of the reigning sultan, on 7 October 1756. These events consequently marked the end of the Mataram Sultanate, resulting in the births of the rival Yogyakarta Sultanate and the Surakarta Sunanate.

During the British occupation of Java in 1811, rumours of plans by the Yogyakarta court to stage a rebellion caused uneasiness among the colonial authorities. On 20 June 1812, Stamford Raffles led a 1,200-strong British force to attack the royal city. The Javanese, surprised by the attack, were easily subdued; Yogyakarta fell in one day, with the city destroyed and its palace looted. The event completely stripped the Sultanate of its remaining power and influence.[14] The sack also left the court humiliated and ultimately fuelled a rebellion against the Dutch, which would be known as the Java War (1825–1830).

In 1942, the Japanese Empire invaded the Dutch East Indies and ruled Java until they were defeated in 1945. Sukarno proclaimed the independence of the Indonesian Republic on 17 August 1945; Sultan Hamengkubuwono IX promptly sent a letter to Sukarno, expressing his support for the newly born nation of Indonesia and acknowledging the Yogyakarta Sultanate as part of the Indonesian Republic. The Sultanate of Surakarta did the same, and both of the Javanese kingdoms were accordingly awarded privileged statuses as "Special Regions" within the Indonesian Republic. However, because of a leftist anti-royalist uprising in Surakarta, the Sunanate of Surakarta lost its special administrative status in 1946 and was absorbed into Central Java Province.

Yogyakarta's support was essential in the Indonesian struggle for independence during the Indonesian National Revolution (1945–1949). The city of Yogyakarta became the capital of the Indonesian Republic from 1946 to 1948, after the fall of Jakarta to the Dutch. Later the Dutch also invaded Yogyakarta, causing the Republic's capital to be transferred once again, to Bukittinggi in West Sumatra on 19 December 1948. The General Offensive of 1 March 1949 resulted in an Indonesian political and strategic victory against the Dutch and the withdrawal of Dutch forces from Yogyakarta. On 29 June 1949 Yogyakarta was completely cleared of Dutch forces, under pressure from the United Nations.

Because of its significant contribution to the survival of the Indonesian Republic, Yogyakarta was given autonomy as a "special district",[15] making it the only region headed by a recognised monarchy in Indonesia.

• Gudeg Yogya: a traditional food from Yogyakarta[24] and Central Java made from young unripe nangka (jack fruit) boiled for several hours with palm sugar and coconut milk. This is usually accompanied by opor ayam (chicken in coconut milk), telur pindang (hard boiled egg stew), and krechek (spicy beef skin and tofu stew). Gudeg from Yogyakarta has a unique sweet and savoury taste, and is drier and more reddish than other regional variants because of the addition of Javanese teak leaf.
• Krechek (or krecek or sambal goreng krechek): a traditional spicy beef skin dish made from seasoned krupuk kulit (beef skin crackers). Krechek is usually served as a side dish together with gudeg.
• Ayam goreng Kalasan: chicken stewed in coriander, garlic, candlenut, and coconut water, then deep-fried until crispy. Served with sambal and raw vegetables.
• Sego kucing: rice with small side dishes.
• Bakpia and bakpia Pathok: a sweet pastry filled with sugared mung bean paste, derived from the Chinese pastry. A well-known bakpia-producing area is Pathok near Jalan Malioboro, where bakpia Pathok is sold.
• Kipo: derived from the Javanese question Iki opo? ("What is this?"), a small sweet snack from Kotagede made of glutinous rice flour and coconut milk dough filled with grated coconut and palm sugar.
• Ronde (wedhang ronde): a hot Javanese dessert of glutinous rice balls stuffed with peanut paste, floating in a hot and sweet ginger and lemongrass tea.
• Angsle (wedhang angsle): a hot soupy dessert of sago pearls, pre-cooked glutinous rice and mung beans, putu mayang (brightly coloured, noodle-shaped flour cakes), and fried peanuts, covered in hot and sweet coconut milk.
• Wedhang uwuh (id): a hot Javanese clove drink.

Yogyakarta has several historical sites, such as the Candi Prambanan temple, museums in the royal court, the Sonobudoyo Museum, and museums in colonial buildings such as the Fort Vredeburg Museum housed in a former Dutch fort. Due to the importance of Yogyakarta during the war of independence from the Dutch, there are numerous memorials and museums, such as the Monument to the Recapture of Yogyakarta.

To the east of the town centre is the large Air Force Museum (Museum Pusat Dirgantara Mandala), with 36 aircraft in the building and six aircraft displayed outdoors. As Indonesia was for a period in the Soviet sphere of influence, this museum contains a number of vintage Russian aircraft not widely available for inspection in the NATO sphere of influence. The collection includes examples of the Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 trainer, Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17, Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-19, Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 and Tupolev Tu-16, together with an assortment of Japanese, American and British aircraft.[25] Other museums include the Jogja National Museum.

Yogyakarta is served by Yogyakarta International Airport, which connects the city with other major cities in Indonesia, such as Jakarta, Surabaya, Denpasar, Lombok, Makassar, Balikpapan, Banjarmasin, Pekanbaru, Palembang, and Pontianak. It also internationally connects the city with Kuala Lumpur (operated by AirAsia and Indonesia AirAsia).

Yogyakarta railway station

Yogyakarta was first served by rail in 1872. The city is located on one of the two major railway lines that run across Java between Jakarta in the west and Surabaya in the east.

Yogyakarta has two passenger railway stations, Yogyakarta Station which serves business and executive class trains, and Lempuyangan Station which serves economy class trains; both stations are located in the centre of the city. Commuter train include the Prambanan Express (Prameks), which runs from Lempuyangan Station to Solo Balapan Station in the city of Surakarta, and Kutoarjo Station in Kutoarjo. Other commuter trains run from Madiun Jaya (Madiun Station-Lempuyangan Station), and Joglosemar (Semarang Poncol Station-Lempuyangan Station).

The city has an extensive system of public city buses, and is a major departure point for inter-city buses to other cities in Java and Bali, as well as taxis, andongs, and becaks. Motorbikes are by far the most commonly used personal transportation, but an increasing number of residents own automobiles.[26] Yogyakarta also has a highway known as the Ringroad and overpasses including Janti Overpass, Lempuyangan Overpass, and a recently built overpass in the northern part of the Ringroad.

Trans Jogja Bus. A bus rapid transit system in Yogyakarta.

Since early 2008, the city has operated a bus rapid transit system, Trans Jogja, also known as "TJ". Trans Jogja is modelled after the TransJakarta system in the capital, but unlike TransJakarta, there is no special lane for Trans Jogja buses, which instead run on main streets. There are currently six Trans Jogja lines, with routes through the main streets of Yogyakarta, some of which overlap. The lines extend from the Jombor Bus Terminal in the north to the Giwangan Bus Terminal in the south, and to the Prambanan bus shelter in the east via Adisucipto International Airport.