In the 7th century AD, the Hindu-Buddhist kingdom Sriwijaya emerged in Sumatra as Indonesia's premier maritime trading power capable of controlling most of the trade in Southeast Asia. this was because they were located in the Strait of Melaka. The Mataram and Sailendra dynasty were in their happy years. While trade brought Sriwijaya its wealth, Java island kingdoms such as Mataram had much more human labor in their agrarian societies. At the end of the 1900s, the kingdom of Mataram mysteriously disappeared. The core moved from central to eastern Java and this was also a time when Hinduism and Buddhism were syncretized and Javanese culture began to develop. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”? Get the original essay Colonial Indonesia In the early 1500s, the Portuguese arrived in Indonesia, with a huge demand in Europe for spices such as nutmeg , ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and mass. The Portuguese therefore decided to seize the main source of spices, the Moluccas. Subsequently, in 1511, they captured Melaka, a port city. They also captured the Moluccas. However, in the early 1600s, the Dutch stole everything from the Portuguese. In 1602, the Dutch East India Company was founded to manage trade with Indonesia. In 1641, they recaptured Melaka. However, by 1600, they had withdrawn from Indonesia. Additionally, during the 1700s, the Dutch East India Company fell heavily into debt. In 1806, the Dutch and the British declared war on Indonesia. The British easily conquered all Dutch territories in Indonesia. During their reign, the British abolished slavery. However, in 1816, the British ceded Indonesia to the Dutch again. Many Indonesians opposed the return of the evil Dutch. Despite everything, the Dutch eventually won and regained control. The Javanese War began in 1829. Yet the war quickly ended with a quick victory for the Dutch in 1830. The Kultuurstelsel, meaning cultural system, was soon introduced by the Dutch. Additionally, Indonesian farmers were forced to set aside 20% of their land to grow crops for export. Indonesians were forced to cultivate spices popular in Europe such as indigo, tea, pepper, cinnamon and sugar. Fortunately, in the early 1900s, Indonesians were treated better. An ethics policy has been introduced. This meant more money to maximize welfare. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized article from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay However, the new policy has almost no change in the lives of most Indonesians. However, this has the effect of fueling the demand for independence. Then, in 1942, the Japanese invaded Indonesia. At first, Indonesians viewed the Japanese as liberating heroes, but they soon discovered that the Japanese were brutal and greedy. On August 17, Sukarno declared Indonesia's independence. He became the first president and Hatta, vice president. However, the Dutch were not in favor of Indonesian independence. In November, the Indonesians and the Dutch signed the Linggajati Pact. The Dutch honored the new government, but only did so in Java, declaring the rest of present-day Indonesia theirs. However, after an unsuccessful attempt, in 1948, the Dutch tried to..