History
Very little is known about the prehistoric stages of Balinese history. The oldest archeological remains discovered on the island are dated to around 2000 BC. At that time, Austronesian migrants, originally from southern China, reached the Indonesian archipelago, expanded into the Pacific and Indian oceans, and left as a legacy a united family of related Malayo-Polynesian languages and cultures.
The Balinese themselves trace their origins to India and the Indianised courts of Java. Balinese myth recognizes Rsi Markandeya, a Hindu saint from East Java, as the first person to set foot on the island. The Rsi’s followers are said to be the original Balinese, or Bali Mula, who settled first around Besakih, on the slopes of Mount Agung.
Historical records show that, around the start of the Christian era, Indian traders brought the Hindu religion and culture to Indonesia. However, it was only in 8th century, under the Hindu-Buddhist kingdom of Sriwijaya, that Indian political and religious systems became firmly rooted in Bali. Balinese kings ruled hand in hand with priests in a hierarchical society, and were largely independent until the end of the 10th century. After that time, the influence of Java increased as Balinese King Udayana married a Javanese princess. Their son, Airlangga, ruled over Bali from East Java and, together with the legendary priest Mpu Kuturan, is believed to have introduced the three-tiered temple system of Bali.
In 1343, the powerful East Javan kingdom of Majapahit, headed by its vizier Gajah Mada, invaded Bali and established a court in Gelgel, near Klungkung. Some mountain villages, however, retained their independence : they are today’s “Bali Aga”, or “Original Balinese” villages. Under Majapahit’s influence, Balinese arts and culture – classical literature, architecture, dance, theatre, painting, and sculpture - all became increasingly refined. In particular, Bali inherited Majapahit’s caste system and its syncretic Buddhist-Shivaist religion.
With the rise of Islam and the powerful sultanate of Demak, Majapahit weakened and eventually fell. The aristocracy, artists and scholars of Majapahit who refused the new religion fled to Bali in 1478, inanugerating an era that would later be seen as the island’s golden age. From his capital in Gelgel, in the 16th century King Baturenggong extended Bali’s control over portions of East Java, Lombok and Sumbawa. His reign also witnessed a renaissance of Hindu arts, letters and religion, forstered by the great reformer priest Danghyang Nirartha.
In 1560, Gelgel fell apart after a coup, and Bali became an unstable maze of warring kingdoms. Some of these kingdoms – Buleleng, Karangasem, Mengwi – rose to prominence for short periods, only to be quickly eclipsed. In 1849, ‘colonial’ Bali was born, when, after 3 years of fighting, the Dutch finally gained control over Buleleng, followed by Jembrana. Other kingdoms quickly followed, and in 1906, the royal court of Badung – over 3000 men, women, children – committed ‘puputan’ or ritual suicide rather than surrender to the Dutch. In 1908, a similar ‘puputan’ decimated the House of Klungkung. Arrested by the Dutch, the raja of Tabanan chose to commit suicide.
The Dutch occupied Bali as part of the Dutch East Indies until 1942, when Japan invaded and took over the Dutch East Indies during World War II. The Japanese occupation spurred the nationalist movement and towards the end of the war, on August 17th 1945 Sukarno proclaimed the independence of the new Republic of Indonesia. After war ended, the Dutch tried to reclaim their colony but faced a guerilla war. In May 1946, a small body of independence fighters, led by Ngurah Rai, were surrounded by Dutch forces and fought to the last man in Margarana. In 1949, Anak Agung Gede Agung, the king of Gianyar, joined the independence movement. Facing increasing resistance, the Dutch finally chose to withdraw and at the end of 1949, Indonesia was independent with Sukarno as its first president.
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