Table of content

•Story: Van Der Wijk Fort

•Moral Value

•References

The existence of the corona virus makes many people spend their time at home. School from home or work from home. One day, on a holiday, a family was gathered to watch TV together. In the broadcast, you can see the knowledge about the fortresses for defense during the colonial period. A child even asks his parents,

Are there any historical heritage buildings in Kebumen, Dad?

Of course there is. In Kebumen there is a very unique and cool fort. It is located in Gombong sub-district

Wow, I know right. Was the fortress van der wijk?

"That's right, son. The fort was very unique because its shape was quite different from the forts in other areas. Fort Van Der Wijck is a legacy of Dutch colonialism located in the Gombong SECATA (Tamtama A Candidate School) complex which is located at Jalan Sapta Marga Gombong. Heritage buildings from the colonial era are more characterized by typical European buildings, including tall buildings, high doors and windows and sturdy pillars."

The era of Dutch occupation in Kebumen District, Central Java cannot be separated from Gombong District. The area, which is about 20 kilometers west of the capital city of Kebumen, is believed to have been used as the center for the activities of the colonial army from the land of the waterwheel. Evidently, on Sapta Marga Street Gombong there is a Dutch colonial heritage fort named Van der Wijck.

Based on historical stories from various sources, Van der Wijck Fort was built in the early 19th century or around 1818 along with the widespread rebellion of Prince Diponegoro in several areas. The construction of this fort was a place of defense as well as planning for attacks in the former Karisidenan South of Kedu.

This Dutch heritage fort building is in the shape of an octagon, 2 floors with a height of 10 meters, and has four entrances located at the four directions of the wind with the main door located on the southwest side. This fort building has walls as thick as 1.4 meters.

On the first floor of Van Der Wijck Fort, there are four entrances and 16 large rooms, each measuring 18 m x 6.5 m and 27 other rooms of different sizes. On the first floor there are 72 windows with 63 connecting doors and exits, and there are 8 stairs to the second floor and 2 emergency stairs

On the second floor there are 70 connecting doors, 84 windows, 16 large rooms measuring 18 m x 6.5 m each, 25 small rooms, and there are 4 stairs to the roof. Van der Wijck's fort has a pyramid-shaped roof made of red brick, is shaped like a storey measuring 3 mx 3 mx 1.5 m and there are two vents. Apart from the fort, there are other buildings as supporting elements such as prisons, garages, barracks. soldiers, office logistics buildings, hospitals and Dutch burial complex.

On the second floor there are 70 connecting doors, 84 windows, 16 large rooms measuring 18 m x 6.5 m each, 25 small rooms, and there are 4 stairs to the roof. Van der Wijck's fort has a pyramid-shaped roof made of red brick, is shaped like a storey measuring 3 mx 3 mx 1.5 m and there are two vents. Apart from the fort, there are other buildings as supporting elements such as prisons, garages, barracks. soldiers, office logistics buildings, hospitals and Dutch burial complex.

Wow, how cool is this fort that we have!

Yes. This fort building is still very strong. Although there are some places that have been renovated. However, there are also buildings that are still original since they were first built.

Besides the building, Is there any amazing story from this fort?

At first, this fort was used as a VOC office. Then, this fort was also used as a place of defense during the Diponegoro war. This fort was also used as a school during the Dutch era, namely for the education of European cadets. And at the time of the Japanese occupation, this fort was used as a training for PETA soldiers.

Before becoming a fortress, the site of Fort Cochius or Fort van Der Wijck was an office of the Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie (VOC) in Gombong. The office building was later converted into a fortress in 1818 according to information in the fortress. The construction was carried out during the reign of Governor General Godert Alexander Gerard Philip Baron Van Der Capellen.

In other sources it is stated that this fort was built in 1844. The fort was built by Frans David Cochius and was completed in 1848. This fort was later named Fort Cochius. Frans David Sochius is a Dutch army officer who is also an expert on fort building.

The Java War or Diponegoro War which broke out in 1825-1830 was quite troublesome for the Dutch East Indies. The war led by Prince Diponegoro was able to be broken by the Dutch East Indies government through a strategy called Fort Stelsel. This strategy was created by General de Kock which was put into use in 1827.

In this strategy, the Dutch built fortresses in several areas in Central Java, Yogyakarta and East Java to narrow the guerrilla space carried out by Pangeran Diponegoro and his troops. The former Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie (VOC) trading office in Gombong was then used as an army headquarters to support the strategy of Fort Stelsel.

This fort was built by the Dutch military and employed approximately 1400 people from Banyumas and Bagelen. In 1856, Fort Cochius functioned as a military school (Pupillenschool) or cadet school for Europeans. The fort changed its name to Van Der Wijck Fortress as a reward for his services in the Dutch military sector.

During the Japanese occupation, Fort Van Der Wijck still functioned as a training ground for soldiers. This function still lasted until Indonesia's independence. The fort was used as an ABRI barracks until 1980. After that the fort was changed its function to become a residence for members of the Indonesian Army until 2000.

Let dad show you some sightings of this fort!