COLLECTIE TROPENMUSEUM Pakoe Alam IV van het Prinsdom Pakoe Alam uit Djogjakarta Midden-Java TMnr 60009413

The ''Legiun Pakualaman'' (Pakualaman's Legion) was an

army corps Corps (; plural ''corps'' ; from French , from the Latin "body") is a term used for several different kinds of organization. A military innovation by Napoleon I, the formation was first named as such in 1805. The size of a corps varies great ...

of the

Pakualaman The Duchy of Pakualaman ( jv, ꦏꦢꦶꦥꦠꦺꦤ꧀ꦦꦏꦸꦮꦭꦩ꧀ꦩꦤ꧀, Kadipatèn Pakualaman; also written Paku Alaman; Dutch-spelling: Pakoe-alaman) is a minor Javanese princely state within the Sultanate of Yogyakarta.} It was c ...

princely state of

Yogyakarta Yogyakarta (; jv, ꦔꦪꦺꦴꦒꦾꦏꦂꦠ ; pey, Jogjakarta) is the capital city of Special Region of Yogyakarta in Indonesia, in the south-central part of the island of Java. As the only Indonesian royal city still ruled by a monarchy, ...

, formed in 1813 during the reign of

Paku Alam I Paku Alam I, originally known as Natakusuma, was the first Duke (''Adipati'') of Pakualaman, rewarded for helping the British quell conflict in Yogyakarta in June 1812. Pakualaman became a small hereditary Duchy within the Sultanate of Yogyakarta, ...

. The force was initially formed not only as a symbol of pride for the newly formed state, but also as a reserve force for the British, and later also the Dutch, colonial governments. The legion was trained with a variety of European style warfare tactics, weaponry, and military ranks. The training was provided by European instructors, and the troop members received stipend from the colonial government. Members of the legion were recruited from the state residents, with the Pakualaman nobles as the legion commanders with the rank of Major or Colonel. The reigning dukes of Paku Alam automatically hold the rank of titular Colonel or Lieutenant Colonel. At the beginning and during the British colonial rule, the legion troops consisted of 100 light horsemen ( dragoon). During the Dutch colonial rule, the legion troops composition changed into 50 horsemen and 100 infantry troops. The largest number of troops happened during the reign of Paku Alam IV, which in 1870 enlarged it into a company of cavalry and a half battalion of infantry troops. The legion participated in the

Aceh War The Aceh War ( id, Perang Aceh), also known as the Dutch War or the Infidel War (1873–1913), was an armed military conflict between the Sultanate of Aceh and the Kingdom of the Netherlands which was triggered by discussions between represen ...

, but it did not meet the expectations of the Dutch. The legion was dissolved by the Dutch East Indies government in 1892, during the reign of

Paku Alam V Paku Alam V was Duke (''Adipati'') of Pakualaman between 1878 and 1900. Pakualaman (also written Paku Alaman) became a small hereditary Duchy within the Sultanate of Yogyakarta, as a mirror-image of Mangkunegaran in the territory of the Susuhunana ...

, by the ''Gouvernement Besluit'' (government decree) ''No. 12'', of August 19, 1891. The younger and healthy legion members were offered to join the Dutch East Indies Army (KNIL), while those who were not accepted received the offer to become ''abdi dalem punakawan'' (commoner courtiers) at the Pakualaman palace. After 48 years passed, in 1940 a second ''Legiun Pakualaman'' was formed, which served as a guarding army of the Pakualaman palace, but it was disbanded again in 1942 as the Dutch East Indies surrendered to the Japanese colonial government.

References

{{reflist Pakualaman Military units and formations established in 1813 Military units and formations of Indonesia

See also

References