On Heroes’ Day, 10 November 2023, the government, through President Joko Widodo, officially designated Queen Kalinyamat as a national hero. The Acting District Head of Jepara, Edy Supriyanta, who received the honor, thanked the government for recognizing Queen Kalinyamat’s important role in fighting colonialism in the 16th century and acknowledging Jepara’s contribution to the nation’s development.
Who was Queen Kalinyamat and what was her role in the fight against Dutch colonialism during that time? Let’s find out more in this article!
Born as Queen Retna Kencana, Queen Kalinyamat was the third daughter of Sultan Trenggana, the third ruler of the Demak Sultanate. There are not many historical records about the early life of this courageous woman, as according to NU Online’s webpage, there is no definite information about her birth year.
However, her leadership records in Jepara are quite extensive. In the journal “Sulthanah Pertama ‘de Kranige Dame’ di Jawa dan Strategi-Strategi Kekuasaannya” by Emalia, it is stated that the teenage Queen Kalinyamat was sent by her father in 1544 as an envoy of the Demak Sultanate to Banten to form an alliance with the Banten Sultanate. She was named Kalinyamat after the area she ruled in Jepara.
Queen Kalinyamat later married Prince Hadirin, the son of Sheikh Mughayat Syah from Aceh. Unfortunately, the marriage did not last long as her husband was killed by Arya Penangsang, the uncle of Queen Kalinyamat, who also sought to seize power in Demak on 10 April 1549.
After Arya Penangsang died in a power struggle, Queen Kalinyamat officially became the sole ruler of Jepara. She then built and consolidated Jepara’s maritime and trade sectors.
She formed a powerful and formidable naval force, even assisting the neighboring Johor Sultanate in fighting Portuguese colonizers in Malacca. In 1550, Queen Kalinyamat sent a fleet of 40 naval ships with 4,000–5,000 soldiers to Malacca at the request of the Johor Sultanate. Although the mission failed, her navy remained a strong presence.
Queen Kalinyamat sent her navy back to Malacca two decades later to attack the Portuguese settlers. According to detik.com, this expedition consisted of 300 ships with an estimated 15,000 soldiers. This second attempt successfully broke the Portuguese dominance in Malacca, although around 2,000 of her soldiers must perish.
Her leadership and bravery reached the ears of the Portuguese. A Portuguese writer, Diego de Conto, even referred to her as “Rainha de Jepara senhora Poderosa e ride” or the Queen of Jepara, a powerful and wealthy woman. Another moniker for her courage and great thoughts was “De Kranige Dame”, which means a tough, brave, and fearless woman.
In terms of trade, Queen Kalinyamat succeeded in making Jepara a maritime kingdom, where people lived peacefully by relying on the sea as their main livelihood. Besides leading her people to become prosperous sailors, she also supported the people in Jepara, Juana, Rembang, and Lasem in transforming and managing their areas as port towns.
As a result, these towns were not only well-established as transit points for sea travelers but also successful as exporters of sugar, honey, wood, coconuts, and secondary crops. These spices were valuable trade commodities between islands and nations at that time.
That was the story of Queen Kalinyamat, the national heroine from the land of Jepara. If you wish to learn more about her, you can visit Jepara Town in Central Java for a historical tour. Before you go, be sure to protect yourself with Travel Insurance from MSIG Indonesia!
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