Ch.9 Two More Empires, Two Rebellions
The Dutch East Indies
- In 1824 the two countries came to an agreement. The Dutch would promise never to attack Singapore, and they would give the British all of the Dutch ports and settlements in India. In return, the Dutch could have Sumatra as their own. But there was a catch: the Dutch had to allow the kingdom of Acheh, on the northern end of Sumatra, to stay independent. That way, Acheh would be like a “neutral zone” between the British in Singapore and the Dutch in Sumatra.
- In 1873 the Dutch invaded Ache with three thousand men. They didn‘t realize that the fighting would go on for more than thirty years.
- In 1903, the Dutch finally gained control over Acheh. But the long war had been so expensive that the Dutch government had been forced to spend all the money it had made from the East Indies.
The Sick Man of Europe
- The Russians had not given up the idea of attacking the Ottoman Empire, the “sick man of Europe”, again. In 1876, Russia got its chance.
- By January of 1878, the Ottoman forces had begun to crumble. By March, it was clear that Russia had won the war. Abdulhamid was forced to sign a treaty that would give Bulgaria its independence. Russia took part of Anatolia for itself. Under the treaty, the Ottoman Empire lost half of its territory!
