| Introduction |
Surabaya (formerly Soerabaja) is Indonesia's second-largest city, and the capital of the province of East Java. It is located on the northern shore of eastern Java at the mouth of the Mas River and at the side of the Madura Strait.
The city is one of the busiest ports in the country. Its principal exports include sugar, tobacco and coffee. It has a large shipyard, and numerous specialized naval schools.
Surabaya derives its name from the words sura (shark) and buaya (crocodile), which, in a local myth, are told to be fighting each other in order to gain the title "the strongest and most powerful animal in the area". Now the two animals are used as the city's logo, the two facing each other while circling the city's monument, the Tugu Pahlawan (Heroes' monument). |
| History |
In the fifteenth and sixteenth century, Surabaya was a sultanate and a major political and military power in eastern Java. It entered a conflict with, and was later captured by, the more powerful Sultanate of Mataram in 1625 under Sultan Agung. It was one of Mataram's fiercest campaigns, in which they had to conquer Surabaya's allies, Sukadana and Madura and to lay siege to the city before capturing it. With this conquest, Mataram then controlled almost the whole of Java, with the exception of the Sultanate of Banten and the Dutch settlement of Batavia.
The expanding East Indies Companies took the city over from a weakened Mataram in November 1743. Surabaya became a major trading center under the Dutch colonial government, and hosted the largest naval base in the colony.
In 1917 a revolt occurred amongst the soldiers and sailors of Surabaya, led by the Indies Social Democratic Association. The revolt was firmly crushed and the insurgents given harsh sentences.
During World War II Surabaya was captured by the Japanese in 1942, until the Allies bombed it in 1944. After that it was seized by Indonesian nationalists. However, the young nation was soon put into conflict with the Allied-backed Dutch who tried to retake their colony. The Battle of Surabaya was one of the most important battles of the Indonesian revolution. It was started after British Brigadier General Mallaby was killed in a car explosion in October 30, 1945 near Jembatan Merah (the "Red Bridge"). The Allies gave an ultimatum to the Indonesian freedom fighters inside the city to surrender, but this was refused. The ensuing battle took place on 10 November, nowadays celebrated as Heroes' Day (Hari Pahlawan).
The city was then re-occupied by the Dutch in 1947. Because of prolonged international pressure, the Dutch agreed to transfer sovereignty of its colony in August 1949. Surabaya was ultimately incorporated into Indonesia in December 1949 and rebuilt.
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| The City |
As the main seaport and commercial center in the eastern region of Indonesia, Surabaya has become one of the largest cities in Southeast Asia. Today, Surabaya's population is around three million, and the surrounding metropolitan area houses at least 5 million. The areas surrounding Surabaya include Lamongan to the northwest, Gresik to the west, Bangkalan to the northeast, Sidoarjo to the south, and Mojokerto and Jombang to the southwest.
Currently, the Indonesian government is building the Suramadu Bridge between Surabaya and the island of Madura; when completed, it will be the longest bridge in the country. Madura is currently accessible by a ferry service that operates regularly from Surabaya's port, Tanjung Perak (which literally means: "Silver Cape" in Indonesian).
Surabaya is home to the Eastern Armada, one of two in the Indonesian Navy. Its strong maritime heritage is also reflected with the Submarine Monument, a real retired Russian submarine, called Pasopati, that was converted into a museum ship in the city centre.
Flooding is common in many areas of the city during the rainy season, mostly caused by clogged sewers and inept bureaucracy. The fact that Surabaya is located in a river delta and has a flat and relatively low elevation doesn't help the matter either.
Surabaya is the location of the only synagogue in Indonesia, although it is currently inactive.
Surabaya's zoo, opened in 1916, was the first in the world to have successfully bred orangutans in captivity.
Other points of interest include:
- Grand Mosque of Surabaya, the largest mosque in East Java
- Cheng Ho Mosque, the first mosque in Indonesia built with a Chinese style architecture
- Jales Veva Jaya Mahe Monument, a large, admiral-like statue which commemorates the Indonesian Navy
- Mpu Tantular Museum, has a large collection of ancient Javanese artifacts
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