Indonesian National Awakening - End of The Colonial State

End of The Colonial State

See also: Japanese occupation of Indonesia and Indonesian National Revolution

With the coming of World War II, the political fate of the Indies was suddenly obscure. The islands' Dutch rulers found themselves occupied by Germany in May 1940. Themselves occupied by foreign rulers, the Dutch were in a weak position to guarantee their rule in the Indies. Yet, the colonial government in exile was determined to continue its rule over the archipelago.

In early 1942, Imperial Japan invaded the Dutch East Indies. The Netherlands had little ability to defend its colony against the Japanese army and Dutch forces were overrun in little more than a month—a blow that was to end 300 years of Dutch colonial presence in Indonesia. The changes under the subsequent three year occupation were so numerous and extraordinary that the subsequent watershed, the Indonesia Revolution, was possible in a manner unfeasible just three years earlier.

After the Japanese surrendered to the Allies in 1945, the Dutch sought to resume colonial control over the Indies. In these aims, the Dutch obtained the military backing of the British who fought bloody battles on Java to restore Dutch rule. The Indonesian nationalists, despite heavy losses, were not to be deterred. By 1945, an idea of "Indonesia" was seemingly irresistible.