Vorstenlanden

When Mataram was not yet divided, the Dutch colonial administration named the area under its control Bovenlanden. Then, the Treaty of Giyanti, signed in 1755, divided Mataram into two, namely Surakarta and Yogyakarta with their respective territories and the Great State (Negara Agung) which was governed jointly. At that time, its area stretched from present-day Cilacap to around Mount Kelud in East Java. After the Third Javanese War of Succession and the treaty was ratified, the Sultanate of Mataram split into the Surakarta Sunanate and the Yogyakarta Sultanate (contemporaneous Dutch spelling: Djokjakarta); the Duchy of Mangkunegaran split from Surakarta in 1757. Lastly, the Duchy of Pakualaman split off from Yogyakarta in 1812 after the Invasion of Java (1811).[1]

The native rulers were formally considered 'autocrats' by the colonial authorities and all land in their territories was considered their property. However, they did not have jurisdiction over Europeans or 'non-indigenous Orientals', and most native law courts were eventually replaced by Dutch colonial ones. The colonial government also assumed authority in other areas; the princely territories did not have their own postal services, for instance. Dutch colonial administrators assumed the role of 'older brother' to the native princes, a relationship which was ritually symbolised by native princes taking the right arm of Dutch residents and governors during public ceremonies. The native rulers were styled as Princely Highness by the Dutch authorities. Like the particuliere landerijen [private domains], the princely states were not directly controlled by the colonial government, and so were not subjected to the Cultivation System, introduced by Governor-General Johannes van den Bosch in 1830.[2]