Riau War

1783 CE.

Shown on the map at 0.936°, 104.448°.

The Riau War took place in 1783–1784 and was fought between the Dutch East India Company (VOC) and several Malay states led by Riau. The war centered at the port of Riau (Tanjungpinang) and the main Dutch base at Malacca. Occurring during the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War, it was triggered by a dispute over the division of spoils from a seized British ship. With incoming military reinforcements from Europe, the VOC became confident of its prospects and declared war. A blockade of Riau started in June 1784 and, after a months long blockade, the VOC attempted to seize Riau through the landing of marines. The assault was repelled following the destruction of a ship with heavy VOC losses and the loss of their commander. Forces from Riau and Selangor then besieged Malacca. Malacca's fall was prevented by the arrival of reinforcements in June 1784 and in ensuing fighting the Riau ruler Raja Haji Fisabilillah was killed. After relieving Malacca, the VOC proceeded to seize Kuala Selangor and launched another attack on Riau.

Text from the Wikipedia article Riau War, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

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