Get to know Arya Damar, the Majapahit Gunpowder Expert whose Traces are Mysterious

The Kingdom of Majapahit is so strong in his heyday. The collection of power was inseparable from the presence of a war expert who was able to lock the movement of the enemy and the advancement of the Majapahit civilization at that time. One of them is a weapon that can make enemy steps to walk backwards. The name Arya Damar will never fade. Despite his mysterious footsteps, he remained a legendary leader in power in Palembang in the mid-15th century AD as a subordinate to the Kingdom of Majapahit. He is also known as other names like Ario Damar or Ario Abdilah. According to the Chinese chronicle from the Sam Po Kong Temple in Semarang, Arya Damar also has a Chinese name, namely Swan Liong (Diamond Dragon).  Her name is without a surname in front of her, because her mother is a Chinese-born woman.  At first, Arya Damar was the head of the gunpowder factory or a person who was trusted to take care of the needs of gunpowder for the Majapahit military, especially as explosives for cannons, which at that time the factory was established in Semarang.  His expertise in the field of Gunpowder and Modern Armaments in his era, finally Arya Damar was transferred by the Queen of the Majapahit Kingdom to Palembang, where he was appointed a Duke.  The choice of Arya Damar as Duke of Palembang certainly had its own reasons, because at that time Palembang was one of the western bases of the Majapahit navy outside Java.  So it requires a leader who understands well about weapons, especially cannons and gunpowder.  The power that catapulted his name.Arya Damar is also known in Kidung Pamacangah and Usana Bali as a vassal ruler in Palembang who helped Majapahit conquer Bali in 1343. Bravely, he led 15,000 soldiers to attack Bali from the north, while Gajah Mada attacked from the south with the same number of soldiers.

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The Greatness of Mpu Nala, the Commander of the Majapahit Navy, the Ruler of the Seas Who Terrified the Mongol Empire

Mpu Nala as Commander of the Navy of the Majapahit Kingdom was widely reviewed by Agus S Serono in the book "Jayaning Majapahit: The Story of the Knights of the Ocean Guard", and Irawan Joko in his book "Majapahit Maritime Civilization".

 This Majapahit warlord had a precise strategy by placing dozens of his warships to guard five important points in the waters of the archipelago. The war fleets of the Majapahit Kingdom, among others, were stationed in the west of Sumatra, namely the Cluster 1 Fleet which served as the guard of the Indian Ocean.  This fleet is controlled by an admiral from Central Java.

 The Cluster 2 fleet guards the South Sea, or the South Sea of ​​Java.  This fleet is led by an admiral who is the son of Bali.

 Meanwhile, the Fleet Cluster 3 is in charge of guarding the waters of the Makassar Strait, and the Ternate, Tidore, and Halmahera areas, under the leadership of a Makassar son admiral.

 The group 4 fleet has the task of guarding the Malacca Strait and the Natuna Islands led by an admiral from West Java.

 While the Fleet Cluster 5 has the authority to guard the Java Sea, to the east to the spice islands of Maluku.  This fleet was led by an admiral from East Java.

 Flag ships were placed in every fleet of the Majapahit warship group.  The flag ship is the seat of the highest command leader for all attack ships, supply ships, and flag ship protectors. When initially led by Mpu Nala, the Majapahit Royal Navy used warships from the former Mongol army, which was sent by Kublai Khan to conquer Java, during the reign of Kertanegara.

 The presence of Admiral Nala as the navy commander of the Majapahit Kingdom, was the beginning of Gajah Mada's awareness to ask for his help.  Gajah Mada, who had said the Palapa Oath, realized that it was impossible to fulfill his oath to rule the archipelago, relying solely on land routes.

 When the Amukti Palapa oath was pronounced by the Mahapatih of the Majapahit Kingdom, the islands of Bali, Sumatra, Kalimantan, Sulawesi, and Tumasik (Singapore) were not yet under the banner of Majapahit rule.  Gajah Mada needed a strong money navy, to unite the islands through maritime expeditions.

 The naval power of the Majapahit Kingdom at that time was still very weak.  Gajah Mada ventured to ask for help from Admiral Nala to strengthen the Majapahit Kingdom's navy.  The strengthening of the navy is carried out in terms of the quality and welfare of the soldiers, as well as the quality of the warships.

 The Majapahit ships were created by Mpu Nala from a kind of giant wood that only grows on a secret island.  This made the Majapahit ships quite large at that time. Mpu Nala succeeded in building the Majapahit Kingdom's navy to become the largest and strongest in the plains of Southeast Asia.  The navy of the Majapahit Kingdom under the leadership of Admiral Nala had about 40 thousand soldiers.  This power made Majapahit respected in Southeast Asia, even to the Chinese Empire.

 Admiral Nala became the commander of the jeweled navy of the Majapahit Kingdom, who had a high genius in his time.  When there was no marine school, Mpu Nala was able to create sophisticated ships with the results of studying the warships belonging to the Mongols.

 Thanks to the cold hand of Admiral Nala, the naval power of the Majapahit Kingdom became very powerful and invincible.  This maritime power, made the greatness of Majapahit legendary until now. 

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Saying the Palapa Oath which is shocking, Gajah Mada is laughed at and reviled

Sitting cross-legged in front of Rani Kahuripan or Bhre Kahuripan, and surrounded by ministers, suddenly Gajah Mada's voice boomed declaring the oath, the contents of which would only rest after successfully conquering the archipelago. Mahapatih Gajah Mada will leave office after Gurun, Seran, Tanjung Pura, Haru, Pahang, Dompo, Bali, Sunda, Palembang and Tumasik kiss the feet of Majapahit.  What happened?.  The atmosphere of the meeting was in an uproar.  Many ministers were flabbergasted. Including Bhre Kahuripan, who after the death of King Jayanegara held the reins of the Majapahit government.  Also amazed.  However, it was not the case with Twins, one of the important Majapahit officials who was also present at the paseban.  The twins laughed mockingly. felt insulted, then descended from the paseban to face the rani's feet," wrote Slamet Muljana in "Towards the Peak of Splendor, History of the Majapahit Kingdom". Gajah Mada was appointed Mahapatih of the Majapahit Kingdom in 1336.

 He replaced Aria Cistern, who had complained for a long time that it was difficult to fulfill her obligations as regent of mangku earth.  Aria Tadah herself had also long wanted Gajah Mada to be her successor.  Aria Cistern's wish was well-founded. 

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