and his queen consort (c. 1920). After the death of
Sultan Agung I in 1645, the power and prestige of Sultanate of Mataram was declining due to a power struggle and conflict of succession within the royal family. The VOC (
Dutch East India Company) exploited the power struggle to increase its control on Java, and manage to gain concessions of Mataram's former colony in
Priangan and
Semarang. The Mataram seat in
Plered near
Kotagede collapsed after the
Trunojoyo revolt in 1677. Sunan Amral (
Amangkurat II) relocated the palace to
Kartasura. During the reign of Sunan
Pakubuwono II, in 1742 Raden Mas Garendi (
Sunan Kuning) led Chinese mercenaries and launched a revolt against the crown and also VOC. Raden Mas Garendi was the son of Prince Teposono and also the grandson of Amangkurat II. The rebels managed to take control of the Kartasura capital and ousted Pakubuwono II who fled and sought refuge in
Ponorogo. With the help of Adipati
Cakraningrat IV the ruler of western
Madura, Pakubuwono II regained the capital and cracked down on the rebellion. However the palace of Kartasura was destroyed and considered inauspicious since the bloodbath took place there. Pakubuwono II decided to build a new palace and capital city in Sala (Solo) village. The transfer of the capital to Sala village is commemorated in chandrasengkala (
chronogram)
"Kombuling Pudya Kapyarsihing Nata" which corresponds to Wednesday 12 Sura 1670 Javanese year (20 February 1745). The date is considered the day that the Surakarta Sunanate was established. Pakubuwono II faced numerous rebellions, among other from
Raden Mas Said, and later from his own younger brother, Prince
Mangkubumi who joined Mas Said's rebellion in 1746. Pakubuwono II died from illness in 1749, but before he died, he entrusted the royal affairs of Surakarta to his trusted protector,
Baron von Hohendorff, a VOC officer. On behalf of the successor of Pakubuwono II,
Pakubuwono III, the VOC manage to broker a peace negotiation with Prince Mangkubumi. The peace deal was reached with Mataram Sultanate being split in two based on the
Treaty of Giyanti of 13 February 1755: Yogyakarta Sultanate under the rule of Prince Mangkubumi who was later stylised as
Hamengkubuwono I and Surakarta Sunanate under Pakubuwono III. The Giyanti Treaty named
Pangeran Mangkubumi as
Sultan of Yogyakarta. During the era of Dutch rule, there were recognised two main principalities of
Vorstenlanden Mataram, the Surakarta Sunanate and The Yogyakarta Sultanate. Then a few years later Surakarta was divided further with the establishment of the
Mangkunegaran Princedom after the
Treaty of Salatiga (17 March 1757). The
Mangkunegaran Duchy or Princedom was led by notorious rebel
Raden Mas Said who was stylised as Mangkunegara I. The territory of Surakarta Sunanate were reduced much further after the
Java War (1825–1830) led by Prince
Diponegoro. Susuhunan
Pakubuwono VI was alleged to have secretly supported Diponegoro's rebellion, and as punishment after the Java War the Sunanate was obliged to surrender much of its lands to the Dutch. Throughout the
Dutch East Indies era, the Sunanate of Surakarta enjoyed autonomous status under the
Vorstenlanden Mataram arrangements. Together with the Sultanate of Yogyakarta, the Sunanate of Surakarta was considered as a vassal state of the
Dutch Empire under royal patronage of Netherlands crown. The peak of the Surakarta Sunanate's prestige and power were during the reign of
Pakubuwono X (1893–1939) when the Sunan renovated and enlarged the Surakarta palace and constructed many infrastructure projects and buildings in Surakarta city. The kingdom faced an era of strife and uncertainty during
World War II and the
Japanese occupation of the Dutch East Indies. ,
Boyolali Regency,
Klaten Regency,
Sragen Regency, and
Sukoharjo Regency (
Karanganyar Regency and
Wonogiri Regency was ruled by
Mangkunegaran Duchy) within
Central Java Province. After the declaration of independence of the Republic of Indonesia on 17 August 1945, followed by
Indonesian National Revolution, the Surakarta Sunanate with Mangkunegaran Princedom sent a letter of confidence to
Sukarno to demonstrate their support for the Indonesian Republic. As the reward the Republic awarded the status of
Daerah Istimewa (Special Region, similar to today Yogyakarta Sultanate) within the Republic of Indonesia. However, because the political agitation and opposition from
Indonesian communists that led to an anti-monarchy movement and rebellion in early 1946, on 16 June 1946 the Indonesian Republic aborted the special region status; both Surakarta's and Mangkunegara's status were reduced to merely a residence and were later merged into
Central Java province. In contrast, the Yogyakarta Sultanate has successfully maintained special status. Yogyakarta's historical support and close ties with the founding fathers of the Indonesian Republic during the war of independence and Indonesian national revolution. The Surakarta Sunanate holds no actual political power. Its power is limited to royal prestige and its special position in sustaining traditional
Javanese culture. The prestige still remains, that leading many leaders and political figures in Indonesia to seek affiliations with the Sunanate. ==Residences==