Location
Marlborough fort stood firm on the waterfront on a plateau with a height of approximately 8.5 meters above sea level (asl). Administratively, this castle is situated in the village of Kebon Keling, Kelurahan Kampung China, Gulf Segara Subdistrict, Bengkulu, Bengkulu Province.
The outside of the castle moat and surrounded by dikes, but on the front and the rear has not looked back only a rather low form of land and buildings have been demolished former. Outer circumference side of the moat which is now made levee trail approximately one meter wide. From this path there are pages that are restricted by the iron fence surrounding the fort that became a barrier between the fort with the outside environment.
Environment outside the fence bordering the highway fort, on the east by way Citadel, (formerly Road Burniat), continues with a fork in the road segment and Parks Tread Khodijah Padri with the background of human settlements and the right fork in the road there on the corner of the school. In the west is bordered by Jalan A. Yani and shops as well as Chinatown, including the former Courthouse, north of Jalan A. Yani and the Old Port (Beach attractions Bai), and south of Castle Road and Garden Village public housing Keling
Historical Background
The arrival of Europeans to Bengkulu as well as to other areas, initially for trade-related. VOCs come in 1604 and founded the auction office, then go in 1670. While Britain via EIC (East India Company) came in 1685 and entered into an agreement with the Kingdom wide. British colonial power in Bengkulu for 140 years commencing from the year 1685 and ended in 1825 with the London treaty (Treaty of London) which contains the British handover to the Dutch territory. In that time, the British build the infrastructure to support imperialismenya in Bengkulu. Infrastructure that was built among others garnizun, lodges, warehouses, roads, ports, offices and fortifications. One is a castle fortress built Marlborough. Marlborough naming is a tribute to John Churchill who holds the Duke of Marlborough I.
Marlborough castle construction was intended as a bulwark to defend British rule in the west coast of Sumatra from the threat of the Netherlands. It is also intended to maintain the Bengkulu area as a regional trade center and the pepper monopoly.
Construction of the fort was initiated by Governor Joseph Collet (1712-1716). Initial construction began in 1713 and completed in 1719, in the span of time is recorded the names of the British rulers who have contributed in the construction of the citadel, among others, Joseph Collet (1712-1716), Thiophillus Shyllings (1716-1717), Richard Former ( 1717-1718) and Thomas Cooke (1718).
Function as a bastion of Fort Marlborough to continue in the next period, ie by the Dutch (1825-1942), Japan (1942-1945) and by the army of the Republic of Indonesia during the struggle for Indonesian independence. The fortress is still standing strong to this day a monument to the struggle of the people of Bengkulu in demanding justice and freedom from the invaders.
Architecture Building
Marlborough fort stands on an area of 44100.5 meter2 with a length of 240.5 m and 170.5 m wide, with orientation of 215 degrees to the southwest. Marlborough fort-shaped tortoise with direction toward the head to the southwest, while the entrance to the fort over to the west, namely the right eye turtle with the entrance and the bridge that connects the entrance to the outside.
On the head and body connected by a bridge that forms part of the neck. On the back of the fortress there is the entrance from the rear and a bridge over the moat that forms the tail. The third bridge in the early days when-as can be raised and lowered. Around the outer boundary wall of the fortress there are still original boundaries of the trenches.
On the inside of the fort there are several elongated building that was originally functioned as an armory, where prisoners and offices and open spaces which are part of the page. Overall shape of the building which berdenah tortoises are characteristic fortresses in Europe. The head of the turtle serves as the entrance to the fort, while the turtle body serves as a stronghold and fourth legs serves as a bastion.
The fort was constructed by using a mixture of lime, sand, cement and red. High outer walls 8.65 m thick and 3 m height inside 8.50 m, 1.85 m thick Building the fort consists of eight buildings, namely:
a. Building a turtle head
(Length 60 m wide and 40.40 m)
b. Building foot tortoise southern
(Length 50.90 m and 50.60 m wide);
c. Building foot tortoise eastern
(Length 50.90 m and 50.10 m wide)
d. Building foot tortoise northern
(Length 70.20 m and 40.60 m wide);
e. Building foot tortoise western
(Length 50.40 m and 50.10 m wide);
f. Northeast Building
(Length 50.20 m wide and 6.80 m);
g. Building southeast
(Panjanng 60 m wide and 6.80 m);
h. Building northwest
(Length 61 m wide and 6.80 M).
Each building has rooms that serve as places of detention, arsenal, equipment and offices. On each foot tortoise (bastion) there are several guns both large and small size and at the bottom of the building foot tortoise northern part there is a tunnel of length 6 m and a width of 2 m. In the building there is a bunker used as a way out of an enemy siege. The center of the fort is open without a roof, the floors are made of tile, stone or rock is a roof made of tile. Gates and doors of other rooms made of wood that were given boosters in the form of iron pegs. 're Holding room using the bars.
At the back door of the fort there are three buildings tomb, which is the tomb of Thomas Parr, Charles Murray and the tomb of the unknown. In addition there are three tombs proficiency level four English headstone inscription attached to a wall gate entrance from the back that reads: George Thomas Shaw, who died April 25, 1704, Richard Watts, who died December 17, 1705 at the age of 44 years, Henry Stirling, who died in April 1744 at the age of 25 years and Capt.. James Coney, who died in February 1737 at the age of 36 years.
Historical Preservation
In an effort to preserve and protect the fortress from possible damage in the fiscal year 1977/1978 sd. 1983/1984 restoration done by the Project Development and Maintenance of Heritage and Antiquities Bengkulu. The restoration includes the heads of turtles, turtle feet west and north, the bridge (the pole safety wall), the manufacture of doors and windows and landscaping. In 1984 made the inauguration purnapugar Fort Marlborough by the Director General of Culture Prof.. Dr. Haryati Soebadio.
Subsequent maintenance efforts conducted by the Center for Archaeological Heritage Preservation Work Area Jambi Province Jambi, South Sumatra, Bengkulu, Bangka Belitung and cooperate with the Project Development and Maintenance of Heritage and Antiquities Bengkulu. Include the appointment of interpreters maintained in 1994, the realignment of landscaping fort in 1992, conservation cannon fort in 1997 and the appointment of Security Unit (OFFICIAL) 1998.
In addition to support the implementation of the preservation of buildings and environment with more leverage also performed pemintakatan keterawatan sites and evaluating the condition of post-restoration by the Project Development Section Heritage and Antiquities of Bengkulu in 1997/1998. The restoration is then performed by the Project on Utilization of Edinburgh Heritage and Archaeology of the financial year till 2002. 2004.
Cover
The presence of Fort Marlborough as a conservation body budaa should be retained because of its role in remembering the past. In the past, this castle is one of the historical evidence in the Indonesian struggle against and defend the independence of Indonesia. Besides the castle and the surrounding residential neighborhood area showed a distinctive architectural feature. The specificity is evident from the architectural style of buildings that exhibit a characteristic area of the city that never get a variety of influences, ranging from the influence of Britain, the Netherlands, and Japan as well as the struggle for independence. Given this characteristic, then the Marlborough fort became one of the mainstay of cultural tourism assets for the Province of Bengkulu.
