Jambi (Dharmasraya) Kingdom

The Jambi region, around the basin of the Batanghari River in central Sumatra, was the site of the pre-Islamic kingdom of Malayu.

In the mid-fourteenth century, Adityawarman, a prince who was educated in the Majapahit kingdom of Java set up a kingdom for himself in Minangkabau and rules over it for about thirty-five years from 1340 to 1375. 

Adityawarman moved his capital to Dharmasraya, somewhere in the upper reaches of the Batanghari.

He extended his power to the highlands of West Sumatra and later moved the capital to Pagaruyung.

Jambi took an active part in the international politics of the region, and in the 1670s its might was on par with that of powerful neighbors such as Palembang and Johor.

In 1616, the capital of Jambi was already seen as Sumatra’s second richest port, after Aceh.

In the same year, the Dutch East India Company opened an office in Jambi and quickly formed a successful alliance with Sultan Muhammad Nakhruddin to protect its ships and cargoes from pirates.

When the Indonesia gained its freedom in 1945 Jambi was designated as a Residence and then in 1957, as a Province, which was directly under the Central Government of Indonesia.
Jambi (Dharmasraya) Kingdom