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Suropati Park’s centenary: A story of lost charm and glory
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Green and serene: People enjoy the surrounds of Suropati Park. (JP/Agus Dermawan T.)
Over its 100 year history, Suropati Park has gone through many ups and downs.
The park, adjacent to the main thoroughfares of Jl. Diponegoro and Jl. Imam Bonjol in Central Jakarta, is an iconic landmark built by FJ Kubatz and FJL Gijshels under the direction of PAJ van Moojen, a Dutch architect who set up the now defunct Bataviasche Kunstkring (Jakarta Art Club) not far from the park.
The then-mayor of Batavia, the city’s name during the colonial era, GJ Bisschop, who was in office from 1916 to 1920, instructed the three men to build the park, which was then named Bisschopplein.
The park was officially inaugurated in 1919, meaning this year marks its 100 year anniversary. In 1950, when Indonesia’s independence was formally acknowledged by the Netherlands, the government renamed the park Suropati Park.
The new name is a tribute to Untung Suropati (1660-1706), a former slave who became a commander during a war against Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie (VOC), the Dutch company that began the process of colonialization that saw the Dutch rule the Indonesian archipelago for around 300 years.
Throughout the decades, Suropati Park has continued to be a green space in the middle of the bustling megalopolis.
Located in the elite area of Menteng, the park received the utmost care for its soil and aesthetics during its early years. Nearly 100 plant species, grown by Bisschop, were always well maintained, including mahogany, sawo kecik (caqui), ketapang (tropical almond) and tanjung (Spanish cherry).
