In the 1820’s, the Dutch took over Bengkulu and used the Fort as their colonial police headquarters. It served as a Japanese military HQ in the region, when they occupied our country, before we Indonesians finally repurposed it as our own National Police Headquarters, following Independence.
Several years later, the Indonesian Army took over Fort Marlborough. Finally, they handed it over to the Department of Education and Culture for restoration and cultural preservation, in 1977.
Let’s Explore Fort Marlborough
Built for defense and control, Fort Marlborough is shaped like a turtle. Its extremely strong inner walls have a thickness of 1.8 meters, while the outer walls are 3 meters thick and 8.65 meters tall. On arrival, you can see the great moat that served as an additional defense measure all around the Fort. Now, it is no longer filled with water, but dried and covered in fresh green grass. Before exploring the Fort, please buy a reasonably-priced entry ticket at just IDR 5,000.00 per person. You will help preserve and keep up a national heritage.
Once you get your ticket, walk East to the main building of the complex – just ahead. The former soldier’s barracks still have their original steel portcullis. There were also offices and detainment cells, which now house exhibits that explain the history of Bengkulu’s colonial days. Each room has plaques and signs explaining their former use. Fun fact: one of these rooms was the interrogation chamber used by the Dutch to grill future President Soekarno.