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| conflict = Java campaign of 1806–1807
| partof = the [[Napoleonic Wars]]
| image = Capture of the Maria Riggersbergen, Octr. 18th. 1806.jpg
| caption = ''Capture of the Maria Riggersbergen, Octr. 18th 1806'' <br /> [[Thomas Whitcombe]], 1817
| date = June 1806 – December 1807
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The '''Java campaign of 1806–1807''' was a
Although
The destruction of Hartsinck's squadron led to the collapse of Dutch naval power in the region and secured Britain's [[command of the sea]] across the western Pacific and eastern Indian Ocean, ensuring safe passage for British merchant shipping. With the Dutch no longer a threat to British mercantile interests in the East Indies, Britain's attention turned to the two remaining French colonies in the Indian Ocean, [[Isle de France (Mauritius)|Isle de France]] and [[Réunion|Isle Bonaparte]]. In the [[Mauritius campaign of 1809–1811]], both colonies were occupied by British forces, ending the threat from European rivals to Britain's interests in the region.
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In the beginning of 1806, control of the Indian Ocean in the [[Napoleonic Wars]] was disputed. The [[First French Empire]] and its Dutch client state, the [[Batavian Republic|Batavian Commonwealth]] (which became the [[Kingdom of Holland]] in mid-1806), held significant naval bases in the region, from which their warships could operate against British interests. The French colonies of [[Isle de France (Mauritius)|Isle de France]] and [[Réunion|Isle Bonaparte]] dominated the central Indian Ocean, allowing allied raiders to cruise British trade routes and attack isolated convoys, while the [[Dutch Cape Colony]] and [[Dutch East Indies]] controlled the points of entry to the ocean from east and west, with squadron being based at both colonies.<ref name="RLA183">Adkins, p. 183</ref><ref name="RG93">Gardiner, p. 93</ref> The British, whose bases in India gave them control of the Northern Indian Ocean, were able to obtain supplies and reinforcements from Europe more easily than their enemies, as the Royal Navy was already dominant in European waters, but British forces in the region were still insufficient to make a significant impact on the French and Dutch territories.<ref name="RG59">Gardiner, p. 59</ref> Control of the Indian Ocean was essential for the British war effort, because the British economy relied heavily on trade with the holdings of the [[Honourable East India Company]] in India and with other ports in the east, particularly in China.<ref name="RLA342">Adkins, p. 342</ref>
In 1803 at the outbreak of the Napoleonic Wars, [[Linois' expedition to the Indian Ocean|a French squadron]] under [[Counter
The British commander in the Indian Ocean, Rear-admiral [[Peter Rainier (Royal Navy officer, born 1741)|Peter Rainier]], was preoccupied with protecting merchant shipping off India during 1804 and 1805 to be able to risk an expedition to the [[Java Sea]]. His successor, Rear-admiral [[Edward Pellew|Sir Edward Pellew]] was distracted by the continued operations of Linois's squadron and attacks from frigates based at Isle de France to take any action against the Dutch before the beginning of the monsoon season at the end of 1805, at which point the threat posed by [[hurricanes]] prevented any major seabourne operations. However, by early 1806, the departure of Linois into the Atlantic Ocean allowed Pellew and his squadron in [[Madras]] to consider offensive operations against enemy harbours.<ref name="RG81"/> In addition to the threat from cruising French squadrons, a squadron of the [[navy of the Kingdom of Holland]] under Vice-admiral [[Pieter Hartsinck]] was based at Batavia. Hartsinck's squadron, which consisted of three ships of the line, three frigates and a number of smaller warships, was principally tasked with anti-piracy operations, but their presence so close to the Malacca Straits was a source of concern to the British command in India.<ref name="RG81"/> Control of the Indian Ocean was essential for the British war effort, because the British economy relied heavily on trade with British India and other parts of Asia, particularly China.{{fact|date=May 2025}}
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===Attack on Batavia===
{{further|Raid on Batavia (1806)}}
[[File:
Encouraged by the success of his frigates in the Java Sea, Pellew mustered a significant force in the early autumn of 1806, including four ships of the line, two frigates and a brig with which to eliminate the remaining Dutch squadron.<ref name="LG1">{{London Gazette|issue=16044|page=893|date=4 July 1807}}</ref> Reaching the [[Sunda Strait]] on 23 November, Pellew passed by the port of [[Bantam (city)|Bantam]] and on 27 November reached Batavia, splitting his forces so that the lighter vessels sailed close to shore and the ships of the line remained in deeper water outside the channel entering the harbour. A corvette was captured, and the rest of the Dutch squadron was taken by surprise, mistaking Pellew's force for a French squadron.<ref name="WLC392">Clowes, p. 392</ref> By the time their mistake was revealed, the harbour was already blocked and so Captain [[F. W. C. van de Sande]] drove ''Phoenix'' ashore, followed by six other warships and 22 merchant ships.<ref name="WJ268">James, Vol. 4, p. 268</ref>
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Java, campaign of 1806-1807}}
[[Category:Java campaign of 1806–1807| ]]
[[Category:1806 in the Dutch East Indies]]
[[Category:1807 in the Dutch East Indies]]
[[Category:19th century in Java]]
[[Category:Naval battles involving the Netherlands]]
[[Category:Naval battles of the Napoleonic Wars involving the United Kingdom]]
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