Conquest of fort at Manipa, 5 December 1652

Conquest of a fort at Manipa, 5 December 1652. At the beginning of the Great Ambon War (1651-1656), VOC troops and their allies, under the command of Arnold de Vlamingh, had attempted to ecologically destroy the island of Manipa in order to render it uninhabitable, in retaliation for the bloody conquest of several VOC posts there. In late 1652, De Vlamingh returned to the island to pursue what remained of the local population. The inhabitants retreated into several mountain forts, which were besieged and conquered by orders of De Vlamingh. De inhabitants who escaped fled further into the interior. A poem at the top right praises the victory. Legend: 1 is ons fortjen op Manipa, 2 sijn onse sloepen, 3 sijn onse opklimmende soldaten, 4 is Keler en Frans Smallen met den vijand in gevecht tredende, 5 sijn d’onse tegens den vijand stormende, 6 is der vijanden wijkplaats. Part of an illustrated manuscript version of Livinus Bor, Amboinse Oorlogen, describing the events of the Great Ambon War (1651-1656), and defending and glorifying the acts of the VOC commander in this conflict, Arnold de Vlamingh van Oudshoorn.

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