Erang

Erang was a settlement on Hoamoal (Western Seram), a clove-producing region ruled by the kimelaha, the leader of Hoamoal with whom the VOC was periodically in conflict. The inhabitants of Erang and the surrounding villages had a reputation of selling their cloves to traders from Makassar and Java, which was in violation with the treaties with the VOC. For this reason, VOC troops attacked Erang in 1633, destroying the settlement and the surrounding clove plantations. In 1652, during the Great Ambon War (1651-1656), the settlement was attacked and destroyed again. At the end of the war, the entire peninsula was depopulated, and the people living there forced to relocate.