Ternate

Maluku is mentioned in Nagarakretagama (1365) which was written by Mpu Tantular from the Majapahit Empire. The term originally denoted the spice-producing islands of North Maluku, of which Ternate evolved as the dominant one. The Ternate Kingdom was previously known as Kingdom of Gapi.[4] Moluccan tradition has it that there was an exodus of people moving out of Halmahera island around 1250 because of political conflicts there.[5]^:4 The settlement founded by people from Halmahera was first situated close on the hillside of the Gamalama mountain, and named Tobona. During this time, the settlement was ruled by a tribal chief with title Momole.[5]^:4 This period was characterized by several smaller tribal settlements around the Gamalama mountain which were founded later on. Of other early settlements, Foramadiahi was established further downhill, while Sampalu, and Gamlamo were founded along the coast, unlike Tobona village. These settlements also had their own Momole and were nominally independent from each other.[5]^:4

In 1257, according to traditional chronology, Tobona gathered all the Momole from other villages for a meeting, with the result that all Momole from the various villages agreed to choose Cico, the chief of Sampalu village, as collective ruler of Ternate. Cico may correspond to Kaicil Mashur Malamo, who was the first ruler according to other traditions and was a son of the Arab Jafar Sadik. Legend points out this Jafar Sadik as the father of the founding kings of Ternate, Tidore, Bacan and Jailolo. This political four-division had a great symbolic role. Cico replaced his title with Kolano, which means "king".[5]^:4 The capital of the kingdom was fixed at Sampalu village, but moved to Formadiahi during the reign of Kaicil Siale (1284–1298).[5]^:4 Under Kaicil Ngara Malamo (1304–1317), Ternate expanded its influence and conquered neighbouring islands.[5]^:5 Ngara Malamo was succeeded by Patsyarangan Malamo (1317-–1322) and later Sidang Arif Malamo (1322–1331). During this time, Ternate started to have commercial contacts with Chinese and Arab traders, especially from Malacca and Java. Ternate became a major port city and center of the spice trade in Moluccas region, competing with its rival, Tidore. Some of the foreign traders eventually created the foundations of the Chinese and Arab communities in the city today.[5]^:5

In about 1322, Arif Malamo initiated the Moti Agreement, which was a result of discussions between the rulers in Moluccas about trade and standardization of government structures. As the result of this agreement, the Moluccas saw relatively peaceful times of over the next twenty years, and trade flourished.[5]^:6 However, he was succeeded by Kaicil Tulu Malamo who later revoked the agreement, which he saw as limiting his expansionist ambitions. Ternate slowly conquered neighbouring islands such as the Sula Islands and Seram Island over the course of the 1400s.[5]^:6

In the midst of this expansionist era, Ternate officially became an Islamic sultanate during the reign of Zainal Abidin (1468–1500) and supplemented the Kolano title with that of Sultan. Zainal Abidin also changed the traditional Moluccan government structure into a more Islamic one, including the foundation of Jolabe, a council made up of Islamic clerics that would advise the sultan on religious matters. This structural and titular change would be influential and was adopted by neighbouring Tidore and Bacan.[5]^:7

Gate of the palace of Ternate Sultanate.

Ternate and neighbouring Tidore were the world's major producer of cloves upon which their rulers became among the wealthiest and most powerful sultans in the Indonesian region. Much of their wealth, however, was wasted fighting each other. Up until the Dutch completed the colonization of Maluku in the 19th century, the sultans of Ternate ruled an empire that periodically claimed at least nominal influence as far as Ambon, Sulawesi and Papua.[6][7]

The peak of its power came near the end of the sixteenth century, under Sultan Baabullah, when it enjoyed influence over most of the eastern part of Sulawesi, the Ambon and Seram area, the Banda Islands, Solor Islands, Mindanao, and parts of Papua. It engaged in a fierce competition for control of its periphery with the nearby sultanate of Tidore. According to historian Leonard Andaya, Ternate's "dualistic" rivalry with Tidore was a dominant theme in the early history of the Maluku Islands.[8]

In part as a result of its trade-dependent culture, Ternate was one of the earliest places in the region to which Islam spread, coming from Java in the late 15th century.[9] However, Islamic influence in the area can be traced further back to the late 14th century.[10] Initially, the faith was restricted to Ternate's small ruling family, and spread only slowly to the rest of the population.[9]

Early map of northern Maluku made during the Age of Discovery. North is on the right, with Ternate as the rightmost followed by Tidore, Mare, Moti and Makian islands. The bottom is the Gilolo (Jailolo or Halmahera) Island. The inset on the top is Bacan Island. Willem Blaeu, 1630

Colonial-era painting of Ternate island, c. 1883–1889.

The first Europeans to stay on Ternate were part of the Portuguese expedition of Francisco Serrão, coming from Malacca, which was shipwrecked near Seram and rescued by local residents. Sultan Abu Lais of Ternate heard of their stranding, and, seeing a chance to ally himself with a powerful foreign nation, he brought them to Ternate in 1512. The Portuguese were permitted to build a fort (Kastella) on the island, construction of which began in 1522.[11]

Relations between the Ternateans and Portuguese were strained from the start. An outpost far from Europe generally only attracted the most desperate and avaricious figures. The generally poor behaviour of the Portuguese combined with feeble attempts at Christianisation, which strained relations with Ternate's Muslim ruler,[12] as did their efforts to monopolise the spice trade and dominate local politics.[6] In 1535 King Tabariji was deposed and sent to Goa by the Portuguese. He converted to Christianity and changed his name to Dom Manuel. After being declared innocent of the charges against him he was sent back to reassume his throne; he died en route in Malacca in 1545. He had, though, bequeathed the island of Ambon to his Portuguese godfather Jordão de Freitas.[13]

When Sultan Hairun was murdered and his head exhibited on a pike in 1570, the Muslim Ternateans rebelled against the Portuguese who were besieged in their castle. Their captain was Dom Álvaro de Ataíde, and Belchior Vieira de Ternate distinguished himself in the defense, until the garrison was forced to capitulate to the new Sultan Babullah in 1575. The Sultan then made the castle his palace.[6] Ambon and Tidore became the new centres for Portuguese activities in Maluku. European power in the region was weak and Ternate became an expanding, fiercely Islamic and anti-Portuguese state under the rule of Babullah (r. 1570–1583) and his son Sultan Saidi Berkat.[14]

In 1579, the sultan entertained the English adventurer and circumnavigator Sir Francis Drake, who much to the surprise of the Ternateans had limited interest in buying cloves as his ship, the Golden Hind, was too full of gold that he had raided from Spanish treasure ships to carry cloves.[6]

Sultan of Ternate's guard.

As the Portuguese battles in the Indian Ocean against Muslim powers raged on, Ternate became a site of interest especially for the Ottomans, who had gained much information about maritime Southeast Asia from the Sultanate of Aceh. In fact Kurtoğlu Hızır Reis, the Ottoman Admiral, intended to reach both Java, Borneo and Ternate but was engaged in battle and was outnumbered against the Portuguese Fleet in Sumatra.

Spanish and Dutch traders competing for control over the lucrative clove trade were caught up in the competition between Ternate and Tidore. The Dutch eventually became the ruling power, although for a long time their influence was limited and the sultanates were in place almost continually until today.[6] Spanish forces captured the former Portuguese fort from the Ternatese in 1606, deported the Ternate Sultan and his entourage to Manila,[15] a city which the Spanish captured from the Sultanate of Brunei by siding with the subjugated Kingdom of Tondo, the state which Manila displaced when Brunei invaded Luzon. The Spanish set up Manila as a Captaincy-General under the Mexico-based Viceroyalty of New Spain and Spanish Ternate in turn was ruled under the Governor-General based in Manila. In 1607 the Dutch came back in Ternate where with the help of Ternateans built a fort in Malayo.[16] The Spaniards occupied the southern part of the island where they had their main settlement the town of Ciudad del Rosario.[17] The island was divided between the two powers: the Spaniards were allied with Tidore and the Dutch with their Ternaten allies.

For the Ternatean rulers, the Dutch were a useful, if not particularly welcome, presence that gave them military advantages against Tidore and the Spanish. Particularly under Sultan Hamzah (r. 1627–1648), Ternate expanded its territory and strengthened its control over the periphery. Dutch influence over the kingdom was limited, though Hamzah and his successor, Sultan Mandar Syah (r. 1648–1675) did concede some regions to the Dutch East India Company (VOC) in exchange for help controlling rebellions there. The Spaniards abandoned Ternate and Tidore in 1663. When they abandoned Ternate, some of the people accompanied the Spanish in their retreat to the Philippines. About 200 families of mixed Mexican-Filipino-Spanish and Papuan-Indonesian-Portuguese descent left Ternate and settled in the Philippines.[18] In the Philippines, they settled in (Ermita, Manila), (San Roque, Cavite), (Tanza, Cavite) and (Ternate, Cavite) which they named after their homeland. However, there are still remnants of these mixed Mexican-Filipino-Spanish and Papuan-Indonesian-Portuguese people who elected to stay in Ternate, Indonesia, although they were persecuted by a resurgent Islamicizing Sultanate of Ternate. In the 18th century, Ternate was the site of a VOC governorship, which attempted to control all trade in the northern Moluccas.

By the 19th century, the spice trade had declined substantially. Hence the region was less central to the Netherlands colonial state, but the Dutch maintained a presence in the region in order to prevent another colonial power from occupying it. After the VOC was nationalised by the Dutch government in 1800, Ternate became part of the Government of the Moluccas (Gouvernement der Molukken). Ternate was captured and occupied by the British in 1810 before being returned to Dutch control in 1817. In 1824 became the capital of a residency (administrative region) covering Halmahera, the entire west coast of New Guinea, and the central east coast of Sulawesi. By 1867 all of Dutch-occupied New Guinea had been added to the residency, but then its region was gradually transferred to Ambon (Amboina) before being dissolved into that residency in 1922.

Like the rest of Indonesia, Ternate was occupied by Japanese forces during World War II; eastern Indonesia was governed by the Navy. After Japan surrendered in August 1945 and Indonesia declared independence, Ternate was reoccupied in early November 1945 by Allied forces intending to return Indonesia to Dutch control. After World War 2, the city would gained city status on 10 December 1946.[5]^:18 However, on 30 March 1965, Ternate's status was demoted from city (kotapraja) to a district. The city status would be regained again on 11 March 1981.[5]^:19 The sultanate still exists but with no power, and the titular rulers only act as cultural figures.[19]

It became part of Maluku province when Indonesia became independent. Ternate saw some violence in the 1998–2000 sectarian conflict across the Maluku islands, not, however, to the extent of other islands such as nearby Halmahera.[6] After the split of new North Maluku province, it was assigned as de facto capital of the province until 2010 when Sofifi, which is located on bigger Halmahera island, was chosen. However, Sofifi still lacked of infrastructure and city status, and until today most of activities in the province was still conducted in Ternate.[20]

Ternate has a tropical rainforest climate (Af) with heavy rainfall year-round.

At the time of the 2010 Census, Ternate city (which includes seven neighbouring islands and islets as well as the main island of Ternate) was divided into seven districts (kecamatan), but in 2018 an eighth district (Ternate Barat) was created in the west of the island from part of the Pulau Ternate District. The districts are tabulated below with their areas (in km²) and their populations at the 2010 Census[3] and the 2020 Census.[2] Five of these districts are on the island of Ternate, while the remaining three each consist of a smaller neighbouring island or (in the case of Pulau Batang Dua District) islands. The table also includes the number of administrative villages (desa and kelurahan) in each district and its post code.

Notes:
(a) Pulau Ternate District now consists of a reduced part of the western section of Ternate island.
(b) the new Ternate Barat district includes the 22.05 km² Hutan Lindung (protected forest) in the middle of the island and including the volcanic cone. (c) the figure is included in the previous figure for Pulau Ternate District. (d) this district actually comprises five islands - Mayau (24.17 km²), Tifure (4.60 km²), Gurida (0.22 km²) and the islets Makka and Mano.

As with all of Indonesian cities, the local government is a second-level administrative division run by a mayor and vice mayor together with the city parliament, and it is equivalent to regency.[24] Executive power lies in the mayor and vice mayor, while legislation duties are carried by local parliament. Mayor, vice mayor, and parliament members are democratically elected by people of the city in an election.[25] Meanwhile, head of districts are appointed directly by city mayor with recommendation by the city secretary.[26][27]

The city is part of 1st North Maluku electoral district together with West Halmahera Regency, which both together have 12 out of 45 seats in provincial parliament. On city level, it is divided into four electoral districts which in total has 30 representatives.[28] They are 1st electoral district consist of Central Ternate which have eight seats on city parliament, 2nd electoral district with North Ternate which have seven seats, 3rd electoral district with South Ternate and Moti Island Distirct with 12 seats, and 4th electoral district with Ternate Island, Hiri Island, and Batang Dua Island District with three seats.[28]

The city is home to numerous historical forts built by both Europeans and Sultanate of Ternate, such as Kalamata Fort, Kastela Fort, Oranje Fort, and Santo Pedro Fort. Fort Tolukko and Fort Kalamata were built by Portuguese, while Fort Oranje, the largest among them, was a temporary headquarters of Dutch East India Company.[49] The palace of Sultan Ternate still exist and currently function as a museum. It is named Kedaton Sultan Ternate and is considered national cultural heritage of Indonesia. Another historical building is Ternate Sultanate Mosque, which was built close to the palace.[49]

The city celebrated kora-kora (traditional Moluccan boat) festival during their city anniversary which were held in early December. It consist of parade of decorated boats, rowing competition, fishing competition, and traditional art and dance shows.[50] Other festival included Legu Gam Festivel, which were held to celebrate sultan's birthday. During the festival, several special traditional dances were performed in parade.[51] These festivals have been supported and promoted by Ministry of Tourism.[52]

Ternate city from above, Nukila Park can be seen close to waterfront

There are several city parks in Ternate, such as Nukila Park which is facing the sea.[53] Located between Toboko and Mangga Dua subdistrict, was built above reclamed land. During weekends and holidays, it is usually filled with streetfood sellers.[54] From the park, Tidore island also can be seen.[55] Another city park, Moya Park, located on Moya subdistrict, was previously dump site. The park has facilities such as live music and several small food stores selling coffee. From the park also Ternate city from height could be seen, and the park is popular site for New Year celebration.[56] The city government also has introduced several free WiFi hotspots in public spaces, including city parks.[57][58]

The city is home to several shopping malls, such as Jatiland Mall, Hypermart Ternate, and Muara Mall.[59][60] The city also offers good diving hotspots not far from the city center such as behind Al Munawar Grand Mosque Ternate.[61]