 Once the capital of Bantam Empire now Banten is a small town at the
northwestern coast of Java. At this point the Dutch and the English
first landed on Java and were held struggles and trade. There are still
many places in Banten, which remind to the colonial time. The main site
in Banten is the Mesjid Agung (The Grand Mosque). This mosque was built
in 1559 by the son of Sultan Hassanudin and is the major sight in
Banten. In opposite of the mosque are the remains of the royal palace
Surosowan which was built by the Dutch Muslim Hendricks Lucas Cardil and
destroyed by the grand child of the sultan. Later the Sultan Agung
rebuilt the palace but the Dutch destroyed it again in 1832. On the road
to Serang close to the Surosowan is the Kaibon Palace, which is now
partly restored. Northwest of the mosque are the ruins of the fort
Speelwijk. This fort was built by the Dutch in 1682 and overlooks the
see. Close to the fort is the old Chinese temple. These 200 years old
temple is now completely renovated and still in use. The quickest way to
reach Banten is to take the bus from Jakarta to Merak and drop off at
Kramatwatu. From here a minibus can bring the visitor 5 km to Banten.
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