Kotta mara is a type of floating battery or fortified raft from Borneo. It is used by native Bornean (Banjarese and Dayak) in warfare, its usage rose prominently during the Banjarmasin war (1859–1906). Kotta mara is used in riverine warfare, as an armed vessel or simply a blockhouse or fortification to prevent enemy advance in the river.
Etymology The word kotta comes from Malay word kota which in turn comes from the Sanskrit word कोट्ट (kota) which means fort, fortress, castle, fortified house, fortification, works, city, town, or place encircled by walls. Mara likely a corruption of Malay word muara which means estuary, thus the name kotta mara means estuary fort. In various publications it is also written as kotta-mara, kota mara, kotamara, and cotta mara. In Indonesian sources it is known as lanting kotamara, with the word "lanting" meaning raft house, a traditional Banjar floating house. According to the Great Indonesian Dictionary (KBBI), kota mara means (1) Wall on a ship to protect men mounting the cannon (2) Terrace or wall over a castle which a cannon is mounted. According to H. Warington Smyth, kota mara means transverse deck bulkhead at stem and stern (of a ship).
Description Kotta mara is shaped like a fort on a raft. The common shape is rectangular. However, there are version with bastion-like structure protruding on every corner. The kotta mara with bastion, like the one seen by Jacob Jansz de Roy, is constructed from wooden logs of various size and diameter. The bastions had 4 cannons each, with the total of 16 cannons. The bastion is fortified with wooden wall of small sloping. Toward the center of the kotta mara is double row of palisade wall, one is higher than the other. At the center is the main structure of the "castle", about 12 feet (3.7 m) high to the top, over which 200 musket could fire. The main castle wall is not sloped. The simpler kotta mara, is described as being similar to Banjar shore battery. It is rectangular in shape, with various size from as small as 5 Netherland ell (3.5 m) long to as large as to "fill the entire space of river passage". The general arrangement of the kotta mara was practically the same; the first one, from Sungai Kayu, was 5 Nd. ells (3.5 m) long, 5 Nd. ells wide and 3.5 Nd. ells (2.45 m) high, with 8 firing holes, which were situated just above the water level. The large kotta mara (like that of Pulau Kanamit) is described with more accuracy: An elongated square window is located on a heavy raft, which is assembled from large trees. The inner space of this window is spacious in the length and width such that a deck can be laid from the split bamboo to form the floor and also to rig firm yokes and trestles against them, against which the top edge of the palisade will rest, while the feet of the posts are prevented by the above-mentioned window from slipping.
The wall of the fort is double; the outer covering consists of vertical, slight inwardly sloping trees which, placed against each other, are forming a parapet of nearly 5 Nd. palm (50 cm) thickness; a second wall of ironwood beams, similarly of a thickness of almost 0.5 Nd. ells (0.35 m) lies horizontally within this outer cover. This wall is prevented from falling backwards or loosened by means of anchoring and bracing. The raft is closed at the top by a cover of fairly heavy parts, was completely bomb-proof by an attic of beams. There are 4 small alcove hole at equal distances in the long side, very low on the water and almost all with polders (heavy pieces of wood) on the inside to place lila (lela—Malay cannon) on it; in the short side there are 2 holes, so that the kotta mara could be armed with 12 lilas. The outer covering was arranged in such a way that if a hole was made by a penetrating bullet, it would immediately closed again by the rolling of other parts or logs, which were set against the outer posts completely loosely.
The upper deck is almost 0.75 Nd. ells (0.525 m) below the top edge of the palisade, which at that height has not been doubled with ironwood. On the deck were two small houses set up, in one of those houses a cell block was found, which could hold 5 or 6 prisoners. The spies assured the Dutch that Juragan Kuat had intended this block for the officers he would take prisoner. A magazine of foodstuffs, blocks and shackles to store prisoners of war, a roof to sleep in and many other conveniences were present. When that kotta mara was taken, it was still not fully completed, so probably many more ornaments were missing. However, the 4 main posts of the building had already been carved in the shape of a man with an exceptionally large nose, mouth with sharp teeth, and the lower part of the body ending in the tail of a caiman. There was enough room inside the building for about 50 people, however the operation of the artillery must have been difficult, since the braces and struts crossed each other frequently, but everything bore the signs of solid construction. Here are dimensions of the raft encountered on 27 July 1859 from De Bandjermasinsche Krijg: Length of the raft: 40 Nd. ells (28 m) Width: 12 Nd. ells (8.4 m) Long side of the palisade: 25 Nd. ells (17.5 m) Short side of the palisade: 5 Nd. ells (3.5 m) Height: 3.5 Nd. ells (2.45 m) Thickness of the wall from below: 1 to 1.2 Nd. ells (0.7–0.84 m) Thickness of the wall from above, below deck: 0.9 to 1 Nd. ells (0.63–0.7 m) Average draft: 6 Rijnland feet (1.884 m)
History
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