Sorry I said it not clearly enough before.The area of Aceh was laready decentralised by it's onw history.There was a sultanate and the areas under.These were not really part of the sultanate, but recognized the Sultan as it's suzerain(when you want to give him the most power in the system),or symbolic chief.But in fact he not really was.But the sultanate Acehin itself wasn't decentralised.That was the northern part of the Aceh area,the later so-called direct ruled area.In fact the real ruling power was decentralised,but the system as sultanate remained.So not there also more new stateletts.
The Aceh case and the 101 stateletts/uleebalangships was quite unique in Indonesia.Peper was quite important,so al kind of people went to the South of the so-called Aceh area and founded peppercolonies,but were not conquered(as the sultans did before with certain areas)by them in the new situation.Before Aceh was a conquering nation and has much influence in f.i. the Eastern Coast of Sumatra:f.i. in states like Deli;Asahan and surrounding areas.
But the ullebalangships were for a part organised by people from the actual sultanate,asked for official papers/symbols of recognition by the Sultan,but in fact just wanted to be lord in their own right.
Some of these stateletts were ruled by orinal dynasties;already ruling some stateletts for centuries.
For a part you are right,but still this area is unique in it's stateformations and is not done/created by the Dutch East Indish Government, who just made use of the situation and of course stimulated that.Never a western country was powerfull enough to totally disunite a state.
F.i. in Zululand the English disunited the kingdom,but later it was recreated again by it's own people(see the present situation).
Bone and Gowa on Sulawesi also were disunited by the Dutch after 1905,but were made one state again after their restoration.But in Aceh to restore the total area as a sultanate would never be tolreated by most of the uleebalangs,because they were alerady real stateletts and not merely districts and former areas of a big sultanate.
It is very strange,that all over the Indonesian archipelago the dynasties are revived;f.i. at Indonesian royal festivals and -meetings.But never there was one symbol dynastychief present for the total Aceh area.Also some of the uleebalang-dynasties were present at such events.
In Luwu also some of the Toraja vasals and sub-rajas try to be recognized as real independent(one way or another)dynasties nowadays.But in fact that isn't really tolerated.
Yes,it is all a subtle difference.Real states,or former parts of a kingdom like part of Sumatra.
Again:in the independence struggle in Aceh from ca. 1873 the local rulers recognized him as their sultan(their religion told them to do so),but in fact hardly gave him any real power.
In Bone and Gowa(so-called monarchy democracies)this was really unthinkable.
The sentiments of Aceh sultanate and the uleebalangships you can compare with England,Holland and the relationship with the colonists from the beginning until the present time.
Anyway,let we stop this discussion.I made my point and you yours.Maybe you can reread my reactions,so that you can understand my explanations,which are sometimes a bit ununderstandable for you.I was quite busy this week.
The Dutch already had the area,but only neeeded the cooperation on paper with the rulers.But in fact it was all the same as what the English did,although other words were used.
Thank you for your attention.

Yours sincerelly:
D.P. Tick gRMK/Pusaka.

--Previous Message--
: Donald,
:
: Sorry to say this but in your previous post
: your wrote:
: "Aceh was in a ceratin time already
: really decentralised by it's own history.
: Again the Dutch at the highest thing only
: made use of a certain situation."
:
: Now you say that "Aceh(I don't know
: about Negeri Sembilan)was not
: decenrtalised."
:
: As for recent settlements, that is very much
: the pattern of Malay history throughout the
: centuries. New settlements springing up all
: the time. Typically, when a settlement
: became too large or a port silted up, a
: headman or prince would gather his clan and
: followers, go down the coast or river and
: set up a new settlement. This would either
: be in virgin territory or in an area
: previously settled but abandoned. It does
: not necessarily mean that allegience to the
: sultan or sovereign ceased everytime a new
: settlement was created.
:
: What happened with the Aceh sultanate was
: that the Dutch chipped away at the
: subordinate magantes along the East and West
: coasts of Sumatra. They were given separate
: contracts, their caps (seals of authority)
: taken away and Dutch ones substituted. When
: Aceh proper was conquered 1879-1903, the
: sultanate was eventually abolished, and the
: "Teukus" who were closer to the
: centre were again given separate contracts
: within a new Dutch province of Aceh.
:
: Once again, I would like to point out the
: fundamental difference between a treaty and
: a contract. The former recognises
: sovereignty, the latter does not.
: