LAO SAM 1892 by Toni Masdiono

There was a small town on the coast of java island which was known as Tiongkok Kechil (Little China) and also nicknamed Lao Sam because the area is surrounded by old teakwood. During the Majapahit era, the area was ruled by Bhre Lasem and since the arrival of Admiral Zheng He, became the main commercial link with China.

The lives of the Lasem people comprising of Javanese and Chinese, are known to have been harmonious for hundreds of years, even as they fought against the Dutch colonialists in 1750. They united against the invasion of the Kompeni (the Dutch East India Company soldiers). It was called the Yellow War. Since the British government conquered the island of Java, which was part of a trade route for spices and batik, Lasem secretly also became the key location of the opium traffic for the eastern part of the archipelago.

This story takes place in early 1892, before the year of the Water Dragon, a young businessman tried to wrest control of the opium trade commodities from a senior businessman, whose family has lived in Lao Sam for generations. The small friction became a violent wave that threatened to become a bloody war, which ultimately disturbs the peaceful life of the city of Lasem.

Published by: PT Wira Cerita Nusantara
Year: 2022
Language: English
Genre: Historical Fiction
Age Range: 21 and up
No. of Pages: 124
Size: 18.25 x 26.25 x 0.75cm | 7.2 x 10.3 x 0.3in
Weight: 0.4kg
Format: Paperback (Softbound) | Black and White
ISBN: 978-623-99569-0-5
Keywords: javanese history, war and politics in southeast asia