Bali — Histories
How Bali came to be, in a short timeline, plus the buildings and monuments where you can still see it.
Timeline
- 1343Majapahit
Gajah Mada brings Bali under Majapahit
Majapahit's prime minister Gajah Mada defeats the Balinese king at Bedulu; the Javanese court rules Bali from Samprangan and then Gelgel, which stays the paramount kingdom into the 17th century.
- c. 1540Gelgel
Dang Hyang Nirartha's Hindu reform
The priest Dang Hyang Nirartha leads a Hindu reformation, introducing the padmasana shrine and founding temples including Uluwatu; Tanah Lot is also credited to him.
See: Uluwatu Temple · Tanah Lot Temple - 1686Balinese kingdoms
The royal seat moves to Klungkung
After Gelgel breaks up in internal conflict, a new court is founded at Klungkung, 4 km north; its Dewa Agung keeps symbolic primacy over Bali's nine rival kingdoms.
- April–July 1849Dutch conquest
The Dutch take Buleleng after Jagaraga
Dutch troops storm Jagaraga in Buleleng, where defenders make the first puputan the Dutch had seen; Patih Jelantik is later killed and a July treaty hands Buleleng and Jembrana to the Dutch.
- 20 September 1906Dutch conquest
Puputan Badung in Denpasar
After landing at Sanur, Dutch forces reach Denpasar, where the Badung royal court walks out to die in a puputan; at least 1,000 people are killed and the palace is razed.
- 28 April 1908Dutch conquest
Puputan Klungkung ends Bali's last kingdom
Dewa Agung Jambe leads about 200 followers out of his palace into Dutch fire; the Klungkung puputan ends the Majapahit-descended dynasty and completes Dutch control of Bali.
- 20 November 1946Independence
Puputan Margarana
I Gusti Ngurah Rai and the remaining men of the Ciung Wanara battalion make a last stand against Dutch forces at Marga, Tabanan; the unit is wiped out, ending organised Balinese armed resistance.
- 17 March 1963Republic
Mount Agung erupts
Agung's VEI 5 eruption sends pyroclastic flows through villages, killing an estimated 1,100–1,500 people; lava flows narrowly miss Besakih, which Balinese see as a sign from the gods.
See: Pura Besakih - 12 October 2002Modern
The Kuta bombings
Bombs at Paddy's Pub and the Sari Club in Kuta kill 202 people, including 38 Indonesians and many visitors from Australia and Europe, the deadliest terrorist attack in Indonesia's history.
- 1 October 2005Modern
Second Bali bombings
Suicide bombers strike a restaurant in Kuta Square and beachside warungs in Jimbaran, killing 20 people and injuring more than 100.
- 6 July 2012Modern
UNESCO lists Bali's subak landscape
The Cultural Landscape of Bali Province joins the World Heritage List: five sites including the Jatiluwih terraces of Catur Angga Batukaru, Lake Batur, the Pakerisan watershed and Pura Taman Ayun.
- 15–16 November 2022Modern
Bali hosts the G20 summit
Indonesia's first G20 leaders' summit meets at Nusa Dua, with the leaders' gala dinner held at Garuda Wisnu Kencana Cultural Park.
- 14 February 2024Modern
Foreign tourist levy begins
Bali starts charging foreign visitors a one-off Rp150,000 levy under Provincial Regulation 6/2023, paid via the Love Bali website or app and checked by QR code at the airport and ports.
Heritage sites
Tanah Lot Temple
Bali's most photographed sea temple, on an offshore rock reachable on foot only at low tide, best at sunset.
Mother temple2Pura Besakih
Bali's largest and holiest temple complex: 23 related temples terraced up the slopes of Mount Agung at nearly 1,000 metres.
Clifftop sea temple3Uluwatu Temple
A temple on a 70-metre cliff at the southwest tip of the Bukit, expanded in the 11th century and famous for its sunset Kecak.
Lake temple4Ulun Danu Beratan Temple
The lake temple of Bedugul, its tiered shrines seeming to float on Lake Beratan in the cool central highlands.
Holy spring temple5Tirta Empul Temple
A water temple founded in 962 around the holy spring that feeds the Pakerisan River, where Balinese come for melukat purification.
Traditional village6Penglipuran Village
A car-free customary village 5 km north of Bangli town, laid out on Tri Hita Karana principles and often ranked among the world's cleanest.
Royal water temple7Taman Ayun Temple
Mengwi's moated royal temple, the second-largest in Bali and part of the UNESCO-listed Subak cultural landscape since 2012.
Monument & museum8Bajra Sandhi Monument
A bell-shaped monument to the Balinese people's struggle in Renon's main square, with dioramas from prehistory to independence.
Water palace9Taman Ujung Water Palace
The last king of Karangasem's 1909 water palace: three large pools, a white island pavilion and views to the sea and Mount Lempuyang.
Royal court pavilion10Kerta Gosa & Klungkung Palace
The surviving court of justice and floating pavilion of Klungkung's royal palace, built around 1700 and razed in the 1908 conquest.
Memorial11Bali Bombing Memorial (Ground Zero)
The Jl. Legian memorial to the 202 people killed in the 12 October 2002 bombings, where a remembrance service is held each year.