The Madiun River (Indonesian: Bengawan MadiunorKali Madiun) is a river in East Java, Indonesia, about 500 km to the east of the capital Jakarta.[1] It is the largest tributary of the Solo River.[2] Its name indicates that it passes through the major city of Madiun, East Java, Indonesia.[3] This river starts as several smaller tributaries converging near the city of Ponorogo, in particular the Kali Slahung, Kali Keyang, and Kali Sungkur.[4] It eventually converges with the Solo River near the city of Ngawi.[5]
In 1825, the Dutch East Indies soldiers built a fortress near the convergence of the Madiun and Solo rivers, to fight a local rebellion led by Diponegoro. The fortress was named Fort Van Den Bosch;[2] known locally as Benteng Pendem Ngawi.[6]
The river flows entirely within the ProvinceofEast Java, passing through Ponorogo Regency, Madiun Regency, City of Madiun, Magetan Regency, and Ngawi Regency, with a savanna climate.[7] The annual average temperature in the area is 26 °C. The warmest month is October when the average temperature is around 30 °C, and the coldest is January, at 24 °C.[8] The wettest month is March, with an average of 546 mm of rainfall, and the driest is September, with 21 mm of rainfall.[9]
For ages, the Madiun River has notoriously caused flooding during the rainy season.[10]
Every year the seasonal deluge submerges many fields and houses along the river banks, including some districts in Ponorogo Regency in the upper reaches[4] and in the Ngawi Regency in the lower reaches.[11][12][13] The high debit of water overflows to the Solo River, adding to the regular flooding in Bojonegoro Regency.[14] During the dry season, the river becomes a tourist place for fishing or a place to mine sands for local people.[15]
^ abTamtomo, Muslimin (2014) Spatial Planning for Flood Management in Ponorogo Retention Area. Graduate School Gadjah Mada University, Yogyakarta.
^Prawirodiharjo, S (1987). Alam Sekitar Lingkungan Hidup Manusia. PT Balai Pustaka (Persero). p. 13.
^Ekspedisi bengawan Solo: laporan jurnalistik Kompas : kehancuran peradaban sungai besar (in Indonesian). Penerbit Buku Kompas. 2008. ISBN9789797093907.
p. 45
^Junghuhn, Franz Wilhelm; Hasskarl, Justus Karl (1854). Java, seine Gestalt, Pflanzendecke und innere Bauart, Volume 2 (in German). Arnold. pp. 331, 363.
Wiratmoko, Y.P.B (2005). Cerita rakyat dari Madiun (Jawa Timur). Seri pendidikan budaya. Grasindo. ISBN9789797329815. p. 13. Using Madiun River as background.
Direktorat Reboisasi dan Rehabilitasi Indonesia (1972). Monografi fisis daerah aliran Sungai Kali Madiun.
