The Royal Palace of Yogyakarta (, ) is a palace complex in the city of Yogyakarta, Yogyakarta Special Region, Indonesia. It is the seat of the reigning Sultan of Yogyakarta and his family. The complex is a center of Javanese culture, and contains a museum displaying royal artifacts. It is guarded by the Yogyakarta Kraton Guards (Indonesian: Prajurit Keraton Ngayogyakarta Hadiningrat). History The complex was built in 1755–1756 (AJ 1682) for Hamengkubuwono I, the first Sultan of Yogyakarta. It was one of the monarch's first acts after the signing of the Treaty of Giyanti, which recognized the creation of the Sultanate of Yogyakarta under the Dutch East India Company. A banyan forest, protected from flooding by its location between two rivers, was chosen as the site for the palace. On 20 June 1812, Sir Stamford Raffles led a 1,200-strong British and Irish force to attack the walled royal city of Yogyakarta. Although they outnumbered the British, the Javanese were unprepared for the attack. Yogyakarta fell in one day, and the palace was sacked and burnt. The attack was the first of its kind on a Javanese court, and the Sultanate briefly became subject to British authority before the British government returned control of Indonesia to the Dutch. Most of the current palace was built by Sultan Hamengkubuwono VIII (who reigned from 1921 to 1939), and was rebuilt after earthquakes in 1876 and 2006. Architecture The palace's chief architect was Sultan Hamengkubuwono I, who founded the Yogyakarta Sultanate. His architectural expertise was appreciated by the Dutch scientist Theodoor Gautier Thomas Pigeaud and Lucien Adam, who considered him a worthy successor of Pakubuwono II (founder of the Surakarta Sunanate). The palace layout, which followed the basic design of the old city of Yogyakarta, was completed in 1755–1756; another building was added by a later Sultan of Yogyakarta. The complex consists of a courtyard covered with sand from the south coast, a main building and a secondary building. The buildings are separated by a wall with a regol in semar tinandu style. The palace door is made of thick teak. Behind (or in front of) a gate in Javanese architecture is usually an insulating wall (Renteng or Baturono), sometimes with a distinctive, traditional ornament. The wooden buildings of the complex have a traditional Javanese architectural style, decorated with flora, fauna, or nature motifs. Foreign influences (Portuguese, Dutch, and Chinese) are also seen. The