From the beginning of its foundation, Batavia was a well-planned Dutch forted city. The square that would become Fatahillah Square was first recorded in c.1627 as Nieuwe Markt. At that time the mouth of the riverCiliwung meandered toward the west-side of the square, giving the square a riverfront quality. The square was only half the size of the present square, the eastern half of the present square was occupied by shophouses. Shophouses also flanked the square at the north side, while the first City Hall of Batavia was built to the south of the square, center to the north-south axis of the Prinsenstraat, proof of urban planning in the forted city. The name Stadhuisplein was probably given immediately to the square following the completion of the city hall.
Post-1632 layout
In 1632, Batavia underwent a major restructuration. To strengthen the defense system, governor-general Jacques Specx redesigned Batavia with an outer city wall, defended by a system of outer and inner moat. The inner city was planned following a grid-like planning and crisscrossed with a network of canals. To accommodate the grid-like layout, the Groote Rivier was normalized into a straight north-to-south waterway. The shop houses at the eastern side of the square were also demolished. With the normalization of the Groote Rivier and the demolition of the east shop houses, the square became completely enclosed with buildings. The Prinsestraat, which in the beginning formed the street that leads to the Castle, were established as an urban center, connecting the Castle south gate with the City Hall, forming an impressive vista on the seat of government. Beginning from the year up until around late 18th-century, the Stadhuisplein was flanked with the City Hall to the south, a church to the west, some shop houses to the north, and the Tijgersgracht to the east. In 1635, a Chinese clothing bazaar occupied the northwest part of the square. This bazaar was demolished in the early 18th-century. The location of the clothing bazaar corresponds more or less with the area in front of present Cafe Batavia.
Modern period
In late 19th century, the Stadhuisplein was traversed with a tramline, passing diagonally from Binnen Nieuwpoortstraat at the south, to Prinsenstraat at the north. C. 1870, with the elimination of the Tijgersgracht and the completion of the Palais van Justitie, the total area of the Stadhuisplein expanded slightly to the east. This layout of the square will be the final layout of the square. At the beginning of the 20th century, the northeast shop houses were demolished to make way for the Post- en telegraaf kantoor aan het Stadhuisplein. Demolition of these shophouses incited controversy among the architects and academics. Both Berlage and Karsten, noted Dutch architects, cited the addition of the building as destroying the traditional city structure of the Old Town.
Post-colonial period
The name Stadhuisplein lingered until nationalization of street names in Indonesia when the name was changed into Taman Fatahillah after Fatahillah, a pre-Dutch 16th-century commander of the Sultanate of Demak who recaptured the port city from the Portuguese. In the year 1970, restoration of the square and a couple of landmark in the Old Town was done by the governor Ali Sadikin. The former city hall was made a history museum in 1974. Also in that year, the 18th-century artesian water pump was restored in the middle of the square.
Present
Together with the Kota Tua Jakarta, Fatahillah Square is a car-free area.
