Brigadier General Raden Panji Nugroho Notosusanto (15 July 1930 – 3 June 1985) was an Indonesian short story writer turned military historian who served as a professor of history at the University of Indonesia.

Despite wanting to remain in the military, under the influence of his father he continued his education, eventually enrolling in the faculty of literature at the University of Indonesia.

After a failed attempt to study at the University of London, in the early 1960s Notosusanto – by then a lecturer – was contacted by General Abdul Haris Nasution and tasked with writing a history of the revolution and Madiun Affair.

His work producing official history on behalf of the authoritarian New Order regime led to his being regarded with contempt by other Indonesian historians.

[3] While still a child Nugroho Notosusanto began writing short stories; his father later recalled that they were filled with themes of struggle and nationalism.

[2] Another of Notosusanto's relatives, Budi Darma, later recalled that he had always stood at attention, "like a soldier", when the future national anthem "Indonesia Raya" was played.

[7] During the 1950s Notosusanto wrote extensively, focusing on essays but also writing poems and, later, short stories; the last of his creative works were written around 1956.

Around this time he was recruited by General Abdul Haris Nasution to provide a version of the revolution amenable to the Indonesian Army and counter a Communist Party of Indonesia-backed history which ignored the Madiun Affair of 1948.

[10] During the mid-to-late 1960s Notosusanto wrote extensively on the military history of Indonesia, including a book on Supriyadi's anti-Japanese rebellion in 1945 and the Battle of Surabaya.

[10] In 1963 he was appointed to the committee deciding on the content of the Monas Museum to be built in the base of the National Monument in the centre of Jakarta.

[17] In a later pamphlet Notosusanto wrote that dioramas were necessary as "the habit of reading is still developing ... [thus] historical visualisation remains an effective way to express the identity of ABRI".

[4] Notosusanto was made a member of the Fourth Development Cabinet when it was formed on 16 March 1983, replacing outgoing minister Daud Jusuf and taking office three days later.

[10] Concurrently with his work as Minister of Education and Culture, Notosusanto served as rector of UI; students disapproved of his selection, considering him a military official sent to limit their freedom.

According to McGregor, Notosusanto relegated the country's first president, Sukarno, to a background role while he "inserted Suharto, together with other military men, into new places", legitimising the New Order government.