The following post relates to my academic research which is documented in my thesis:
Holmes, D. L. (2008). Old company records: The effect of custodial history on the arrangement and description of selected archival collections of business records. Thesis, Master of Science, School of Computer and Information Science, Edith Cowan University, 2008. Available at https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/23
If you would like further information about Frederick Charles Danvers and the records he investigated in the 1890s at the State Archives in The Hague, please email me on geniedonna @ yahoo.com.au
The following transcript is from my copy of manuscript made by Ray, 1945.
Report on the Records
Relating to the East in the
State Archives in The Hague
By Frederick Charles Danvers, 1893.
Report pages 3-28 (of 54), without footnotes.
 |
| Frederick Charles Danvers |
[Page 3]
During my visit to the Hague last year, I searched through the following records, viz., “Letters from [the]* XVII to India”, from their commencement in 1614 to the year 1633, “Letters from the Governors General to the various factories”, from 1617 to 1633 and “Letters from India” from 1669 to 1686. On my return visit I continued an examination of these same records from the last named dates to the year 1700 ; I also examined a fourth series, consisting of “Letters from the Kamer to Amsterdam to the Governors General”, from their commencement in 1642 also to the year 1700. I have thus completed an examination of all the most important documents in the Rijksarchief, bearing upon the history of the Dutch in India, and have made selections of documents to the copies “principally of those having reference to the contemporaneous histories of the European nations (in the East) up to the beginning of the 18th century”.
Since the commencement of my engagements of this work I have searched through 564 volumes and have marked the important documents to be copied. Of the latter copies have already been made and delivered of …1 selected records, all belonging to the 17th century. Where important documents have been published I have procured copies of them, that being, at the same time, more satisfactory and cheaper than having them specially copied. Other Dutch records are contained in books already in the India Office Library, such as those by de … 1 .
The 17th century was a most important period of Indo-European commerce and witnessed more …. 2 by the Portuguese, Dutch and English for the monopoly of that trade. The opening of the century found the Portuguese in almost undisputed possession of this commerce but in little more than half a century the Dutch had captured their most important possessions, leaving them practically little more to boast of than the territories now occupied by them in the East. The struggles between the Dutch and English during this period were principally confined to the eastern Archipelago where the former succeeded in driving the latter out of Java. In the early years of this century the English had been sufficiently strong to command the respect of the Dutch, and from some letters from the latter of a much later date it would appear as though they had, for the time being, limited their opposition with the Portuguese against themselves in the East, in which contingency it seems highly improbable that the Dutch would have been able to withstand them. Fears to this effect were seriously entertained in 1635 3, in 1652 4, and again in 1672 5 and these apprehensions no doubt contributed in some measure towards the comparative freedom of the English factories in India proper from attach. Towards the end of the century, however, these fears evidently died out, and in 1688 we find the Dutch Governor General referring to “the miserable condition of the English”, whilst, so far from feeling any dread of them he remarked to the Commander at Cochin, that “fear of the English does not exist ‘ they only talk’ ”. 1
It will be seen from my report of last year (copy annexed)2 that I therein gave a very brief sketch of some of the leading events that occurred in the East, of general European interest, between the years 1595 and the conclusion of the Treaty of Westminster in 1654. In my recent researches I have come across a number of additional documents bearing upon several of these events, between 1635 and the last named year, and it may be of interest if I here refer back to that period before continuing my narrative for the second half of the seventeenth century.
Foremost amongst these documents may be mentioned the “Instructions” issued at various dates by the Netherlands Administrations for the regulation of their Eastern Trade. These “Instructions” are the embodiment of the principles on which the Dutch East Indian possessions were obtained, held, and governed. Without these it would be impossible fully to appreciate the continuity of policy pursued by the Dutch in the East, or properly to apportion responsibility for their actions between the State, the Company, and their Governors. This is, I believe, the first instance of these important documents being made available excepting in the Dutch language.
Up to the latter part of 1609 the Dutch East India Company was carried on principally as a trading enterprise, and the Treaties entered into with the rulers of various places in the Eastern Archipelago were, with the exception of one with Amboyna, in 1600, principally commercial Treaties, for facilitating the purchase of spices by the Dutch. The Treaty with Amboyna, above referred to, included however, a stipulation that the Dutch should assist in the expulsion of the Portuguese from that island ‘ and subsequent Treaties with Banda and Pulo Ay respectively – both dated in 1602 – contained clauses under which the Dutch bound themselves to assist the natives against their enemies.
Under these, and subsequent Treaties, the Dutch had acquired predominant influence in the Moluccas, and has opened trade relations with Bantam, Borneo, Macassar, Johore, the Malay Peninsula, Achin, Malabar, Coromandal and even with China. With the exercise of so wide an influence over a vast number of distant countries, the want of some supreme authority in the East soon began to be felt at home, and accordingly, by a Proclamation of the States General, of the 26th November 1609, it was decided to appoint a Governor General and Council for the purpose of regulating the affairs of the Dutch in the East Indies, who should “act as an authority over persons and their actions, so as to inspire the Indian Princes and peoples with confidence in the Dutch nation and regulate their relations with the mother country. 1 By a proclamation dated the day following (27th November, 1609) Pieter Both was appointed the first Governor General.
It will be interesting to give here a few details of these first Instructions, contained in the Proclamation of the 26th November, the author of which is reputed to have been Cornelius Matelief 1 the younger, a distinguished naval commander in the Eastern seas, who returned to Holland in the year 1608. The first Article of these instructions is as follows:
“As soon as the Governor General shall have arrived at Bantam, all actions of the daily Council, which had authority over the fleet, shall cease, and, after all information shall have been duly taken, a legislative body, to control all actions and affairs in India, shall be formed under the advice of the Fiscal and Accountant, which Council shall be called the Council of State for India. It is expressly ordered that, besides the Governor General himself, the two following gentlemen shall be members of the Council of State, namely Jan Lodenykaz van Rossengijn and Steven Doensz. Van Groendijck ; furthermore, these three shall appoint others so as to bring the number of the Council up to five, by the advice of which five persons the Governor General shall appoint Counsellors and others with power and authority to administer justice in all civil actions”.
Under Article 8 the Governor General was granted full liberty of action in regard to all matters connected with trade ; Article 9 prescribed certain enquiries the Governor General was to make about persons and affairs connected with the internal affairs of the Company, whilst Article 10 explained, in considerable detail, the investigations he was to institute with regard to the Company’s foreign relations, of which the following is an extract:
“You will enquire particularly into the relations with all Kings, Princes, and nations of all India with whom the Company is trading, so as to know whether these are friendly and favourably, or otherwise, disposed, and why, and for what purpose each and every one of them is so disposed towards the Company. You will try to find out which of them are friends or enemies of the Portuguese, and why, and for what purpose they are so, what their power, possessions, and connections are, and in what relations they stood towards the Portuguese before the arrival of the ships of these countries in India, and how each and every one of them behaved towards our nation and towards the Portuguese. You will further enquire who are the actual rulers of affairs in the different States of India, and what are the best means of entering into closer relations with them, in order to be able to decide what can and should be done, not only to extend the East Indian Commerce, to propagate the name of Christ for the salvation of the Heathen, for the honour and reputation of our nation, and for profits of the Company, but also to increase by all possible ways and means.”
Up to this time the Dutch had no head or central station in the East, but under these “Instructions” Pieter Both was directed to select either Bantam, or Johore, for a capital and residence of the Governor General ; the Officers of the Company were prohibited from trading on their own account, and authority was given for searching the ships when anything of that sort was suspected ; and by Article 21 the Governor General was granted a wide margin of liberty in his dealings with native Kings, so long as he succeeded in extending the power and trade of the Company in their several territories.
With regard to the Moluccas (Art. 22) it was especially laid down that the trade of those Islands, including also that of Amboyna and Banda, was to be retained “wholly, absolutely, and entirely in the hands of the United Company, and that no particle of it shall be left to anyone but ourselves, and to those whom we think proper.” To this effect it was ordered that all the Dutch fortresses and strongholds thereabouts were to be strengthened and well garrisoned, to which end, if necessary, the Kings of those countries were to be required to give assistance. As however, the Dutch were at this time, at peace with Spain and Portugal, Pieter Both was instructed that his actions must be regulated accordingly.
By Article 23 Pieter Both was advised to establish a rendezvous as Jakatra. He accordingly contracted an alliance with the King of that country, by which certain privileges of commerce were granted to the Dutch, and he purchased from him a piece of land, situated to the East of the river Tangerang, for the erection of a Factory, which subsequently developed into the City of Batavia.
Orders were given in Articles 28 and 29 that the Portuguese were, by all means, to be kept out of the country “and”, it was added, “if the Portuguese or Spaniards should so far forget themselves (which we hope may not be the case) as to attack you, your subjects, or your allies, or cause them damage, contrary to the Truce and the interpretation thereof given by the States General, and embodied in resolution of the last meeting of the Seventeen, whereof a copy is enclosed, you must at once counteract the same, in such manner as you may deem proper according to Divine and Human right in your Council, always remembering the duty incumbent on you of upholding our nation’s honour and reputation by all honourable means.”
Article 34 provided that some ships should be employed in a coasting trade, which should bring all produce to Jakatra, from whence the hold sailing vessels would take in their cargoes and return at once to the mother country. This regulation, however, proved inconvenient in practice and with regard to some of the outlying stations to the west of Jakatra and, accordingly, in 1633 the Seventeen sent out instruction to the effect that shipments from Surat and Persia should be sent home direct “on the principle adopted by the English”, and that the vessels from those ports should meet the homeward bound fleets from Batavia at the Cape of Good Hope or at St. Helena 1.
With regard to the China trade, it was recommended (Art. 35) that Nanking should be made the principal port of call, instead of Macao or Canton ; and by Article 37 it was advised that reprisals should be taken against Surat, where David van Deynsen has been murdered. 2
The foregoing “Instructions” were necessarily of a somewhat tentative nature, and those remained in force for a short time only. On the appointment of Gerard Reynat*, in 1613, as Governor General, in succession to Pieter Both, new “Instructions” were issued. These are not contained in “Verzameling van Instruction**”, but are to be found in Dr. P. van Dam’s “Beshrijving”, Appendix, Vol. III, a MS. book in the Archives at the Hague. They have been published in “Tijdschrift Indische Taal, Land en Volkenkunde” Vol. I. p. 117-161. These “Instructions” contain more detailed directions with regard to trade than were given in the earlier Orders to Pieter Both ; they authorised the new Governor General to change the Commanders at all the Ports (Art. 3) which would appear to have been in imitation of the plan adopted by the Portuguese in India.
It would seem from Article 18, that the servants of the Company had already entered upon a regular system of private trading and that many of the best articles and commodities sent home were on private account ; the most stringent orders were consequently issued for the prevention of this trade, and all vessels going home, or trading from port to port were to be searched accordingly. But little change was made in the former orders with regard to Native Princes, except as regards Bantam, where, it was complained, the trade was much prejudiced by the high duties exacted.
With regard to the Portuguese, it was observed in Article 26, they would no doubt endeavour to spoil the commercial of the Dutch as much as possible, and that therefore every means must be adopted to drive them away from the various countries visited by Dutch vessels, so that such natives as desired to trade with the latter should not be hindered from doing so. Should force, however be employed by the Portuguese or Spaniards it must be resisted by force.
Article 30 gives instructions regarding shipping, wherein it is stated that as a journey from Holland to the Moluccas takes a whole year, and at the end of that time the vessels have become too much damaged to withstand with safety the stormy seas of the Cape of Good Hope, on a return journey, those ships must as a rule, be kept in the Indian seas, and the produce from those Islands stored at some head quarters, to be put on board vessels arriving these from Holland, to be sent home direct. The trade with China (Art. 31) was also to be carried on by means of small vessels from the seat of Government in the East.
In the 33rd Article, the death of David van Deynsen was again referred to, and orders were given that possession should be taken of vessels belonging to the people of Surat, (but in such a manner as to avoid complications with any friendly Native Princes of India) with the view of impressing the Natives with a sense of the injuries of their actions, and with the view of obtaining compensation for the death of van Deynsen. Should, however, compensation be refused, the Governor General was to take revenge in such manner as might seem fit.
The next “Instructions” to the Governor General dated the 22nd August 1617, and were ratified by the States General on the 3rd November following. They commence by defining the authority of the Governor General, and decree that his Council shall be constituted as follows:
1st Member. The most able merchant who can be found.
2nd Member. A valiant and able sailor. A Vice-Admiral.
3rd Member. One of the most able and experienced Officers of the Army.
4th Member. A person learned in Law and Equity.
5th Member. Director General of all Officers of Trade in India.
6th Member. Vice-Governor and Director of the Fortresses and Offices in the Moluccas.
7th Member. Vice-Governor of the Fortresses and Offices on the Coromandal Coast.
8th Member. Vice-Governor and Director of the Fortresses and Offices in Amboyna and the adjacent countries.
9th Member. Vice-Governor and Director of the Fortresses and Offices on the Islands of Banda Neera, Pulo Ay, Pulo Rhun, Lontivi Rosengyn, Goenong Api, and all countries adjacent thereto.
Then follows a list of salaries of all the highest Offices, exclusive of the Governor General, the Director General at Bantam and the Vice-Governor of the Moluccas receiving the highest, viz. f. 250 a month (Art. 12-16). The greater part of these “Instructions” refer to Officers of the Company and their respective duties. Article 35 contains orders for preventing other nations from injuring the trade of the Dutch, contrary to treaties ; if this cannot be done by persuasion, force is to be used, and their vessels and cargoes to be seized. Articles 52-55 contain directions in the case of captured prizes and the treatment to which prisoners were to be subjected ; none but enemies were to be employed as Galley slaves, and Spaniards are particularly mentioned in this category, but no convict of Dutch nationality was to be so used. Articles 56 to 73 refer to free trading, and in Article 74 it is recommended that Chinese should be encouraged to settle in the Moluccas, there not being in those islands a sufficient number of inhabitants for the proper cultivation of the soil. Chinese, it was stated, are to be preferred for their purpose, they being an industrious and laborious race, and not in the habit of carrying weapons. Orders were again given in these “Instructions” for the selection of a place as the capital and seat of Government in the East (Arts. 75-77); accordingly Jakatra was decided upon for that purpose on the 30th May, 1619, and its name was changed to Batavia, on the 4th March, 1621.
The circumstances connected with the selection of Jakatra for his purpose were as follows1 : Jan Pietersz Coen* felt great difficulty in arriving at a solution of the questions as to which place in the East would be most suited for a capital, and his choice wavered between Bantam and Malacca. On the whole he gave a preference to the latter, partly on account of its traditions as a place of commerce and being more convenient for the trade with China and the Eastern Archipelego*. He had not however sufficient force at his disposal to capture that port. On the other hand, if the Dutch left Bantam, that place and the pepper trade would be left open to the English. He decided therefore, to remain for the present at Bantam, and to erect a fort there. Shortly afterwards, however, in consequence of differences with the Regent of Bantam, opinion changed in favour of Jakatra as a head quarters for the Dutch Government. Buildings had already been erected there for the storage of merchandise, and, on the 10th July, 1619, Coen resolved to garrison the place with 24 soldiers, owing to a great extent to his mistrust of the English there. On the arrival of a British fleet commanded by Sir Thomas Dale off Jakatra, in December, 1618, Coen fortified the Dutch factory, and prepared for resistance. This place was speedily strengthened and converted into a fortress, and on the 12th March, 1619 it was officially named “Batavia”, and since then became the head quarters of the Dutch in the East. These occurrences are intimately associated with the expulsion of the English from Jakatra and as that event is not recorded in any of our histories, and only fragmentary documents bearing on the subject are extant in our Records it may be interesting to give a brief account of it as taken from the Dutch Records.
Although the Governments of Great Britain and of the Netherlands had, since 1611, endeavoured to devise means for the establishment of amicable relations between the English and Dutch East India Companies, the quarrels between them, in the East, appear to have increased rather than otherwise and by 1616 their animosities resulted in fights between their respective adherents in the streets of Bantam, and shortly after the arrival of Dr. Laurens Reael in Java, as Governor General, a most serious riot occurred at Bantam on the 22nd November, 1617.
It appears from the Records at the Hague that some Spanish and Portuguese prisoners had escaped from the Dutch and Found a safe hiding place on board certain British vessels ; and when one of the Dutch Officials went to claim them back, the English refused to give them up1. A few weeks later, one of these prisoners was seen walking about Bantam, where he was seen by some Dutchmen, who recaptured him, and locked him up in one of their warehouses. As soon as this became known to the English, they attacked the Dutch factory, plundered a warehouse, and killed and wounded several Dutchmen. Shortly after this news arrives that two2 British ships, which had been sent to Banda had been seized by the Dutch, and this further incensed the English against them.
As soon as the Dutch Governor General at Jakatra heard of the attack on the Bantam factory, he ordered a large fleet to proceed to that port, and issued a placard3 declaring that the trade with Banda, Amboyna and the Maluccas would be closed to the English, on the ground that the Dutch has procured for themselves a monopoly of trade with those islands, and threatening that if these orders were disobeyed the English would be driven from these ports. Against these orders Mr. George Ball, the President at Bantam wrote a strong protest1 and positively refused to recognize his authority or pretensions to an exclusive trade.
The relations between the English and Dutch became still further strained when, on the arrival of two2 vessels belonging to the French East India Company at Java, one of which was commanded by Hans de Decker, a Dutch subject, the Director General (Jan Pietersz Coen) had him arrested and tried on a charge of disobeying the law3. He was imprisoned, and the two French ships were detained. De Decker however escaped – as was alleged – by the aid of the English, and he obtained a hiding place in Bantam, the Regent of which place refused to surrender him to the Dutch.
The English Factories at Bantam and Jakatra were now, the Dutch authorities asserted, being used as places of refuge for run-away Dutch soldiers, sailors, and inferior officials, who were enticed away by the promise of higher wages. George Ball, the English President at Bantam was deemed to be the principal offender in this matter, and Nicholas Ufflete, the Factor at Jakatra was charged with having incites the natives to kill Coen4 and all the Dutchmen there, and to pillage their Factory. Coen, in consequence, issued a placard prohibiting all intercourse of Dutch subjects with either Englishmen or Chinese.
In the course of the year 1618, a serious difference arose between the English and the Regent of Bantam, who now seemed inclined to be more friendly with the Dutch ; but just as affairs appeared to be taking a favourable turn for the latter, a conspiracy broke out, instigated by the Javanese, who feared lest the Dutch who had obtained permission to erect a fortress at Jakatra should abuse that privilege by making themselves masters of the whole Island, as they had done in the Moluccas1. An intention had been formed to murder all the Dutch. At Japara, their factory was taken by assault, the merchandise stolen, and several Europeans were killed. At Jakatra precautions against attach were taken by strengthening the fort with guns from the ships, until the place became so strong that Coen considered it “the very place for a capital” 2.
These preparations for defence seriously alarmed the King of Jakatra, who applied to the English to assist him in an attack he intended to make on the Dutch, but this the Chief Factor declined3.
About this time the English East India Company sent out a strong naval force, of ten vessels, to Bantam, which arrived there in November 1618 ; and in the following month five more ships arrived under the command of Sir Thomas Dale. According to the Dutch account, the arrival of these 15 ships much emboldened the English at Bantam, who declared they would “teach these Dutchmen a lesson ; they would not only drive them out of Amboyna, Banda and the Moluccas, but altogether out of India, and as to that fellow Coen who had done them so much harm, they would catch him dead or alive.” 1
A few days after the arrival of this fleet at Bantam, they captured the Dutch vessel, “Black Lion” upon which Coen addressed a strong protest2 to Sir Thomas Dale, asking for explanations, and enquiring whether he intended peace or war. The reply was that war was meant, and than an English force would arrive at Jakatra, annihilate the Dutch forces, and take Coen prisoner, either dead or alive.
About this time news arrived at Bantam from Jambi that Richard Westby, Cape Merchant at that port, had been invited by the Dutch to supper, and had been murdered by them in their own house3.
Coen had not been prepared for the present turn of affairs, and was very scantily provided with war material both at Jakatra and Bantam, having recently sent way the main part of his fleet, which was, at the juncture, concentrated in the Moluccas, and at Banda and Amboyna. Besides this it soon became ebident to him that the Javanese Kings and Princes had conspired together against the Dutch.
The Dutch fortress at Jakatra was situated on the eastern bank of the river Tji-li-wang. On the 22nd December, 1618 Coen discerned a covered battery to the southwest in the place where the English factory had stood, and earthworks to the westward manned by Javanese, mounted with guns in charge of English gunners.
Altogether he estimated the enemy’s force to number some 7,000 men.
On the 23rd December, Coen found that all the Javanese dwellings round about the Dutch factory were destroyed ; he thereupon, at once attacked the English fortification, which was captured, sacked and burnt. The English would appear to have then retired from Jakatra, for in a letter to the Company from Messrs. James Cartwright and John Cooper, dated Amsterdam, 20th August, 16191 it is stated that the force in the native fort consisted only of Indians (Javanese) some 7,000 or 8,000 in number “our English keeping their forces by sea from them”. Coen then had the ground cleared between the Dutch factory and the town of Jakatra. The next day the Regent of Jakatra opened a destructive fire from his batteries to the westward of the Dutch fort, which were unsuccessfully attacked by the Dutch on the 25th December.
On the morning of the 30th December eleven English ships arrived before Jakatra, from Bantam, whereupon Coen determined to attack them with the seven vessels he had there, and himself took command of the fleet, leaving Pieter van den Broeck* in charge of the fortress. On the 31st Coen encountered the English vessels, which were shortly afterwards reinforced by three more ships. The English fleet avoided coming to close quarters, and after a few days of fighting, Coen finding his ammunition running short, sailed away to the Moluccas to procure reinforcements from the ships in those seas, intending to return at once and recover lost ground. Before leaving he sent a message1 to Van den Broeck to defend the fortress as long as possible, and, should he be unable to hold it, he was to consent to no negotiations with the Javanese, but rather surrender the place to the English. In reporting these events to the XVII in Holland, Coen impressed upon them the necessity for sending him a strong reinforcement in ships, and wound up his letter with the observation, “I swear by Almighty God that the General Company hath no worse enemies then the ignorance and apathy which excuse me for saying so, reigns supreme amongst your Council.” 2
Sir Thomas Dale shortly after his arrival concluded an alliance with the King of Bantam by the payment of 1500 Reals in cash, and an annual allowance of 700 Reals to assist him in routing the Dutch. This was dated the 14th January, 1619. It appears from a letter3 addressed from Bantam to Sir Thomas Dale in Jakatra, dated the 26th December, 1618, that the King of Bantam was then sending a number of prows full of men to Jakatra as reinforcements. Subsequently, at a Council4 held at the King’s Court, Jakatra, on the 14th January, 1619 at which Sir Thomas Dale presided, it was agreed to lend the King 10 more pieces of cannon with 20 barrels of power and ammunition to assist him in battering the Dutch fort at Jakatra. On the same date van den Broeck received a letter from the Regent of Jakatra1 in which he sued for peace and offered to assist the Dutch against the English in return for a payment of 5,000 Reals in cash, and 1,000 Reals in Cloth. This was accepted, and a contract was entered into on the 19th whereupon van den Broeck went to the Regent’s palace with a small escort, who, on arrival, were all knocked down, bound and imprisoned. The Regent then forced van den Broeck to write to the Dutch garrison directing them to deliver the fortress to the Javanese. The Chief Merchant, who had assumed the command on the departure of van den Broeck, at first refused to comply, and on the 29th January he received a letter from Sir Thomas Dale advising the he should surrender to him, urging that it would be better for the Dutch to capitulate to a Christian nation rather than to Javanese, Moors or Mahommedans.
After various devices had been adopted by the Regent of Jakatra to secure the surrender of the fortress, van den Broeck at last agreed to a treaty2 which was signed on the 31st January, under which the fortress with its garrison, guns and ammunition were to be given up to Sir Thomas Dale ; the money, treasure and merchandise were to go to the Regent, and the garrison to be embarked on board an English vessel and transported to the Coromandel Coast.
The King of Bantam was greatly enraged at these conditions ; he deposed the Regent of Jakatra, quarrelled with the English, and at the same time showed favour towards the Dutch. Finding every impediment thrown in his way in fulfilling the terms of this treaty Sir Thomas Dale proceeded to Bantam to try and set matters right again with the King, whereupon the garrison of the Dutch fortress seeing no prospect of an attack, set to work to repair the damaged fortifications, and destroyed the earthworks that had been erected against them.
Thus matters remained until the 10th May when the Dutch frigate “Ceylon” arrived at Jakatra, and was followed the next day by a Dutch fleet of 16 vessels with Jan Pieteraz Coen, having ascertained the state of affairs, assembled a force of 1,000 men, and attacked and captured the town of Jakatra. Having driven out the Javanese garrison, he burned down the town including the palace and mosque, and in writing home to the Company giving an account of his proceedings, he observed, “Thus have we punished the people of Bantam, and driven them out of Jakatra … The foundation for a capital has been laid ; a great part of the best and most fertile country now belongs to you.” 1
Coen next desired to have his revenge on the English, whom he looked upon as the real cause of all these troubles ; he therefore sent out vessels with instructions to take compensation from any English vessels they might encounter. In Patani roads they met two English vessels, one of which was commanded by John Jourdain ; these they fought and captured and in the engagement John Jourdain and 39 of his men were killed2. On the 11th October, 1619, four other English ships were encountered near Tekoe, which were also captured, after a sharp fight, and the Commander, Captain Bonner, was killed together with thirty of his men1. Coen was not satisfied with the revenge thus taken on the English, and was contemplating further acts of retaliation when news arrived, on the 27th 2 March, 1620, of the conclusion of a treaty between the English and Dutch (on the 7th July preceding), in accordance with the conditions of which both parties were to trade peaceably in India, abstaining from all acts of hostility and violence. At this Coen was very indignant, and, writing to the authorities at home, on the 11th May, 1620, he remarked3, “Well may the English thank you ; they had already shut themselves out of India, and now you have put them right back in the middle of it. If their intentions be honest and just, all will be well, but, if not, then you will perceive that you have fostered a serpent in your bosom. True, the servant has not to enquire into his master’s actions, and I am aware that to the United Provinces it is of great importance to live in friendly relations with the Crown of England ; but still, if I mistake not, you have been too hasty, and I cannot conceive why the English should be allowed a third of all the spices of the Moluccas, for they have not conquered one grain of sand of the beach of the Moluccas, neither of Amboyna, nor of Banda. If they had any power there, why have they not driven the Spaniards away from Tidore and Ternate?”
Under this Treaty, the “Council of Defence” was established, which consisted of four English and four Dutch members. The King of Bantam, however, persistently refused to have anything to do with the English, and that town was consequently blockaded by a combined fleet. This prevented the re-establishment of an English factory there, and necessitated the selection, for that purpose of a site close to the Dutch fortress at Jakatra, being prevented by Coen from Occupying again their former position, which was still strong enough for defence should hostilities again break out between the two companies. From this time the English remained in Jakatra only by sufferance, the Dutch claiming proprietory rights in the town and neighbourhood, in virtue of having conquered the country by force of arms.
Besides the Dutch Records referred to in the footnotes I have procured copies of many others bearing upon this subject, including some consultations and letters of the English President and Council, which will be found in Nos. CIV to CVI in “Dutch Records at the Hague”, first series, Vol. III, Translations.
On the 17th March, 1632 new Orders were issued on the appointment of Hendrik Brouwer as Governor General. These being for the most part, of a private nature, were not ratified by the States General ; they did not supersede the previous “Instructions”, but on the contrary, contained strict injunctions that they should be followed and obeyed (Art. 96).
The first part of these “Instructions” is taken up principally with suggestions with the view of affecting economy in the administration, particularly with regard to the maintenance of fortifications and repair of ships. Wedding gifts to young women, sent out from Holland, on their marriage in India were to be abolished1 (Art. 28-30), and economy was enjoined in the payment of premiums for enemies slain ; in defraying expenses of funerals for high Officials and Officers, and in the giving of presents (Art. 36-38). The following ten Articles refer to trade in Persia and Surat. Care was enjoined that the English should not be permitted to draw away trade from the Dutch in Persia, and every attempt was to be made to secure a monopoly of the spice trade at Surat. The Masulipatam Factory was to be maintained (Art. 49) “and the wrong done to us to be avenged later on in case of a renewal of the same.” The request of the Achinese for assistance in attacking Malacca was not to be entertained (Art. 51, 52). Instructions are given with reference to trade with Siam, China, and Japan (Art. 54-59) ; and in Article 62 it is remarked that as a considerable fleet of war vessels had to be maintained in the Chinese waters, for the protection of the Dutch trade with China, Tai-wan , and Japan, it would be advisable to employ those ships, from time to time, in attacking the Portuguese vessels between Mecao and Japan, so as to prevent them from continuing to carry on that trade. With regard to Amboyna (Art. 65-68) every effort was to be made to maintain a monopoly for the spice trade and on the Islands of Rhun and Rosengyn (Art. 73-75) all the clove trees were ordered to be cut down, and fruit trees and other food producing plants to be cultivated in their stead.
The next general “Instructions” were issued on the 26th April, 1650, and these also did not receive the ratification of the Netherlands Government. They describe in a minute manner the system of trade and commerce to be followed by the Company ; and in them Batavia is recognized as the capital of the Dutch Eastern possessions. By this date the Portuguese power had been checked, Spain had by the Treaty of Munster been forced to resign all her claims to an East Indian trade whilst the Dutch had acquired influence and power in the East, and possessed numerous staff of Officials competent to carry our a complete system of trade. That these “Instructions” continued in force for at least a century is proved by the fact that in a letter written on the 16th February, 1747, by the Council of Justice at the castle of Jakatra, they are referred to as being still the basis of the Colonial Government.
These “Instructions” commence by a declaration that the existing form of Government is to be continued. It refers almost exclusively to trade, which it is stated may be classed under three heads, viz. :-
1st The trade with the Company’s own possessions, acquired by conquest, namely, the Island of Banda.
2nd The trade with the King of Ternate’s Islands (the Moluccas and Amboyna) which whom exclusive Treaties have been concluded.
3rd The trade with diverse oriental Kings and Princes in virtue of special contract or as common merchants (like other nations) allowed to trade during pleasure of the authorities.
With regard to the Moluccas it is stated that as [page 28] Amboyna could produce sufficient cloves for the use of the whole world cloves should only be cultivated on that Island and, in order to prevent the King of Ternate from planting and dealing in cloves, every endeavour was to be made to involve him in a war with the King of Tidore and the Spanish garrison there.
As the Islands of Banda could produce more mace and nutmeg than would suffice for the want of the whole world, nutmeg trees were to be carefully cultivated there, and not to be allowed to grow too near the coast lest strangers should pick and export them. Further, all food producing trees and plants were to be well looked after, and the Islanders were to be encouraged to trade with the newly discovered South Eastern Islands, with the view of securing an abundant supply of food. Any nutmeg trees found on these last named Islands were to be gradually destroyed by coercion of the inhabitants ; fortresses were to be erected on the Island of Dame and all foreigners were to be prevented from landing.
After enjoining the strictest circumspection with regard to Foreign, European and Indian nations, yet so as to prevent actual war, certain general directions are given with the view of developing trade in the various places as follows:-
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Holmes, D. L. (2008). Old company records: The effect of custodial history on the arrangement and description of selected archival collections of business records. Thesis, Master of Science, School of Computer and Information Science, Edith Cowan University, 2008. Available at https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/23
If you would like further information about Frederick Charles Danvers and the records he investigated in the 1890s at the State Archives in The Hague, please email me on geniedonna @ yahoo.com.au
