Dutch colonial empire

The Dutch colonial empire was a group of lands and trading spots far from home that were controlled by the Dutch from the early 1600s until the late 1900s. These places were managed by special Dutch trading groups, most importantly the Dutch East India Company and the Dutch West India Company, and later by the government of the Dutch Republic and the modern Kingdom of the Netherlands.

After the Dutch became free from the Spanish Empire, they started looking for business chances far away. They joined many small trading groups into one big company in 1602, called the Dutch East India Company. This company got special rights to trade in Asia. Unlike their rivals, the Dutch focused more on controlling sea paths and trading spots instead of taking big pieces of land.

At its strongest point around 1652, the Dutch empire had places in eastern North America, the Caribbean, South America, Africa, India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Japan, and Taiwan. Dutch sailors also explored places like Australia, New Zealand, and Tasmania. The Dutch were very powerful in world trade during the 1600s, which helped their economy, science, and arts grow a lot. However, wars with Britain and the rise of the British trading company slowly reduced Dutch power. By the mid-1900s, almost all Dutch colonies had become independent, with only a few islands in the Caribbean still linked to the Netherlands today.

Former Dutch colonial possessions

This list does not include several former trading posts stationed by Dutch, such as Dejima in Japan.

• Dutch East Indies with company rule (1602–1949), Dutch Malacca (1641–1795, 1818–1825), and Dutch New Guinea (until 1962)
• Dutch India (1605–1825)
• Dutch Gold Coast (1612–1872)
• Colony of Curaçao and Dependencies (1634–1954), followed by the Dutch Antilles (1954–2010)
• New Netherland (1614–1667, 1673–1674)
• Dutch Guianas (1616–1975)
• Dutch Formosa (1624–1662), and Keelung (Fort Noord-Holland; 1663–1668)
• Dutch Virgin Islands (1625–1680)
• Dutch Bengal (1627–1825)
• Dutch Brazil (1630–1654)
• Dutch Mauritius (1638–1710)
• Dutch Ceylon (1640–1796)
• Dutch Cape Colony (1652–1806)
• Dutch Malabar (1665–1795)
• Dutch Surinam (1667–1954)
• New Holland (Acadia) (1674–1678)

History

Origins (1590s–1602)

In the 1560s, a big war began in the Netherlands. A group of regions joined together and said they wanted to be independent from Spain. This started what is called the Eighty Years' War. The war caused lots of problems and many people suffered. The Dutch wanted to trade with faraway places and get rich products like spices. They started sailing to new places and competing with other countries, especially Portugal.

During this time, small groups called “voorcompagnie” formed to organize these trading trips. They focused on trade but were ready to defend themselves if needed. The Dutch also started fishing and needed salt to keep their fish fresh. They found lots of salt in a place called Araya Peninsula and began trading there too.

Establishment of the Dutch East India Company (VOC) (1602–1609)

Because of all the competing groups, the Dutch created a big company called the Dutch East India Company (VOC) in 1602. This company got special rights to trade in certain areas far away from Europe. They could build forts, make treaties, and even fight if needed to protect their trade. The VOC became very powerful and helped the Dutch build a big trading empire.

Dutch conquest of the Banda Islands (1609–1621)

The Dutch fought to take control of places like the Banda Islands, which were important for spices. They used their ships and soldiers to conquer these areas and set up their own trading posts.

Iberian–Dutch conflicts (until 1661)

The Dutch also fought against Portugal to take over their trading spots in places like Asia and South America. They took control of islands and towns, building forts to protect their new territories. In Africa, they took over places like Elmina Castle, which was important for trading gold and slaves.

Dutch colonisation of Asia

The Dutch took over many areas in Asia, including places like Malacca and Colombo. They also tried to trade with China but faced problems and had to move to Taiwan instead. In Japan, they were allowed to trade only in special places after the Japanese government changed their rules.

Dutch colonisation of the Americas

In the Americas, the Dutch tried to take over areas like Brazil, where they took control of sugar plantations. They also set up colonies in the Caribbean islands like Sint Maarten and Curaçao. However, many of these places were hard to keep, and the Dutch often had to fight with other countries like Spain and England.

Dutch colonisation of Southern Africa

In 1652, the Dutch set up a colony at the Cape of Good Hope in Southern Africa. This was a stop for their ships traveling to Asia. They brought in people from different places to help work the land and built up the colony over time.

Rivalry with Great Britain and France (1652–1795)

The Dutch had many disagreements with England and France over trade and colonies. There were several wars between the Dutch and the English, called the Anglo-Dutch Wars. These wars sometimes ended with the Dutch losing some of their colonies, like New Netherland in North America.

Napoleonic era (1795–1815)

When France invaded the Netherlands in 1795, the country became controlled by France. During this time, Britain took over many Dutch colonies. After Napoleon was defeated, the Netherlands became independent again, but they lost some colonies like the Cape Colony in South Africa.

Post-Napoleonic era (1815–1945)

After Napoleon, the Netherlands joined with another region called the Southern Netherlands, but they separated again in 1830 when Belgium became independent. The Dutch East India Company was dissolved, and the Dutch took direct control of their colonies in what is now Indonesia. They also had colonies in the Caribbean, but these were not very profitable and often needed money from the Dutch government.

Decolonization (1942–1975)

During World War II, Japan took over the Dutch colonies in Indonesia. After the war, Indonesia declared independence, and after a long struggle, the Netherlands recognized it in 1949. Suriname also became independent in 1975, ending the Dutch colonial empire. The Netherlands Antilles changed its structure in 2010, with some islands becoming part of the Netherlands and others becoming separate countries within the Kingdom.

Legacy

Generally, the Dutch do not celebrate their imperial past, and colonial history is not featured prominently in Dutch schoolbooks. This perspective on their imperial past has only recently started to shift.

In a survey conducted in March 2019, 50% of respondents in the Netherlands said they felt some level of pride in the Dutch colonial empire, while 6% felt ashamed.

Dutch diaspora

In some Dutch colonies, there are major ethnic groups of Dutch ancestry descending from emigrated Dutch settlers. In South Africa, the Boers and Cape Dutch are collectively known as the Afrikaners. The Burgher people of Sri Lanka and the Indo people of Indonesia as well as the Creoles of Suriname are mixed race people of Dutch descent.

In the U.S., there have been three American presidents of Dutch descent: Martin Van Buren, the first president who was not of British descent, and whose first language was Dutch, the 26th president Theodore Roosevelt, and Franklin D. Roosevelt, the 32nd president, elected to four terms in office (1933 to 1945) and the only U.S. president to have served more than two terms.

Dutch language

Dutch in Southeast Asia

Despite the Dutch presence in Indonesia for almost 350 years, the Dutch language has no official status and the small minority that can speak the language fluently are either educated members of the oldest generation, or employed in the legal profession, as some legal codes are still available only in Dutch. The Indonesian language inherited many words from Dutch, both in words for everyday life, and as well in scientific or technological terminology. One scholar argues that 20% of Indonesian words can be traced back to Dutch words.

Dutch in South Asia

The century and half of Dutch rule in Ceylon (modern-day Sri Lanka) and southern India left few to no traces of the Dutch language.

Dutch in the Americas

In Suriname, Dutch is the official language. 82% of the population can speak Dutch fluently In Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao, Dutch is the official language but a first language for only 7–8% of the population; though most of the population is fluent in Dutch, which is generally the language of education.

The population of the three northern Antilles, Sint Maarten, Saba, and Sint Eustatius, is predominantly English-speaking.

In New Jersey, an extinct dialect of Dutch, Jersey Dutch, was spoken by descendants of 17th-century Dutch settlers in Bergen and Passaic counties, was noted to still be spoken as late as 1921. U.S. President Martin Van Buren, raised in a Dutch-speaking enclave in New York, had Dutch as his native language.

Dutch in Africa

The greatest linguistic legacy of the Netherlands was in its colony in South Africa, which attracted large numbers of Dutch farmer settlers, who spoke a simplified form of Dutch called Afrikaans, which is largely mutually intelligible with Dutch. After the colony passed into British hands, the settlers spread into the hinterland, taking their language with them. As of 2005, there were 10 million people for whom Afrikaans is either a primary and secondary language, compared with over 22 million speakers of Dutch.

Other creole languages with Dutch linguistic roots are Papiamento still spoken in Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao, and Sint Eustatius; Saramaccan and Sranan Tongo still spoken in Suriname; Berbice an extinct language in Guyana; Pecok spoken but in danger of extinction in Indonesia and the Netherlands; Albany Dutch spoken but in danger of extinction in the U.S.

Extinct Dutch-based creole languages include: Skepi (Guyana); Negerhollands (aka "Negro Dutch"), Jersey Dutch and Mohawk Dutch (U.S.), and Javindo (Java).

Placenames

For a more comprehensive list, see List of place names of Dutch origin.

See also: List of place names of Dutch origin in Australia

Some towns of New York and areas of New York City, once part of the colony of New Netherland have names of Dutch origin, such as Brooklyn (after Breukelen), Flushing (after Vlissingen), the Bowery (after Bouwerij, construction site), Harlem (after Haarlem), Coney Island (from Conyne Eylandt, modern Dutch spelling Konijneneiland: Rabbit island) and Staten Island (meaning "Island of the States"). The last Director-General of the colony of New Netherland, Pieter Stuyvesant, has bequeathed his name to a street, a neighborhood and a few schools in New York City, and the town of Stuyvesant. Many of the towns and cities along the Hudson in upstate New York have placenames with Dutch origins (for example Yonkers, Hoboken, Haverstraw, Claverack, Staatsburg, Catskill, Kinderhook, Coeymans, Rensselaer, Watervliet). Nassau County, one of the four that make up Long Island, is also of Dutch origin. The Schuylkill river that flows into the Delaware at Philadelphia is also a Dutch name meaning hidden or skulking river.

Many towns and cities in Suriname share names with cities in the Netherlands, such as Alkmaar, Wageningen, and Groningen. The capital of Curaçao is named Willemstad and the capitals of both Sint Eustatius and Aruba are named Oranjestad. The first is named after the Dutch Prince Willem II van Oranje-Nassau (William of Orange-Nassau) and the two others after the first part of the current Dutch royal dynasty.

In Indonesia, the Nassau District in Toba Regency, North Sumatra, is believed to be named after the House of Orange-Nassau. The Oranje Nassau Coal Mine in Banjar Regency was named after the royal house. Puncak Jaya, also known as Carstensz Pyramid was named after Dutch explorer Jan Carstenszoon. The Lorentz National Park in Central Papua is named for Hendrikus Albertus Lorentz, a Dutch explorer who passed through the area on his 1909–10 expedition.

Many of South Africa's major cities have Dutch names i.e. Johannesburg, Kaapstad, Vereeniging, Bloemfontein and Vanderbijlpark.

The country name New Zealand originated with Dutch cartographers, who called the islands Nova Zeelandia, after the Dutch province of Zeeland. British explorer James Cook subsequently anglicized the name to New Zealand.

The Australian island state Tasmania is named after Dutch explorer Abel Tasman, who made the first reported European sighting of the island on 24 November 1642. He first named the island Anthony van Diemen's Land after his sponsor Anthony van Diemen, the Governor of the Dutch East Indies. The name was later shortened to Van Diemen's Land by the British. It was officially renamed in honor of its first European discoverer on 1 January 1856. Arnhem Land is named after the Dutch ship named Arnhem. The captain of the Arnhem (Willem van Coolsteerdt) also named the large island, east of Arnhem Groote Eylandt, in modern Dutch spelling Groot Eiland: Large Island.

Architecture

In the Surinamese capital of Paramaribo, the Dutch Fort Zeelandia still stands today. The city itself also have retained most of its old street layout and architecture, which is part of the world's UNESCO heritage. In the centre of Malacca, Malaysia, the Stadthuys Building and Christ Church still stand as a reminder of Dutch occupation. There are still archaeological remains of Fort Goede Hoop (modern Hartford, Connecticut) and Fort Orange (modern Albany, New York).

Dutch architecture is easy to see in Aruba, Curaçao, Bonaire, and Sint Eustatius. The Dutch style buildings are especially visible in Willemstad, with its steeply pitched gables, large windows and soaring finials.

Dutch architecture can also be found in Sri Lanka, especially in Galle where the Dutch fortification and canal have been retained intact, even to an extent the former tropical Villas of the VOC officials. Some of the most prominent example of these architecture is the former governor's mansion in Galle, currently known as Amangalla Hotel and the Old Dutch Reformed Church. In the capital Colombo, many of the Dutch and Portuguese architecture around The Fort have been demolished during the British period, few of the remaining include Old Colombo Dutch Hospital and Wolvendaal Church.

During the period of Dutch colonisation in South Africa, a distinctive type of architecture, known as Cape Dutch architecture, was developed. These style of architecture can be found in historical towns such as Stellenbosch, Swellendam, Tulbagh, and Graaff-Reinet. In the former Dutch capital of Cape Town, nearly nothing from the VOC era have survived except the Castle of Good Hope.

Although the Dutch already started erecting buildings shortly after they arrived on the shores of Batavia, most Dutch-built constructions still standing today in Indonesia stem from the 19th and 20th centuries. Forts from the colonial era, used for defense purposes, still line a number of major coastal cities across the archipelago. The largest number of surviving Dutch buildings can be found on Java and Sumatra, particularly in cities such as Jakarta, Bandung, Semarang, Yogyakarta, Surabaya, Cirebon, Pasuruan, Bukittinggi, Sawahlunto, Medan, Padang, and Malang. There are also significant examples of 17–19th century Dutch architecture around Banda Neira, Nusa Laut, and Saparua, the former main spices islands, which due to limited economic development have retained many of its colonial elements. Another prominent example of Dutch colonial architecture is Fort Rotterdam in Makassar. The earlier Dutch construction mostly replicate the architecture style in the Homeland (such as Toko Merah). However these buildings were unsuitable to tropical climate and expensive to maintain. And as a result the Dutch officials begun to adapt to the tropical condition by applying native elements such as wide-open veranda, ventilation and indigenous high pitch roofing into their villas. "In the beginning (of the Dutch presence), Dutch construction on Java was based on colonial architecture which was modified according to the tropical and local cultural conditions," Indonesian art and design professor Pamudji Suptandar wrote. This was dubbed arsitektur Indis (Indies architecture), which combines the existing traditional Hindu-Javanese style with European forms.

Many public buildings still standing and in use in Jakarta, such as the presidential palace, the finance ministry and the performing arts theater, were built in the 19th century in the classicist style. At the turn of the 20th century and partially due to the Dutch Ethical Policy, the number of Dutch people migrating to the colony grew with economic expansion. The increasing number of middle class population led to the development of Garden Suburbs in major city across the Indies, many of the houses were built in various style ranging from the Indies style, Neo-Renaissance to modern Art Deco. Some examples of these residential district include Menteng in Jakarta, Darmo in Surabaya, Polonia in Medan, Kotabaru in Yogyakarta, New Candi in Semarang and as well as most of North Bandung. Indonesia also became an experimental ground for Dutch Art Deco architectural movement such as Nieuwe Zakelijkheid, De Stijl, Nieuw Indische and Amsterdam School. Several famous architect such as Wolff Schoemaker and Henri Maclaine Pont also made an attempt to modernize indigenous architecture, resulting several unique design such as Pohsarang Church and Bandung Institute of Technology. The largest stock of these Art Deco building can be found in the city of Bandung, which "architecturally" can be considered the most European city in Indonesia.

Since Indonesia's independence, few governments have shown interest in the conservation of historical buildings. Many architecturally grand buildings have been torn down in the past decades to erect shopping centres or office buildings e.g. Hotel des Indes (Batavia), Harmony Society, Batavia. Presently, however, more Indonesians have become aware of the value of preserving their old buildings.

"A decade ago, most people thought I was crazy when they learned of my efforts to save the old part of Jakarta. A few years later, the negative voices started to disappear, and now many people are starting to think with me: how are we going to save our city. In the past using the negative sentiment towards the colonial era was often used as an excuse to disregard protests against the demolition of historical buildings. An increasing number of people now see the old colonial buildings as part of their city's overall heritage rather than focusing on its colonial aspect.", leading Indonesian architect and conservationist Budi Lim said.

Infrastructure

Beyond Indonesia's art deco architecture also much of the country's rail and road infrastructure as well as its major cities were built during the colonial period. Many of Indonesia's main cities were mere rural townships before colonial industrialization and urban development. Examples on Java include the capital Jakarta and Bandung, outside Java examples include Ambon and Menado city. Most main railroads and rail stations on Java as well as the main road, called Daendels Great Post Road (Dutch: Grote Postweg) after the Governor General commissioning the work, connecting west to east Java were also built during the Dutch East Indies era.

Between 1800 and 1950, Dutch engineers created an infrastructure including 67,000 kilometers (42,000 mi) of roads, 7,500 kilometers (4,700 mi) of railways, many large bridges, modern irrigation systems covering 1.4 million hectares (5,400 sq mi) of rice fields, several international harbors, and 140 public drinking water systems. These Dutch constructed public works became the material base of the colonial and postcolonial Indonesian state.

Agriculture

Crops such like coffee, tea, cocoa, tobacco and rubber were all introduced by the Dutch. The Dutch were the first to start the spread of the coffee plant in Central and South America, and by the early 19th century Java was the third largest producer in the world. In 1778, the Dutch brought cacao from the Philippines to Indonesia and commenced mass production. Currently Indonesia is the world's second largest producer of natural rubber, a crop that was introduced by the Dutch in the early 20th century. Tobacco was introduced from the Americas and in 1863, the first plantation was established by the Dutch. Today Indonesia is not only the oldest industrial producer of tobacco, but also the second largest consumer of tobacco.

Scientific discoveries

Java Man was discovered by Eugène Dubois in Indonesia in 1891. The Komodo dragon was firstly described by Peter Ouwens in Indonesia in 1912 after an airplane crash in 1911 and rumors about living dinosaurs on Komodo Island in 1910.

Sport

Suriname

Many Suriname-born football players and Dutch-born football players of Surinamese descent, like Gerald Vanenburg, Ruud Gullit, Frank Rijkaard, Edgar Davids, Clarence Seedorf, Patrick Kluivert, Aron Winter, Georginio Wijnaldum, Virgil van Dijk and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink have turned out to play for the Dutch national team. In 1999, Humphrey Mijnals, who played for both Suriname and the Netherlands, was elected Surinamese footballer of the century. Another famous player is André Kamperveen, who captained Suriname in the 1940s and was the first Surinamese to play professionally in the Netherlands.

Suriname discourages dual citizenship and Surinamese-Dutch players who have picked up a Netherlands passport – which, crucially, offers legal work status in almost any European league – are barred from selection to the national team. In 2014, inspired by the success of teams with dual nationals, especially Algeria, SVB president John Krishnadath submitted a proposal to the national assembly to allow dual citizenship for athletes with the then-goal of reaching the 2018 FIFA World Cup finals. In order to support this project, a team with professional players of Surinamese origin was assembled and played an exhibition match on 26 December 2014 at the Andre Kamperveen Stadion. The project is managed by Nordin Wooter and David Endt, who have set up a presentation and sent invitations to 100 players of Surinamese origin, receiving 85 positive answers. Dean Gorré was named to coach this special selection. FIFA supported the project and granted insurance for the players and clubs despite the match being unofficial. In November 2019, it was announced that a so-called sports passport would allow Dutch professional footballers from the Surinamese diaspora to represent Suriname.

Suriname also has a national korfball team, with korfball being a Dutch sport. Vinkensport is also practised in Suriname, as are popular among the Dutch sports of volleyball and troefcall.

South Africa

Ajax Cape Town were a professional football team named and owned by Ajax Amsterdam, replicating their crest and colours.

The Dutch sport of korfball is administered by the South African Korfball Federation, who manage the South Africa national korfball team. The 2019 IKF World Korfball Championship was held in August 2019 in Durban, South Africa.

Indonesia

Many Dutch-born football players of Indonesian descent, like Sonny Silooy, Wilfred Bouma, Giovanni van Bronckhorst, John Heitinga, Denny Landzaat, Roy Makaay, and Tijjani Reijnders have turned out to play for the Dutch national team. In recent years, the Indonesian Football Association (PSSI) has implemented a naturalization program for players of Indonesian descent in Europe, particularly the Netherlands, to improve the quality of the Indonesian national team. This program, which was initiated during the era of coach Shin Tae-yong, has naturalized mostly Dutch-born football players such as Jay Idzes, Justin Hubner, Rafael Struick, Ivar Jenner, Mees Hilgers, and Eliano Reijnders.

The Indonesian football league started around 1930 in the Dutch colonial era. The Indonesian men's team was the first Asian team to qualify for the FIFA World Cup; in 1938 FIFA World Cup they played as the Dutch East Indies. Association football is now the most popular sport in Indonesia, in terms of annual attendance, participation and revenue and it is played on all levels, from children to middle-aged men.

The Indonesian Tennis Association was also founded during Dutch rule in 1935, and has a long history of fielding its national Fed Cup team and Davis Cup team, although the first participation's in the 60s were not till after independence.

As in the Netherlands, volleyball remains a popular sport, with the Indonesian Volleyball Federation organising both the Men's Pro Liga and women's Pro Liga and administers the men's and women's national teams.

The Dutch sport of korfball is also practised, and there is a national korfball team.

Territorial evolution

Main article: Evolution of the Dutch Empire

The Dutch Empire grew over time, starting in the early 1600s. By 1630, it had already begun to expand its reach. Over the next few decades, it continued to grow, reaching its peak in the mid-1700s. By 1795, the empire had changed shape again. It kept changing until 1975, when it had shrunk to its current size.

The Dutch Empire in 1630

The Dutch Empire in 1650

The Dutch Empire in 1674

The Dutch Empire in 1700

The Dutch Empire in 1750^{[citation needed]}

The Dutch Empire in 1795^{[citation needed]}

The Dutch Empire in 1830

The Dutch Empire prior to World War II

The Dutch Empire in 1960

The Dutch Empire in 1975