Page 109 - Dutch Ships in Tropical Waters

 Knitting all the threads together: the logistics of the network Batavia as the spider in the web of logistical organisation West Java and Sunda Strait had been, since the commencement of regular Dutch voyages to the Asiatic region, an important place of call, but it was certainly not self-evident that this location would become the headquarters of the VOC from which all activities would be coordinated. Even in , when Jayakarta was captured as an outcome of the skirmishes with the English, it was not clear if the VOC directors would reach the consensus that central rendezvous was necessary. The focal point of the Dutch activities in Asia for the early period was the Spice Islands. There was a monopoly on the spice trade to be gained subject to the use of force to exclude European and Asian rivals from the market. All other Asian products for both the barter trade on the Spice Islands and for the European market could be obtained on various locations throughout Asia. Pepper, the most important product in th century trade to Europe (in terms of volume), was already purchased prior to , by the Dutch at different locations such as Bantam on West Java, Atjeh on Sumatra, Patani on the east coast of the Malaysian peninsula but also Johore, South Borneo and the west coast of India. Pepper was a product in demand, which could be obtained in large quantities and used at all times to load the holds of the European bound vessels. The big profits were, however, made through the trade in spices. Although the strategic interest to obtain these goods for Europe was centred on the Spice Is- lands, this location was impractical from a purely nautical point of view. Due to the monsoonal cycle, the Spice Islands were only accessible for six months a year while return shipping was only possible the other half of the year. This made it difficult to assimilate this location, from which the VOC had to obtain their barter goods in order to acquire the spices, into the intra- Asian network. Although the Spice Islands were the VOC's political-military centre in the s, the region at Sunda Strait served as a transhipment centre due to the suitability of its location as a shipping link between Europe and the intra-Asian network. Shipping contacts in the northern part of the Indian Ocean could be maintained all year round through the Strait of Malacca or the Sunda Strait. The ports of the Sunda Islands that face the Sea have relatively sheltered conditions with the effects of the monsoons diminished compared to other Asian shores. From the earliest Dutch voyages to Asia, ships could expect to find good anchorage here and a place to assemble their fleet. Early in the th century, the need for a warehouse arose; a place to store goods to be reloaded onto other ships. In , Wybrand van Warwyck, the Admiral of the first VOC fleet, was allowed a stone building and a yard in Bantam. The problem with this location was, that Bantam charged high import and export taxes. A location with the same logistical advantages but independent from the local authorities would have been ideal for the VOC. When Gover- nor-General Both, the first in the region, was appointed, the infrastructure to facilitate the se- paration of VOC shipping into European-Asian and intra-Asian did not exist. The political- military centre was, as a consequence located in the Spice Islands; it was the end of the s when the Dutch secured their position in the eastern part of the archipelago. Governor-General Both therefore went directly to the Spice Islands when he arrived in Asia. In addition, a lower 