Page 116 - Dutch Ships in Tropical Waters

region and then reload for the return journey. In a very short period, there was a lot of traffic between the Pescadores and Taiwan with vessels carrying pepper and ballast stone from the retourschepen to Taiwan. The ballast stones were used for reinforcing the pier and jetties at Tai- wan. Chinese and Japanese merchandise – lacquer and porcelain – with a ballast of sugar were then loaded for the return voyage. Following the retourschepen, the vessels for the direct route, that is via Malacca to the Coast of Coromandel and the Arabian Sea, needed to be loaded with the precious metals from Japan, some Chinese goods like porcelain, and sugar for Persia. These ships would need to pass the Strait of Malacca before the end of December for an easy voyage into the Bay of Bengal and to Persia. The ships used from , – when this route opened, until  – when there was a truce with Portugal, were heavily constructed and heavily armed in order to protect the valuable cargo against both the sea and the European enemy. From  until , robust ships were required, but the threat of enemy attack was not a problem until after . As the only enemy on this route was in the Arabian Sea, there was a strong temptation to send the ships heavily loaded and therefore less suitable for military action. Vessels were sent like this from Taiwan to Malacca or Galle, where the cargo was redistributed and the ships were prepared for military action before continuing the journey to the Arabian Sea. Overall, the most significant complicating factor in the loading system used in Taiwan was, that all the vessels were present in this region of the East China Sea during the typhoon season (Coolhaas , p. ). As a result, a number of the larger VOC vessels that were anchored in the shelter  of the Pescadores were shipwrecked, as were some smaller vessels Organising the shipping on a local level around India . A similar attuning of the various shipping and trade systems took place in the Indian Ocean, the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea. The benefits of the VOC’s differentiated fleet and their ability to adjust to changes in circumstances to maximise trade opportunities is clear in this region. In the Arabian Sea changes were driven by a military confrontation with the Europeans. Particlarly around Goa the VOC felt the need to employ their military against Portugal. How- ever, the blockade of Goa also served a clear commercial purpose; the VOC justified the the high costs associated with the blockade with the profit they expected from higher pepper prices if the Portuguese could not ship to Europe. The main Portuguese city in Asia was, unlike the VOC headquarters in Batavia, subject to the influence of the monsoon. Shipping to and from Goa was only possible between September and May. From , the VOC implemented an active policy to disrupt Portuguese activities in the Arabian Sea through a blockade of Goa. This blockade occurred annually from  until  when the Netherlands reached a truce with Portugal; the blockade resumed again after . How did this military activity fit in with the VOC organisation? To begin with, there were the blockade vessels waiting in Batavia for both sailors and soldiers arriving from Europe. The blockade fleet left Batavia, well maintained, supplied and manned with soldiers in July-Au- gust. They hoped to reach Goa just before the first Portuguese ships could leave for Europe, after being stuck there for half a year during the monsoon season, or to catch the first arriving Portuguese vessels that normally tried to reach Goa from Mozambique around this time. As the wind conditions were unfavourable for sailing to the west coast of India from Batavia, the Dutch vessels had to make a significant detour over the Indian Ocean, sometimes taking  to  weeks and leading to a late arrival at Goa. The Dutch fleet would leave the region again at the end of the northeast monsoon in April, when the Portuguese started to lay up their ships for the following six months. Some VOC vessels would stay active in order to prevent those smaller vessels of the Portuguese from leaving with supplies and soldiers for destinations like Ceylon. What was the additional value of the blockade fleet for the trade organisation of the VOC? On their way to the blockade, the vessels were almost fully laden with soldiers and military equipment and carrying some cargo for Surat and Persia with more to follow on the ships sent after September when the voyage from Batavia or from Taiwan was easier to make via the Strait of Malacca. During the period December-January, well armed vessels from the blockade  Dutch Ships in Tropical Waters