Page 134 - Dutch Ships in Tropical Waters

gaged in action on the coast of China itself. These actions were not very successful, but they did lead to the establishment of the earlier-mentioned VOC stronghold on Taiwan. The VOC, how- ever, remained excluded from the Chinese market itself and had to find alternative sources of Chinese products. Apart from the military actions, a regular shipping route between Batavia and Taiwan and Japan was developing with an increase in the frequency of the stopovers in this region: Thai- land, Cambodia and Vietnam (Areas ,  and ) were visited  times, which represented an explosive growth. Thailand, where Ayutthaya high up the Menam river in the heart of the country had now replaced the semi-independent Patani on the peninsula as the place for VOC trade, and had become an important destination to purchase merchandise for Japan together with rice and timber for the VOC settlement on Taiwan. A picture emerges, during this period, of shipping specifically intended to cater for the supply of consumable products and building materials for the VOC settlements. Food was shipped over long distances; for example, Japan was supplying rice and wheat for Batavia (the need for food in Batavia had also grown because of problems with the local authorities of Bantam and Mataram). The frequency of shipping to Japan nearly doubled and the number of the VOC ships sailing to Hirado (Firando) increased by more than %, despite the fact that the VOC’s shipping to Japan totally ceased for three years in - because the Japanese did not accept the VOC’s authority on Taiwan. Eventually the conflict was settled to the VOC’s advantage since shortly after the -year hiatus they gained a favourable position over their other European competitors as the only Christian nation allowed to trade with Japan. This policy of isolation by the Shogun brought strict regulations but an overall benefit for the VOC. In the previous period some attempts were made by Specx to make Japan a VOC logistical centre but this was no longer practical or feasible. The restrictions linked with the position of the VOC in Japan were too strict, the function as a staging post could be taken over by Taiwan. At the other end of the Asian network in the northwestern regions of the Indian Ocean (Ara- bia with Mocha as the most important harbour, Area  and Persia with its port Gamron, Area ), later called the Westerkwartieren, shipping had also increased substantially. After some ex- perimentation with shipping to Persia and Mocha in the previous period, this route now be- came well established with  arrivals. Together with this development, there was also a sub- stantial increase in shipping voyages with Surat as both a final destination and as a stopover for voyages to or from Persia and Arabia ( arrivals). The Period - In the previous periods, the trade and shipping networks of the VOC had started to take shape. In the period after , shipping intensified and the emphasis on certain destinations changed for various reasons. The total shipping in Asia increased less spectacularly than in earlier peri- ods but, nevertheless, still increased by % for ship movements and % by total volume. In general, all the regular shipping routes were more or less in use by the VOC in the - period. No new destinations were added and only in a few cases did the actual harbour within a destination sometimes change. For core destinations like the Spice Islands, the frequency and volume of shipping could vary according to the type of ships that were sent. Because the mili- tary operations against the Iberians had been shifted away from the Philippines to other areas, shipping to the Moluccas and the Sulu Sea dropped considerably. Regular shipping took place to Sumatra (pepper for textiles) and from Batavia to Taiwan and Japan. The only new route that came into service was the direct one from Taiwan, through the Strait of Malacca (avoiding a stopover in Batavia) to the Westerkwartieren and the Bay of Bengal. The trade position of the VOC in Persia improved considerably. Precious metals and copper from Japan and China, and sugar from Taiwan and China, were exchanged for silk, other textiles, indigo and saltpetre along this route. This development is reflected in an increase in arrivals of % to the region of Taiwan, % for Persia and % for northwest India. Only Arabia proved to be less profitable than previously expected and the frequency of voyages dropped to about one ship every year.  Dutch Ships in Tropical Waters