Page 156 - Dutch Ships in Tropical Waters
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Trade was the purpose, but the ships were the means and the organisation was the oil that kept the engine going. Experience (and experiments) led to changes in the shipping organisa- tion, the design of ships and the composition of the fleet. The Dutch shipping in Asia to The extent of Dutch shipping in Asia could be derived from analysing from historical records both the ships in service in Asia and their voyages in the intra-Asian network. A single compar- ison of shipping between Europe and Asia and Dutch intra-Asian shipping clearly demon- strates the importance of this lesser recognised aspect of shipping history. Between and , , voyages of shipping between Europe and Asia were recorded, while in the same period , voyages in the intra-Asian network were recorded. It must be borne in mind, however, when making any comparison the differences in nature between the long inter-continental voyages and the shorter routes of the network in Asia. Table .: Comparison of frequency of Europe-Asia and intra-Asia shipping (number of voyages be- tween destinations) The development of intra-Asian shipping in both frequency and volume is an interesting indi- cator of the overall VOC expansion in this region. From until the frequency shows a rapid growth, consistent with the initial devel- opmental phase. Up to , first the Voorcompagnieën and then (during its early years) the VOC operated mainly trading-round-tours that would bring most ships back to Europe. After the establishment of a permanent organisation in Asia and the build-up of a fleet by the VOC in Asia is reflected in the growth of the shipping to various destinations. After the establishment of Batavia in the expansion continued and was tempered only slightly by the VOC’s ex- periments in the early ’s in privatising parts of the intra-Asian shipping. This foray is hardly visible in the year figures as this policy was short-lived and half-hearted and was overshadowed by the overall expansion. In the ’s the VOC network developed and the routes were consolidated and fine-tuned. From until there is steady growth: the existing network is further developed and intensified. In the period - the intensity of the total shipping decreases by %. If the volume of shipping is considered, the growth is not as consistent. The total volume of the ship- ping increases up to but the rate of growth between - is much lower. From - there was a boom in growth with an increase close to % in volume. The volume stabi- lised between - with an % decrease in volume. With the compilation of all the data from historical records in to a database it is possible for the first time to analyse the development of VOC shipping in Asia quantitatively. Data on ship- ping to the various regions provides a background to the development of an Intra-Asian net- work. Data was collated into ten-year periods from to , Data prior to was col- lated in an additional category . Analysis was then carried out the data in these six distinct time periods. The frequency of arrivals and ships’ tonnages in the main trading areas was eval- uated. The results of the analysis show an ongoing development in trade, but in addition these results highlight the VOC’s military strategies. Dutch Ships in Tropical Waters
