The
Portuguese first navigated and explored the Indian Ocean under Vasco de Gama
and had been trading in Goa on the West coast of India since 1497.
The
Dutch obtained their knowledge from Jan Huygens van Linschoten who, after
working for 4 years in Portugal and 5 years in Goa, returned to Holland in
1592. His disclosures were eagerly studied and passed on; as a result in 1594
the Compagnie van Verre was formed in Amsterdam and immediately started to send
out their own ships following the routes discovered by the Portuguese. Cornelis
Houtman arrived in Bantam on the North coast of West Java in 1596. Other
expeditions under van Waerwijck, van Heemskerk and van Neck followed taking the
routes via Cape of Good Hope or Cape Horn and in doing so discovered Mauritius
on their way.
In
1602 a number of Dutch trading companies, amongst them the Compagnie van Verre,
merged to form the almighty VOC - Verenigde Oost Indische Compagnie - or United
East Indies Trading Company. The Staten Generaal, the supreme authority of the
then Republic of the United Provinces, granted the VOC monopoly of trade in an
area between Cape of Good Hope and the Straits of Magellan, virtually the best
part of the southern hemisphere!
The
principal trading posts of the VOC were situated on Java and the Moluccas.
These locations were not far from the fabled Unknown or Great South Land, also
known as Terra Australis Incognita. The directors of the VOC trading post in
Bantam decided to investigate the trading potential of this unexplored region
and an expedition was sent. The vessel chosen was the "Duyfken", a
small shallow draught yacht of 50 tons.
On
26 April 1606 Dutch Capt Willem Jansz on board “Duyfken” landed on the far
north coast of Queensland near Weipa. During his voyage he charted some 300 km
of the west coast of Cape York Peninsula.
This
is the first documented landing of Europeans, in this case the Dutch, on
Australian soil.
Others
have laid claim to discovery of the Great South Land. On 14 May 1606 Captain
Pedro Fernandez de Quiros (a Portuguese national), having discovered what he
believed to be the Great South Land, claimed it for Spain and named it
"Australia del Espiritu Santo". In fact de Quiros had not discovered
Australia itself, but the largest island of what later became known as the New
Hebrides. He was forced to turn back before reaching the "Southland"
itself, but his prophetic proclamation and the name was spoken over our land.
Luis
Vaez De Torres commanded the "Almirante", one of the two ships
despatched from Peru in December 1605 to explore the Pacific. Quiros, the
commander of the expedition, was under the delusion that he had discovered the
great southern continent when he reached the island of Espiritu Santo, in the
New Hebrides group.
Torres,
after Quiros sailed back to South America, satisfied himself that it was an
island.
This
narrative is contained in a manuscript that was found at Manila in 1762 when
the English captured that city during the war against the Family Compact
(France and Spain).
It
was first printed in Burney's Discoveries and Voyages in the South Sea.
There
is also evidence that traders and fishermen (Macassans), from what is now
called Indonesia, set foot on the land well before the Europeans ever did. The
first European (Dutch) landing on Australian soil is based on documented
evidence; my story on maritime connections over the centuries is based on well
known and documented evidence. The fact that the Macassans or even the Chinese
were there before
Captain Willem Janszoon is not
in question, the only thing they did not do for posterity was leave any
charts behind.
For
decades VOC sailing ships followed the routes discovered earlier by the Portuguese;
round the Cape of Good Hope, via the east cost of Madagascar to the island of
Mauritius where fresh water and food was taken on board and then on the Spice
Islands. Crossing the Indian Ocean to Sunda Straits was very difficult, having
to sail into the northeast trade winds and long periods of calm caused long
delays, consequently the ships ran short of water and food and many of the crew
fell ill.
It
had been observed that to the south of the Cape of Good Hope between latitudes
36 and 40 degrees South the winds constantly blew from
the west. One captain, Hendrik Brouwer, went south after rounding the Cape and
was carried eastwards as far as
longitude 110 degrees East from where he steered a northerly course that took
him to Java where he completed his voyage in 5 months and 24 days, a record in
those days.
Following
other successful voyages along that route the Heren Zeventien, VOC directors in
Amsterdam, issued a direction in 1616 that all VOC ships on the way out to the
East Indies had to follow the easterly course.
This
created new problems, this time caused by inadequate navigation. Latitude could
be determined from the sun and the stars but instruments to determine longitude
accurately did not (yet) exist at the time. As a result the position from where
to turn north for Java was pure guesswork.
In
the same year that de directive was issued the "Eendracht" under
Dirck Hartogsz command nearly got into difficulties. Hartogsz came across a
group of islands at approximately latitude 25 degrees South.
He charted the islands and called them Dirck Hartogsz Islands and the nearby
mainland Eendrachtsland. A pewter plate inscribed "1616. On 25 October the
vessel D'Eendracht of Amsterdam landed here" with the names of the
Captain, the senior and junior VOC Merchant on board and the navigator was
nailed to a stake on one of the islands.
Other
VOC ships followed the new directive; some of them were not so lucky. Names
such as Dedels Land, Houtman Abrolhos, Cape Leeuwin, Tortelduyffs Island,
Pieter Nuyts Land and De Witts land were shown on the company's charts to stay
clear of these dangerous waters.
The
Dutch flag was the first flag to be raised on Australian soil; it was taken
ashore by a swimmer through heavy surf when Abel Tasman discovered and named
Van Diemens Land (Tasmania) on 3 December in 1642.
In
1623 the VOC mounted another expedition that set sail from Ambon under the
command of Jan Carstensz to explore the coast of New Guinea and follow the same
course as the “Duyfken”
did seventeen years before.
During
the voyage Carstensz charted the coast beyond Cape Keerweer and he named the
western entrance to the Torres Strait Drooge Bocht (Dry Bight).
Anthony
van Diemen, Governor-General of the VOC from 1636 to 1645, ordered further
expeditions. The first one in 1636 was to explore the north and west coast and
part of the south coast of the Great South Land; the second one left with
instructions to find out if Terra Australis extend as far as Antarctica, as was
shown on old charts, left in 1642 with the yachts "Heemskerck" and
"Zeehaen" under command of Abel Jansz Tasman.
On 24 November 1642 land was sighted
which Tasman named Van Diemensland.
Tasman took possession of the land for the VOC by planting a flag bearing its
monogram.
Tasman
continued his voyage to discover the South Island of New Zealand that he took
to be part of Terra Australis, discovering Fiji on his way and landing in
Batavia on 15 June 1643. He had proven that Terra Australis was separated from
Antarctica by open water.
Upon
his return Tasman was given new orders to sail from Batavia and determine
whether New Guinea and Van Diemen’s Land were connected to Terra Australis. If
he could not find a passage between New Guinea and Terra Australis his orders
were to turn around and sail westwards, charting the entire north coast and
then the west coast of this unknown country to the notorious Houtman Abrolhos
Reef.
Like
Carstensz in 1623 he decided that the Torres Strait was a bay because of its
numerous sandbanks and narrow channels, marked Drooge Bocht on his chart and
turned towards the west to complete his task.
In
1696 another expedition was mounted and received orders to search for a lost
vessel that had left the Cape but never arrived in Batavia, also to explore the
west coast of what was by now called New Holland instead of Terra Australis.
Under
the command of Willem de Vlamingh the "Geelvinck", the
"Nijptangh" and the "Weseltje" set sail from Texel in May
1696.The fleet called in at the Cape of Good Hope and a number of islands in
the Indian Ocean as per instructions; on 24 December they sighted the coast of
New Holland and 6 days later anchored off an island 31 degrees south. The
island was named Rottenest (rat's nest) and charted; the main land was explored
and although they did not meet any aborigines they came across their presence.
Vlamingh
discovered the mouth of a river and named it Swan River after the black swans
they found there.
Continuing
up the coast De Vlamingh’ s fleet reached
Eendrachtsland, where Dirck Hartogsz had landed in 1616. The landing party
found the stake and the pewter plate with the inscription that Dirck Hartogsz
had left behind; De Vlamingh took the original pewter plate and replaced it
with a new one engraved with both Hartogsz’ text and an account of his own
visit.
During
the 18th Century the VOC did little more to explore, consequently the Dutch
never explored the east coast of the continent.
Discovery
of that part of The Great South Land, in 1770 known as New Holland, was
reserved for James Cook, a British explorer.
Captain
Cook had discovered and mapped the East Coast of New Holland. The flag history
of Australia as a British Possession began on 29 April 1770 when James Cook
raised the Union Flag at Stingray Harbour, later renamed Botany Bay. A few
months later on 22 August 1770, at a ceremony on Possession Island off Cape
York, Cook raised the flag again and formally claimed the East coast of the
continent in the name of King George lll.
He called the land New South Wales.
The
Commission appointed Phillip Captain-General and Governor-in-Chief in and over
the territory called New South Wales, extending from the Northern Cape or
extremity of the coast called Cape York, in the latitude of ten degrees
thirty-seven minutes south, to the southern extremity of the said territory of
New South Wales or South Cape, in the latitude of forty-three degrees
thirty-nine minutes south and of all the country inland westward as far as the
one hundred and thirty-fifth degree of east longitude reckoning from the
meridian of Greenwich, including all the islands adjacent in the Pacific Ocean
within the latitudes aforesaid of ten degrees thirty-seven minutes south and
forty-three degrees thirty-nine minutes south'.
Unlike
all of the other colonies, except South Australia, Western Australia (also
known as the Swan River Colony) was founded directly from the United Kingdom,
initially as a private enterprise colony, and no part of its territory was ever
part of New South Wales.
The
decision to instruct the Admiralty to take formal possession of the western
portion of the Australian continent was an essential preliminary to the
foundation of the Swan River Colony.
Captain
James Stirling, who had in the previous year explored the area around the mouth
and lower reaches of the Swan River, wrote to the Under Secretary for the
Colonies, informing him that:
" His Majesty's right to that country has
never been declared, and as it is reported that the French Government
contemplates the formation of a settlement in New Holland, the apprehension is
that an expedition proceeding there might find, on its arrival, the best
positions occupied and its aim defeated, to the total ruin of the property I
take the liberty of suggesting that [the difficulties] may be obviated by
dispatching at once a ship of war to that quarter. Possession might thus be
taken of the country surveys commenced, and arrangements made for the reception
of settlers".
Stirling's
suggestion was acted upon and on 5 November 1828, the Colonial Secretary, Sir
George Murray, instructed the Admiralty to order the officer commanding the
naval forces at the Cape to despatch a ship to the coast of New Holland and to
take formal possession of the territory. Uninterrupted possession was to be
maintained until the arrival of further advice.
On
10 March 1829, HMS Challenger under the command of Captain Fremantle set sail
from the Cape.
On
the morning of 2 May the Captain and party from the ship landed on the mainland
and took formal possession of the west coast of New Holland in the name of His
Majesty the King. This action cleared the way for the arrival of Stirling and
the first party of settlers a few weeks later.
The
Great South Land, Terra Australis Incognito, New Holland is now known as the
Commonwealth of Australia. Dutch seafarers and explorers have left their mark
on the map and in doing so they have become part of the history of this great
country of ours.
Commercial
and passenger shipping played an important role in Australia’s history;
following is a précis of Dutch involvement.
Dutch
commercial shipping has built-up a remarkable worldwide reputation over the
centuries, comparable to but certainly more complex than other great maritime
nations such as the British.
Arguably,
perhaps more than any other starting point, was the
famous VOC and their legendary success for almost 200 years from the early
1600s. Taking a quantum leap forward, the main shipping line events which lead
to this day:
The
Nederland Steamship Company (SMN) - a public company based in Amsterdam,
commenced serving the Indonesian archipelago and other Southeast Asian
destinations in 1870.
Shortly
afterwards, in 1883, a competitive privately owned Rotterdam headquartered line
- the Rotterdam Lloyd (RL), began operating to and from the same region,
In
1888 the Royal Packet Company (KPM) was formed with a very prominent role of
and representation on its Board through its long existence of the SMN
and RL. The KPM's objective was to
exploit shipping opportunities in Asia and especially huge trading
opportunities in Indonesia,
Before
the formation of KPM in 1888 and commencement of its operations in the East
Indies in 1891 major inter island trade and trade between the Indies and
Singapore was carried out from 1851 until 1865 by a private company with 4
small ships; in 1865 a contract for the inter island trade and other routes was
let by the East Indies government to a British company with a very Dutch name.
The Nederlands Indische Stoomvaart Maatschappij (NISM) traded on contract with
the East Indies government until KPM commenced operations in 1891.
It
is quite possible that NISM ships under British flag called on Australian ports
with goods from the Indies; however, no records of such voyages can be found.
1902
saw commencement of the Hong Kong based Java-China-Japan Line (JCJL) with major
shareholdings by SMN, RL and KPM,
In
1908, the establishment by KPM of the Java Australia Line with two vessels on
an Australia / South-East Asia service was the start of regular Dutch
commercial shipping operation with this country which ceased in February 2006.
After
World War I a combination of the SMN, RL and Holland America Line formed a new
company, the United Netherlands Navigation Company (VNS) to trade mainly worldwide, and in particular with Australia as the Holland
Australia Line.
Following
World War II and a change in the major political situation in Indonesia, KPM
and JCJL were fused into one company - Royal Interocean Lines (KJCPL) - whilst
RL was accorded by the Dutch Crown the prefix Royal (Koninklijke).
Who can ever forget those beautiful
White Yachts the "New Zealand" and the "Nieuw Holland" and
later the "Tjiwangi" and the Tjiluwah" that sailed from
Australia to ports in the Far East.
In
1969 the VNS essentially ceased to exist as the containerisation era began and
the Dutch joined the new Seabridge consortium of European shipowners on the
Australian service - each partner of the consortium contributing a container
ship. The "Abel Tasman" was launched in 1971 and was the first Dutch
container vessel to ply the Australia run in 1971.
In
1975, the SMN, KRL, KPM, RIL and later the KNSM also merged to become the Royal
Nedlloyd Group. The "Abel Tasman" was replaced by the "Nedlloyd
Houtman" which could carry over 2400 containers, this increase was
necessary since the Europe - Australia service had been extended to New Zealand.
In
December 1996, P&O Containers and Nedlloyd Lines (Royal Nedlloyd’
s shipping arm) merged to form P&O Nedlloyd,
More
recent variations in the shareholding division before a successful takeover by
the Maersk Line of Denmark in 2005 resulted in the Dutch name to become history
in February 2006.
When
all Allied resistance in South-East Asia ceased and the Japanese Imperial army
had overrun the Indies many of the KPM ships and ships of other Dutch companies
escaped to Australia where they were allocated duty in the South West Pacific
Area for the Allied Forces under General Douglas Macarthur.
The
Japanese threat to Australia was imminent and without the Dutch merchant navy's
invaluable contribution carrying munitions, fuel, vehicles and other military
equipment of all sorts to out of the way places the outcome of the war could
have easily been a Japanese victory.
Most
returned Australian servicemen from the Second World War remember the Dutch
hospital ships m.s. "Oranje", the
"Tasman" and the "Maetsuycker".
There
is a record of the first Dutch ship to trade with the new British Colony of
NSW.
Shortly
after 26 January 1788 when the British flag was raised in the new Colony food
supplies brought from England and elsewhere en route ran short.
Most
of the ships in the First Fleet had been chartered from the East India Company
and had already left for India after unloading their cargo.
Governor
Phillip had given orders that in the event of food shortages new supplies could
be obtained from Cape Town or Batavia.
The
two supply ships that were sent to Batavia sustained damage and could not
return to Sydney.
A
small Dutch sailing ship, the "Waaksaamheid" (Vigilance) arrived in
Sydney in December 1790 with a cargo of rice and butter.
Although
the captain, Detmer Smith, carried written authorisation to sell or charter the
ship and the cargo, the price he asked was exorbitant. Governor Phillip
postponed the deal for a few weeks and Captain Smith, tired of waiting,
accepted a lower but still reasonable offer. The "Waaksaamheid" left
for Batavia with Smith on board as a passenger and the ship under command of a
British captain.
Shortly thereafter five convicts escaped in a boat belonging to the "Sirius" using a chart and navigation instruments bought from Detmer Smith.
For
a long time after this incident Dutch vessels were not welcome in Sydney,
although the Dutch were probably more popular among the convicts.
This
year we celebrate "Putting Australia on the Map" - where 400 years
ago the first Europeans set foot on Australian soil and mapped 300 kilometres
of coastline. Others have since contributed and expanded on the efforts of the
Dutch explorers and should be recognised for their work.
My
aim was to emphasise the maritime connections that have been made by the Dutch,
albeit with wide gaps, over the last 400 years.
John
Papenhuyzen
Sydney
11
March 2006