Cornelis de Houtman
Cornelis de Houtman (born April 2, 1565 in Gouda , † September 1, 1599 in Sumatra ) was a Dutch researcher. He discovered a new sea route from Europe to Indonesia and thus initiated the East Asian spice trade in the Netherlands. He was the older brother of Frederick de Houtman .
Life
In 1592, Cornelis de Houtman was sent to Lisbon by Amsterdam merchants to get as much information as possible about the Spice Islands. At that time, the Portuguese had a monopoly over the trade in exotic spices . At the same time Jan Huygen van Linschoten returned from a trip to India . Amsterdam traders decided that the port city of Bantam (now Semarang on the island of Java ) offered the best prospects for a spice trade. In 1594 they founded the Compagnie van Verre (German company for the distance ).
On April 2, 1595, a fleet of four ships ( Amsterdam , Hollandia , Mauritius and Duyfken ) was sent to East Asia under de Houtman's command . The expedition faced difficulties from the start. After a few weeks, scurvy broke out. Violence erupted as a result of disagreements between captains and traders, killing several people. During a scheduled stay in Madagascar , further riots broke out, resulting in many deaths. The Malagasy bay where the ships were anchored, is today (German: "Dutch Cemetery" Cemetery of the Dutch ) called. Only six months later the ships could continue. On June 27, 1596, they finally reached Bantam. Only about 100 of the original 249 men had survived the trip.
The journey was, however, important for navigating the stars. The navigator Pieter Dirkszoon Keyser had carried out sky observations with which Frederick de Houtman assisted him. A star catalog was created , Keyser "invented" twelve new constellations of the southern sky, which today belong to the 88 recognized constellations. Keyser died in Bantam in September 1596.
After arriving in Bantam, the Portuguese traders there introduced Cornelis de Houtman to the sultan , who was initially friendly to the Dutch. However, Houtman was not very diplomatic or sensitive. He insulted the Sultan and had to leave Bantam because of his rude behavior without a deal being made. The ships sailed further east towards Madura . They were attacked by pirates along the way. At first they were warmly welcomed on Madura. However, in revenge for the pirate attack, Houtman caused a massacre among the population. The expedition continued to Bali . After a meeting with the king there, in February 1597, a few barrels of peppercorns were bought . After an arduous return journey via St. Helena , they finally reached Amsterdam in 1598 with 87 survivors.
As early as the beginning of 1598, Levius Hulsius published a German translation of the Dutch report on de Cornelis' travels in Nuremberg. The booklet has 72 pages with a dedication, eight of the ten illustrations published in the Dutch original and a map of the world, Madagascar, Java and St. Helena. It is kept in the Saxon State Library in Dresden. Another copy is in the State and Seminar Library of the Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt.
Although the expedition was a human and financial disaster, it marked a symbolic victory for the Dutch. It can be seen as the starting point of Dutch colonial rule in Indonesia and broke the monopoly of the Portuguese. In the next five years another 65 Dutch ships sailed to East Asia and took over a large part of the spice trade.
In 1598 Cornelis and Frederick de Houtman set out on a second expedition. In Sumatra, Cornelis was murdered on the orders of the Sultan of Aceh . Frederick was held captive for two years.
literature
- Pieter Lodewijk Muller: Houtman, Cornelis de . In: Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB). Volume 13, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1881, p. 210 f.
Web links
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Houtman, Cornelis de |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Dutch navigator and explorer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | April 2, 1565 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Gouda cheese |
| DATE OF DEATH | September 1, 1599 |
| Place of death | on Sumatra |