The colonial petition is a valuable source to get insight into the condition of colonised humanity. This thesis discusses forty-four petitions written in 1790 by peasant-cultivators in the Matara...Show moreThe colonial petition is a valuable source to get insight into the condition of colonised humanity. This thesis discusses forty-four petitions written in 1790 by peasant-cultivators in the Matara district. The petitioners transmitted these petitions to colonial officials in the first three months of an uprising in the countryside of Sri Lanka. The question this study aims to answer is: “How do petitions written during a protest in 1790 convey the resistance, negotiation, and experience of Dutch colonialism by inhabitants of the Matara dessavony?”Show less
Between 1639 and 1854 was the Netherlands the only European country allowed to trade with Japan. After 1854, when Commodore Perry uses gunboat diplomacy to open diplomatic contact with Japan, the...Show moreBetween 1639 and 1854 was the Netherlands the only European country allowed to trade with Japan. After 1854, when Commodore Perry uses gunboat diplomacy to open diplomatic contact with Japan, the unique position of the Netherlands had changed drastically. Nonetheless, the Dutch government was not eager to give up its monopoly on Japan that easily. As a result, after Japan opened, the Dutch government can be observed undertaking many projects in Japan to convince the Japanese that unique relations with the Dutch were still in the Japanese interest. Especially in Nagasaki, where the Dutch had a trading post for since the 17th century, the Dutch undertook many projects and this started to shape the city going forward. This thesis examines how Dutch influence shaped three prominent sectors in Nagasaki throughout the nineteenth century; the rising military & industrial sectors and the declining trade sector in Nagasaki. The developments in these sectors are framed within wider Japanese history of that era and also the decline of Dutch influence in the nineteenth century. The conclusion of this thesis is that the Dutch still fulfilled a prominent position within Japanese, and then especially Nagasaki, after the years of the opening in 1854. The Dutch worked hard to introduce Japan with new military and industrial knowledge, while simulataneously aiming to include within a new trade network. The Dutch supplied new materials, worked as teacher and also worked as intermediaries with other Western nations. Eventually the Dutch could not keep up with other Western nations and by the 1870s most Dutch experts had disappeared from Japan. Nonetheless, by this time their influence had played a major role in Nagasaki. The basis had been laid for the rise of many factories in the city, the city had become a centre for military knowledge and trade had dwindled from the city. Byt the time the last of the Dutch experts left, Nagasaki had been set on a course to become a military-industrial complex, which would play an important part in the next century.Show less
This thesis focused on the question of how it had been possible for Europeans to become ‘white rajas’ in eastern Indonesian contexts. In order to answer this question, I have conducted a...Show moreThis thesis focused on the question of how it had been possible for Europeans to become ‘white rajas’ in eastern Indonesian contexts. In order to answer this question, I have conducted a microhistorical study on the ‘social life’ of the ‘successful’ missionary Ernst Steller, who had been working on the island of Sangihe Besar. Ernst Steller eventually managed to acquire significant social status in local society, an extraordinary large following, access to a large free labour force, a large plantation, and eventually the ability to dominate local chiefly politics. In order to explain Ernst Steller’s political, social and economic rise, I have utilized Tony Ballantyne’s concept of ‘imperial entanglement’, which positions the missionary as a dependent social actor within local society. As Ernst Steller had been largely dependent on local elites, he became a part of local society, and had to adapt to local culture and institutions. Ernst Steller actively participated in the competitive and ritualistic politics of Sangihe Besar – in the process adapting and manipulating local cultural conceptions and institutions in order to achieve his own goals. Due to his connections to the Netherlands and the Dutch colonial state, Ernst Steller eventually managed to gain an edge over the local elites. Ultimately, Ernst Steller became one of the dominant figures in the Sangirese political arena, together with a small number of European actors who had used similar ways to acquire their political, social and economic positions. These ‘white rajas’ competed amongst each other, perpetuating the competitive and ritualistic political culture of Sangihe Besar. This thesis has demonstrated that 1) missionaries had – given the right political and social circumstances – been able to transform their dependent social positions into positions of political power, and 2) social mobility in Sangirese contexts greatly resembled processes of social mobility in both eastern Indonesian and Melanesian contexts.Show less
Customary law in South Africa was transformed by its incorporation into the colonial and later Apartheid state. In this regard, the work of colonial administrators and scholars were important as...Show moreCustomary law in South Africa was transformed by its incorporation into the colonial and later Apartheid state. In this regard, the work of colonial administrators and scholars were important as their visions of idealised ‘tribal’ society and chiefly rule with despotic and patriarchal qualities were often largely reproduced in official state policy, and served to legitimate white minority rule. Literature on this subject has tended to either be situated within a national narrative, or largely focus on British policies of indirect rule. Tracing the career and thought of F.D. ‘Frits’ Holleman in the first half of the 20th Century, as he moved from judicial and scholarly appointments in the Netherlands East Indies (NEI), to posts at Leiden University in the Netherlands and ultimately Stellenbosch University in South Africa, allows for a more explicitly global approach to the subject. It also demonstrates an insufficiently-acknowledged transfer of Dutch colonial expertise and experience from an established body of Indonesian adat law scholarship, originating at Leiden University, to an emerging field of customary law scholarship in the strongly Afrikaner Nationalist environment of Stellenbosch. While Holleman’s work on South African customary law was in some ways distinct from what he had worked on before, many of the concepts and characteristics he ascribed to African societies were straightforwardly transposed from his work on adat law, which stood within a tradition of scholarship that demonstrated both paternal/empathic concern for protecting non-Western law, and a strong essentialising impulse, leading to broad and enduring generalisations about supposedly ‘primitive’ societies. Beyond Holleman’s own trajectory, this study holds broader significance in the way it demonstrates the spread of theories of adat law far beyond their place of origin, and their influence on South African thinking about customary law. Moreover, the structural factors which allowed Holleman and his ideas to travel, suggest connections far deeper than a single individual; Holleman’s case has implications for how we think about the ongoing relationship between the Netherlands and South Africa, and indeed a triangular relationship between the Netherlands, Indonesia and South Africa. It may also offer a new lens with which to view the revival of traditionalist politics in both South Africa and Indonesia.Show less
The thesis examines the conflict resolution of the inhabitants of Makassar in the eighteenth century. In the focus are the Chinese and Wajorese ethnic groups. It concerns itself with the question...Show moreThe thesis examines the conflict resolution of the inhabitants of Makassar in the eighteenth century. In the focus are the Chinese and Wajorese ethnic groups. It concerns itself with the question of why the inhabitants of Makassar made use of the colonial courts of the VOC for arbitration. To this end, specific cases of dispute in the courts of the VOC are examined. The thesis concludes that none of the proposed theories and concepts on their own are able to explain the complex system of motivations, institutions, and trust. Rather, by taking different approaches into account, additional dynamics of conflict resolution in the city are revealed.Show less
Compared with tea, silk or porcelain, timber has been discussed by much fewer scholars as a particular commodity of the modern time. The current historiography does not show the development of the...Show moreCompared with tea, silk or porcelain, timber has been discussed by much fewer scholars as a particular commodity of the modern time. The current historiography does not show the development of the indigenous economic network and the intra-continental market for timber trade. Hence in this work, I will provide a detailed complement, demonstrating how timber trade in the South China Sea area evolved after the arrival of the European merchants and became a substantial part of the entire mercantile activities of the VOC (the Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie, or Dutch East India Company).Show less
This thesis explores the relation between radio and identity politics in the Dutch East Indies (1927-1942). Although Indies radio in this early period is often dismissed as somewhat inconsequential...Show moreThis thesis explores the relation between radio and identity politics in the Dutch East Indies (1927-1942). Although Indies radio in this early period is often dismissed as somewhat inconsequential or apolitical, this study argues that a better look at its cultural registers and the motives behind its development betray a significant relation between Indies radio stations and colonial identity politics. Whether it was the PHOHI, which was developed to strengthen Dutch identity and authority, the NIROM, which strongly segmented between eastern and western audiences, or the eastern stations, founded in reaction to the severe underrepresentation of eastern cultures, almost all stations were involved in the segmentation of Indies society. Although such segmentation might have affirmed the ‘rule of colonial difference’ and thereby strengthened colonial rule, this study argues that any such effect would have been weakened by the increasing number of audiences with hybrid identities, as these undermined the categories of colonial hierarchy. Meanwhile radio continued to catalyse the polarization of eastern and western identities, weakening the cohesion and stability of Indies society.Show less
Papuans, a designation to inhabitants of New Guinea, show up numerous time throughout history as slaves. This lead to the designation of New Guinea as 'victim societies'. But what does that mean?...Show morePapuans, a designation to inhabitants of New Guinea, show up numerous time throughout history as slaves. This lead to the designation of New Guinea as 'victim societies'. But what does that mean? And how did slavery contribute to the experience of living in New Guinea? In this thesis I answer these questions by looking at the historical pattern that enabled Papuan enslavement,looking at the societies with a history of entanglement with slavery and furthermore noting the strategies Papuans developed to deal with the historical pattern affecting them.Show less
This research analyzes the Dutch reactions in the Netherlands East Indies to the growing amount of Chinese migrants entering the colony in the period 1880-1912. Through a focus on immigration...Show moreThis research analyzes the Dutch reactions in the Netherlands East Indies to the growing amount of Chinese migrants entering the colony in the period 1880-1912. Through a focus on immigration policies, public opinion in Indies newspapers, fingerprinting policies, diplomacy with China, consular representation and discussions on nationality, this research explains why the Netherlands East Indies as a colonial state could not close its borders for Chinese migrants, even when considering anti-Chinese immigration policies were a global phenomenon in this period. As this research shows, both the specific nature of the Dutch colonial state and the increasing diplomatic pressure from China were important factors in how Dutch immigration policies were shaped.Show less
Colonial governance in the Dutch East Indies revived after Johannes van den Bosch launched the infamous cultivation system on Java in 1830. Portrayed as the Dutch pinnacle of colonial exploitation,...Show moreColonial governance in the Dutch East Indies revived after Johannes van den Bosch launched the infamous cultivation system on Java in 1830. Portrayed as the Dutch pinnacle of colonial exploitation, this system has been the topic of heated scholarly and non-scholarly debates. But apart from a system of colonial agricultural production, it also posed a framework for colonial governance. Crucial in this framework was the collaboration of the Javanese administrative elite with the Dutch. This thesis examines the relation between the Dutch local authorities and the indigenous rulers on Java in the early 1830s. An in-depth investigation of power-division and political games in the residencies (the provincial units of colonial control), it analyzes the techniques and tricks the Dutch and Javanese used to cope with each other. Daily practice of colonial governance seemed not to have been motivated really by any centrally organized ideology, but by the personal skills and experiences of the Dutch officials, and their ability to make use of the traditional power of the Javanese rulers. Describing a system of men rather than rules or laws, this thesis attempts to showcase the paradoxical character of Dutch colonial rule in practice, to stress that in colonial Southeast-Asia it were not merely the colonizers who constructed the colony.Show less
This thesis exposes ambivalences in Dutch approaches to psychiatric practice and discourse in the late colonial state of the Netherlands Indies. In addition to historical studies on psychoanalytic...Show moreThis thesis exposes ambivalences in Dutch approaches to psychiatric practice and discourse in the late colonial state of the Netherlands Indies. In addition to historical studies on psychoanalytic definitions of the normal Javanese psyche and subaltern resistance in the colony, this thesis also elaborates on the actual methods of diagnosis and treatment that were offered, subsequently exposing a syntheses between European and Javanese healing traditions.Show less
This account details the 17th century career of Jacques Cailhaut de La Tesserie in the service of the Dutch Verenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie. The writer hoped to convince his reader to procure for...Show moreThis account details the 17th century career of Jacques Cailhaut de La Tesserie in the service of the Dutch Verenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie. The writer hoped to convince his reader to procure for him a position in the new Compagnie française des Indes orientales. From this account, as well as sources in the colonial archives of France, Canada and the Netherlands, a picture can be formed of de La Tesserie as an all-round colonial careerist straddling early modern boundaries. In the span of thirty years he served in such far-flung places as the jungles of Formosa, the empire of Japan, the trading hub of Batavia, the coasts of Persia and India, the Canadian Shield and the Hudson and St. Lawrence river valleys. During this time he fought the Spanish, Chinese and Iroquois, participated in trading ventures across the Chinese Sea and Indian Oceans, was an associate of a pelt-trading consortium in northern Canada and member of the highest governmental organ of French North America, even serving shortly as its governor-general. It is the aim of this paper to bring into focus which factors were present in the decision-making process of de La Tesserie, and to what extent they were significant. To answer the question posed, this work will retell the three distinct phases through which the life of de La Tesserie ran. During each of these phases he attempted to carry through, a choice which would radically alter his life. The first is de La Tesserie joining the VOC, the second is him exchanging the VOC for the colony of Nouvelle- France, and the third is his attempt to join the CFIO. Every choice has been divided into three further parts, each detailing the background in which the choice was made, which factors might have contributed to it, and how the decision eventually played out. Thus a picture is painted of how a young man from France ended up in Canada, with a detour through the Far East.Show less
Research master thesis | History: Societies and Institutions (research) (MA)
open access
This thesis describes and analyzes the famine that occurred in the Netherlands East Indies, c. 1900-1904. The famine affected Java and parts of the Outer Islands. It details (the principles behind)...Show moreThis thesis describes and analyzes the famine that occurred in the Netherlands East Indies, c. 1900-1904. The famine affected Java and parts of the Outer Islands. It details (the principles behind) the relief efforts of the Dutch colonial government. It also analyzes how the colonial government used the famine to accumulate knowledge on the subject, while politically representing and justifying its response. The thesis argues that famines and food shortages are integral to understanding the colonial state and colonial society. Further, it takes a comparative perspective by connecting the famine to famine experiences of other colonial powers in British India and French Indochina.Show less
Research master thesis | History: Societies and Institutions (research) (MA)
open access
This thesis is about two scientific expeditions to Dutch New Guinea.The first to the Wisselmeren (1939)just before the Second World War, the second to the Sterrengebergte (1959) a few years before...Show moreThis thesis is about two scientific expeditions to Dutch New Guinea.The first to the Wisselmeren (1939)just before the Second World War, the second to the Sterrengebergte (1959) a few years before the transfer of Dutch New Guinea to Indonesia. These expeditions were organized by the Dutch Royal Geographic Society (Koninklijk Nederlands Aardrijkskundig Genootschap or KNAG). Many disciplines were involved: zoology, botany, geology, anthropology and many more specialisations. This research looks specifically at the interaction between the colonial state and the scientific expedition and the knowledge resulting from this relationship. Therefore it focuses on colonial anthropology and the changing notions of race and the 'other'.Show less
In this thesis, the legal dimensions of the First Dutch West India Company are discussed on the basis of three case studies. As one of the world's first multinationals, the Company was granted...Show moreIn this thesis, the legal dimensions of the First Dutch West India Company are discussed on the basis of three case studies. As one of the world's first multinationals, the Company was granted public powers that are today regarded as prerogatives of the state. To what extent was the WIC a separate sovereign entity? What was its constitutional position within the Dutch Republic? And to what extent did Company practice accord with seventeenth century legal theory?Show less
