This study analyses the representation of the Atlantic world in the Dutch periodical press throughout the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. How did the periodical press cover the Dutch invasion... Show moreThis study analyses the representation of the Atlantic world in the Dutch periodical press throughout the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. How did the periodical press cover the Dutch invasion and colonization of Brazil, the continuous warfare in the Caribbean in the latter part of the seventeenth century, the increasing confrontations between the French and the British in North America in the course of the eighteenth century, and the issue of slavery and slave revolts? It demonstrates how ordinary readers could gain knowledge of a world far beyond their daily horizons and shows how the (tone of the) coverage in the newspapers developed in correlation with the changing position of the Dutch Republic in the geopolitical constellation. Secondly, this study illuminates the news networks themselves, exploring how news travelled from one place to the next and how news networks influenced, and were influenced by, geopolitical developments. Thirdly, by taking a long-term perspective, this study also analyses the development of the periodical press and its function in the wider arena of early modern print media while also tracing the various transformations of the Atlantic world over the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Show less
In the second half of the eighteenth century, the island of Walcheren was the center of the Dutch Transatlantic slave trade. This dissertation focuses on the impact of this trade on the local... Show moreIn the second half of the eighteenth century, the island of Walcheren was the center of the Dutch Transatlantic slave trade. This dissertation focuses on the impact of this trade on the local economy during the peak years of 1755 to 1780. It contains a discussion of the slave traders and their business practices and traces the commodity chains of various goods exported to West-Africa for the trade in enslaved Africans. It finds that the trade was strongly embedded in local economic structures. Many slave traders – both merchants and investors – were able to circumvent the limited profitability of the slave trade by combining related economic activities. About 5 to 6 percent of the economy of Middelburg was connected to the slave trade during the peak years, while the Flushing economy was even more geared towards this trade in human beings (about 25 percent of all local income connected to this trade). While the slave trade had a positive impact on many tradition industries on the island, most notably gunpowder production, it did not lead to industrial or financial innovations on Walcheren. Show less
Painstaking research in Dutch and Portuguese archive materials, so far poorly assessed on the topic of social relations, reveals intense and intricate associations between different European... Show morePainstaking research in Dutch and Portuguese archive materials, so far poorly assessed on the topic of social relations, reveals intense and intricate associations between different European individuals both in terms of ethnicity and social strata. Despite their supposed "nationality" and religion, Dutch and Portuguese colonists were able to accommodate linguistic differences, engaged in inter-confessional marriages and illicit liaisons and, together with French, German and English individu-als, served in the colony’s militia. Economical interactions between Dutch and Portuguese preceded the formation of Dutch Brazil since agents were involved in an array of material exchanges in Europe and in Portuguese America. After 1630, this did not change much. On a daily basis, historical actors extended credit, borrowed money, operated in retail trade, the sugar and dye wood industries, as well as in the slave trade. Long before Dutch rule in Brazil, individuals were able to exploit Dutch and Portuguese legisla-tion to defend their interests. Following the conquest of Recife, the WIC succeeded in imple-menting Dutch legislation in the colony, enforcing Dutch laws and legal procedures. Dutch and Portuguese alike were able to resort to courts of law to solve their disputes and faced judg-ment under the different codes after breaking the law. Show less
In 2018 it is 400 years since the first official English Africa company was launched. Yet we know very little about the role of the early trade in the greater history of overseas trade. This... Show moreIn 2018 it is 400 years since the first official English Africa company was launched. Yet we know very little about the role of the early trade in the greater history of overseas trade. This thesis presents and considers the development of England's Africa trade with its traders and companies through the 17th century, and argues for a reevaluation of important moments in the history of overseas trade when seen from the perspective of the Africa traders. By placing a consecutive line of company leaders and directors at the centre of focus - considering their perspective, motivations, experience and long-term aims, this thesis aims to add to our understanding of developments such as the slave trade and its format; the relationship between merchants and the English state; England's involvement with the Spanish Asiento, the relationship between the metropolitan mercantile community and the Atlantic planter society. As an extension it aims to show the malleability of the early modern overseas company, turning on its head the idea of the all-powerful company structure suppressing private enterprise, showing instead that company involvement was not always motivated by monetary profit nor necessarily seen as more than a tool to boost widespread private portfolios. Show less
