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 June
27, 1598 five ships set sail from Rotterdam to try and reach Asia along
the western route, via the Strait of Magellan. Many Dutch merchants
had caught 'spice fever', because pepper and cloves were good money
earners.
One of the ships was called 'de Liefde' and its captain was William Adams.
The Rotterdam ship-owners were hoping to make their fortune by plundering
some Spanish settlements on the west coast of South America and using
the spoils to buy spices in Asia for the European market. The whole
undertaking failed miserably. One ship returned to the Netherlands without
anything to show for her efforts and the others were shipwrecked. The
ship 'de Liefde' got into trouble off the coast of Japan with only twenty-four
survivors on board. And so, on 19 April 1600, the first Dutchmen set
foot on those far-away isles. In spite of opposition from the Portuguese,
who had reached Japan fifty years earlier, the stranded Dutch sailors
managed to win the confidence of shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu. He sent out
Captain Quaeckernaeck and the merchant Van Santvoort to invite the Dutch
East India merchants who sailed to the Malaysian east coast via the
Cape of Good Hope, to come and trade in Japan as well. So ultimately
the ill-fated original undertaking bore fruit, because it was thanks
to 'de Liefde' that in Japan doors were open to the Dutch that were
closed to everyone else.
But who were these people that sailed away on June
17, 1598 not knowing if they would ever return? How big was the ship 'de Liefde',
how did it look like, what was their cargo and how did the sailors lived on the ship?
Who were watching them leave the Rotterdam harbor and who waved, cried and stayed
behind? What happened to the wives and the children? Are there any descendants of
the sailors of 'de Liefde' living in the world? What happened during the two years
'de Liefde' was on its way? How was the life in Japan in 1600 and what did the people
think about the Dutch sailors? What happened in the years after?
These and many other questions we try to answer recreating the Voyage of 'de Liefde'
on the worldwideweb.
If you know the answers of any of these questions,
or you know where we may find the answers, please use the form and let us know.
If you have made a website about the same subject of the history around 1600 please
let us know and we will make a link to your page.
Till 2000 we will follow the Voyage of 'de Liefde' and you can be a virtual part
of it. |
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The Educational Broadcasting Corporation
Teleac/NOT in the Netherlands, plans a series of four 50 minute documentaries about the 400 year
relationship between the Netherlands and Japan.
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LINKS TO THE DUTCH HISTORY AND JAPAN
Last updated: July 30, 1999
Copyright: Chris Sonnemans
E-mail: chrisson@deliefde.org
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