Colonasiation and trade in Asia

Many European nations found their way to Asia from the second half of the sixteenth century onward, starting with the Portuguese and Spanish, but soon followed by the English, Dutch, Swedish, Danish and French.

For the Dutch East India Company (VOC) ships there are specific routes on this website, but there are many more ships that have been lost on the voyage to Asia, that have been collected under this route. The most important players, sides of the VOC, were the English East India Company (EIC) and Portugal, but other countries also had a significant trade in this part of the world.

Route

The route was long and had many dangers. On the Atlantic Ocean it was important not to sail too much to the east or west - too much to the west and the ship ended up in Brazil, causing much delay, too much to the east and the ship ran the risk of ending up in the doldrums near the African coast. This could be avoided by staying in a relatively narrow area in the middle of the ocean between Africa and South America, called the 'wagon way' by the Dutch.

Getting water and food while underway was a never ending task. This was the reason that the VOC founded a colony at the Cape of Good Hope, but there were several other alternatives on the islands in the Atlantic and Indian Ocean.

After rounding the Cape, it was important to choose the route well, with the final destination and the monsoon in mind. The best route for sailing vessels to reach the eastern part of Asdia was discovered in 1611 by Hendrik Brouwer, who sailed for the VOC, and was called the Brouwer route because of this. This route used the prevalent currents and winds by sailing eastwards across the Indian Ocean and only turning north at a later point.