Dutch Mauritius

Dutch Mauritius

geographic location, administrative division

Year dem found am	1638
Country	Dutch Republic
Coordinate location	20°12′0″S 57°30′0″E
Date dem dissolve, abolish anaa demolish	1710

Na Mauritius be an official settlement of de Dutch East India Company on de island of Mauritius between 1638 den 1710, wey na dem use am as a refreshing station for passing ships. Na e already be frequented by Dutch ships from 1598 dey go, buh na dem only settle insyd 1638, make e prevent de French den English from settling on de island.

History

Na e be frequently hypothesized dat Mauritius be first discovered by de Arabs, wey dem name am de island Dina Arobi. Na de first historical evidence of de existence of an island now be known as Mauritius dey on a map wey be produced by de Italian cartographer Alberto Cantino insyd 1502. E be a fact dat na Mauritius be visited by de Portuguese between 1507 den 1513. Na de Portuguese take no interest insyd dis isolated island, however. Na dema main African base dey insyd Mozambique, den therefore na de Portuguese navigators prefer make dem use de Mozambique Channel to go to India. As a stopover, na de Comoros to de north prove make e offer a shorter den safer route on de way to Arabia den India. Thus na no permanent colony be established on de island by de Portuguese.

Dutch sailors (1598–1637)

Insyd 1598, a Dutch expedition wey dey consist of eight ships set sail from de port of Texel (Netherlands) under de orders of admirals Jacob Cornelisz van Neck den Wybrand van Warwijck towards de Indian subcontinent. Na de eight ships run into foul weather after dem pass de Cape of Good Hope wey na dem separate. Na three find dema way to de northeast of Madagascar while de remaining five regroup den sail insyd a southeasterly direction. On 17 September, de five ships under de orders of Admiral Van Warwyck cam into view of de island.

Replica of an East Indiaman of de Dutch East India Company/United East India Company (VOC).

Dutch map of a coast of Mauritius

Dutch colonisation (1638–1710)

A representation of de extinct dodo bird. Na Dutch presence on de island largely contribute to de extinction of dis endemic bird.

Na Dutch colonisation start insyd 1638 wey e end insyd 1710, plus a brief interruption between 1658 den 1666. Na dem appoint chaw governors, buh continuous hardships such as cyclones, droughts, pest infestations, lack of chow den illnesses finally take dema toll, wey na dem definitively abandon de island insyd 1710.

Malagasy slavery

Na Gooyer ein successor be Adriaan van der Stel wey begin de development in earnest, wey dey develop de export of ebony wood. For de purpose, na Van der Stel bring 105 Malagasy slaves to de island. Within de first week, na about sixty slaves be able to run away into de forests; na about twenty of dem per wey go be recaptured.

Further Dutch attempts at colonisation

Insyd 1664, na dem make a second attempt, buh dis one sanso end badly as de men na dem choose for de job abandon dema sick commander, Van Niewland, widout proper treatment, wey he die.

From 1666 to 1669, na Dirk Jansz Smient administer de new colony at Grand Port, plus de cutting down den export of Ebony trees as de main activity. Wen na Dirk Jansz Smient lef, he be replaced by George Frederik Wreeden. De latter die insyd 1672, na he drown plus five oda colonists during a reconnaissance expedition. Ein replacement go be Hubert Hugo. Na de later be a man of vision wey na he want to make de island into an agricultural colony. Na ein vision no be shared by ein superiors, wey na eventually he no fi fully develop ein vision.

Legacy

Na de Dutch provide de name give de country den give chaw regions over de whole island. Sam examples dey include de "Pieter Both" mountain, de "Vandermeersh" region near Rose-Hill as well as chaw oda names. Na dem sanso introduce sugar cane plants from Java. Less admirable be de decimation by de Dutch of de local dodo den giant tortoise population for chow, sanso aided by de introduction of competing species den pests. Na arge areas of forest be cut for ebony bark exploitation.

Insyd 1948 na dem erect a monument den plaque insyd Ferney, Vieux Grand Port to commemorate de first Dutch landing wich na e take place 350 years earlier. De monument dey locate next to abandoned buildings wich na dem be built by de settlers using granite stone blocks. Recently na der be partial restoration of de ruins den de name Fort Frederik Hendrik be restored to de site. On 18 November 2010, na dem gbele de Frederik Hendrik Museum by Ad Koekkoek, ambassador of de Netherlands insyd Tanzania, den Mookhesswur Choonee, Minister of Culture of Mauritius.