How did the Dutch create a colonial empire?

The Dutch colonial empire was made of the overseas trading posts and territories across the world, controlled and administered by the Dutch trading companies, Dutch West India and the Dutch East India Company. Also, the territories which were administrated by the Dutch Republic between 1581 and 1795 and by the modern Kingdom of the Netherlands after 1850. Usage of the term empire in relation to all of the overseas activities of the Dutch is debatable, because many of the colonies were in fact trading posts, covered by two independent trade companies, the Dutch East India Company and the Dutch West India Company. Only after 1815, when the British returned some of the colonies to the Dutch after occupation during the Napoleonic War, did the Kingdom take charge of the administration of the colonies, and were Until recently, Dutch historians were quite hesitant to use the words imperialism and empire. Nowadays they use it, but mainly to refer to it in a more European aspect, and most of the time only when looking at the period 1880 to 1940. The territories that would later form the Dutch Republic began as a loose federation known as the Seventeen Provinces, which Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, and as Carlos I, King of Spain, inherited and brought under his direct rule in 1543. In 1566 in these regions, a Protestant-Dutch revolt broke out against the rule of the Roman Catholic Spain, sparking the Eighty Years' War. The Spanish-Dutch War was for the Dutch part of their struggle, for independence and religious freedom during the It was largely fought on the European continent, but war was also conducted against Philip II's overseas territories, including Spanish colonies and the Portuguese Metropole's colonies, trading posts and forts belonging at the time to the King of Spain and Portugal. Led by William of Orange, independence was declared in the 1581 Act. The revolt resulted in the establishment of a de facto independent Protestant Republic in the north by Treaty of Antwerp 1609, although Spain did not officially recognize Dutch independence until 1648. The hope of finding a way to the rich spice trades of the Indies made the Europeans focus on exploration more and more. From 1517, Port of Lisbon in Portugal was the main European market for products from India and the Far East that was attended by other nations and merchants to purchase their needs. But as a result of Portugal's incorporation in the Iberian Union with Spain by Philip II in 1580, all Portuguese territories were thereafter Spanish Habsburg branch territory, and by being a part of this large monarchy, the Portuguese markets were closed to the United Provinces. Thus in 1595, the Dutch decided to set sail on their own, to acquire products for themselves and to build and establish some possession, territories and trading posts in Asia to boost their economy through trade, in a period marked by exploration and by the special needs of some people. Focusing on their main objective for an alternate route to Asia for trade, the Dutch were disrupting the Spanish-Portuguese trade, and they eventually ranged as far as the Philippines. They sought to dominate the commercial sea trade in Southeast Asia, so the main focus was the naval and commercial one. War with the Dutch led to attacks on most of Portugal's trading network in Asia, diminishing their trading power. The grand design of the West India Company involved again the goal to attack directly the trading power of the Portuguese in their colonies in Brazil and Africa, seizing both the sugarcane plantations and the slave ports needed to resupply their labor. From 1630 onward, the Dutch Republic conquered almost half of Brazil's settled European area at the time, with their capital in Recife. The governor, Johan Moritz, invited artists and scientists to the colony to help promote Brazil and increase immigration. However, the tide turned against the Dutch when the Portuguese won a significant victory at the Second Battle of Guadalapes in 1649. Unlike in Asia, Dutch successes against the Portuguese in Brazil and Africa were short-lived. Years of settlement had left large Portuguese communities under the rule of the Dutch, who were by nature traders rather than colonists. In 1645, the Portuguese community at Pernambuco rebelled against the Dutch, and by 1654, the Dutch had been ousted from Brazil. In the intervening years, a Portuguese expedition had been sent from Brazil to recapture Luanda in Angola. By 1648, the Dutch were expelled from there also. On the northeast coast of North America, the West India Company took over a settlement that had been established by the Company of New Netherland, 1614 to 1618, at Fort Orange at Albany on the Hudson River. To protect its precarious position at Albany from the nearby English and French colonies, which were growing more and more, the Company founded the fortified town of New Amsterdam in 1625 at the mouth of the Hudson, encouraging settlement of the surrounding area of Long Island and New Jersey. In 1644, the English took over New Amsterdam and renamed it New York. There's more to talk about this important loss and the loss of the lands previously gained in South America, but about the details behind the collapse of the Dutch Empire and its possessions across its existence, we will discuss in the next video. By the middle of the 17th century, the Dutch East India Company had overtaken Portugal, as the dominant player in the spice and silk trade, and in 1652, founded a colony at the African coast. Dutch immigration in the Cape rapidly swelled, as prospective colonists were offered generous grants of land and tax-exempt status in exchange for producing the food needed to resupply passing ships. The Cape authorities also imported a number of Europeans of other nationalities, namely Germans and French, as well as thousands of slaves from the East Indies to bolster the local Dutch workforce. The Dutch colony at the Cape of Good Hope expanded beyond the initial settlement, and its borders were formally consolidated. In time, the colony expanded, and it was pretty important for the road between the mainland Netherlands and the trading posts and colonies in the spicy islands of Southeastern Asia. But here was some problems, due to the fact that authorities were unable to control their own settlers, who disregarded an agreement made with some local chiefdoms, and crossed into Xhosa territory, sparking long colonial conflicts between them and the natives. Many other wars and conflicts happened, in which the Netherlands were involved against the natives. These moments of their history will shape their colonial empire. Some territories were gained. The details of these events will be explained in the video about their collapse. Only in the early 20th century did Dutch dominance extend to what was to become the boundaries of modern-day Indonesia, although highly populated and agriculturally productive. During the course of the 18th and 19th century, the Dutch had established themselves with the dominating economic and political power on Java, after the crumbling and collapse of the Mataram Empire. This had been a major power in Asian trade since the early 1600s, but started to develop an interest to interfere with indigenous politics on the island of Java in the 18th century, as that would improve their hold on the local economy. The 19th century is also known as the century in which the Dutch made substantial geographical expansion in the archipelago. Driven by the new imperialism mentality, European nations were competing for colonies outside the European continent, for both economic motives and status. One important motive for the Dutch was to expand its territory in the archipelago. Apart from financial benefit was to prevent other European countries from taking parts in this region. The Dutch followed Portugal and Spain in establishing a colonial global empire outside the continental Europe. Like the Portuguese, they focused on small possessions, forts and trading posts for economic reasons, and didn't manage to push so much in territories due to probably unnecessary reasons to do so, backed by the lack of manpower and distance. Netherlands was a small country compared to other European powers. This video was about their ascension, but more details about their struggle to build their empire and their collapse you will find in the next video about them. Until then, be sure to subscribe to our channel for more history videos and click the bell button. Also, we cannot end this video without thanking our few but very generous supporters on Patreon. Your support is much appreciated and it helps our work a lot. We are looking to expand our channel and to hire a professional scripter, and by doing so you will receive more videos monthly in terms of quantity and professionalism. You can pledge your support by accessing the link down in the description. 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