| ship in 18th
century |
By the eighteenth century, the world's richest cargoes
were carried by the big armed merchantmen of the Dutch , English,
and French East India companies. Trading with India and the Far East,
the East Indiamen carried rich cargoes of bullion on their outward
voyages with which to purchase the luxury goods demanded by the markets
of Europe -- spices, tea, Chinese porcelain and jade, jewelry, and
furniture. The cargoes carried by a single East Indiaman would have
made every man in her crew rich for life, and had to be defended against
pirates. East Indiamen were therefore as heavily armed as many warships,
with up to 50 guns or more per ship, and indeed many did serve as
warships in time of war. There are plenty of detailed ship models
in museums which show what East Indiamen looked like. Rather less
was known about their cargoes until wrecked East Indiaman Witte Leeuw
(sunk off St. Helena in 1631), and Slotter Hooge (sunk off the Madeira
Islands in 1724). Witte Leeuw was homeward bound from the East Indies
with a cargo of 1,311 diamonds, spices, and Chinese porcelain. A century
later, outward bound from Holland to the East Indies, Slotter Hooge's
cargo consisted of three tons of silver ingots and four chests full
of silver coins.
The splendid ear of the stately East Indiamen was a long one. It lasted
nearly 250 years until the 1840s and 1850, when private merchant shipping
fleets helped by steam power proved able to ship cargoes faster and
more cheaply. |
 |
 |
 Cutaway
view of an East Indiaman of the 18th century, showing decks and living
spaces. |
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| 17th century
map of the sea approaches to the Dutch American colony "New Holland"
- afterwards New York. |
Relic of the
rich China tea trade - figurine of a Chinese tea porter. |
|
The
splendidly ornamented stern transom of the Dutch East Indiaman Prins
Willem. |
