Dutch Empire
overseas territories controlled by the Dutch Republic and the Netherlands
AI overview
The Dutch Empire refers to the overseas territories that were controlled by the Dutch Republic and later the Netherlands, particularly during the 17th and 18th centuries when Dutch merchants and naval power expanded globally. It matters because the Dutch Empire was one of the most influential European colonial powers of its era, shaping global trade, politics, and culture through its control of strategic territories and trade routes around the world.
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Article
The Dutch colonial empire (Dutch: Nederlandse Koloniale Rijk) comprised overseas territories and trading posts under some form of Dutch control from the early 17th to late 20th centuries, including those initially administered by Dutch chartered companies—primarily the Dutch East India Company (1602–1799) and Dutch West India Company (1621–1792)—and subsequently governed by the Dutch Republic (1581–1795) and modern Kingdom of the Netherlands (1815–1975).
Following the de facto independence of the Dutch Republic from the Spanish Empire in the late 16th century, various trading companies known as voorcompagnie led maritime expeditions overseas in search of commercial opportunities. By 1600, Dutch traders and mariners had penetrated the lucrative Asian spice trade but lacked the capital or manpower to secure or expand their ventures; this prompted the States General in 1602 to consolidate several trading enterprises into the semi-state-owned Dutch East India Company (Dutch: Verenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie, VOC), which was granted a monopoly over Asian trade.
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2nd millennium in the NetherlandsDutch colonial empireDutch RepublicFormer monarchies of EuropeFormer transcontinental empiresHistory of European colonialismOverseas empiresStates and territories disestablished in 1975States and territories established in 1595States and territories established in the 1600s