Cornelis Matelief de Jonge
Encyclopedia
Cornelis Matelief (de Jonge) (c. 1569 - October 17, 1632), was a Dutch
admiral
who was active in establishing Dutch power in Southeast Asia
during the beginning of the 17th century (1606). His fleet was officially on a trading mission, but its true intent was to try to destroy Portuguese
power in the area. The ships had 1400 men on board, including 600 soldiers. Matelieff did not succeed and the Dutch would ultimately gain control of Malacca
more than thirty years later, again joining forces with the Sultanate of Johor, and a new ally Aceh
, in 1641. He was born and died in Rotterdam
.
Matelief was put in command of a fleet of eleven ships of the Dutch East India Company
with the destination of Malacca
, an inconvenient stronghold for non-Portuguese ships heading for the Indonesian Archipelago, China or Japan. The fleet set sail from Holland on May 12, 1605. It was the third (?) such fleet from the Dutch East Indies Company to visit Malacca. Matelieff met with Steven van der Hagen
on the island Mauritius
for a briefing in January. As one of the first Matelieff described the Black Rat
, the Dodo
and the Macaque
monkey. Also his description of the vegetation of the island are most important.
He reached Malacca in April 1606 and in May Matelief de Jonge formed a formal pact with the ruler of Johor
, Sultan
Alauddin Riayat Shah III
, to expel the Portuguese. In exchange, the Dutch would get Malacca for themselves and would be able to conduct trade with Johor. The Dutch and the Malay also agreed to tolerate each other's religion.
from Red seal ships
. A very large Portuguese fleet under Dom Martim Afonso de Castro
, the Viceroy of Goa
, arrived on the scene with twenty Portuguese ships on August 14, 1606.
The two fleets fought from August 17th. Nassau was boarded by Santa Cruz and the Nossa Senhora da Conceição. Matelief, onboard Orange, went to the rescue but collided with another Dutch ship, Middelburg. These two ships were then attacked by the São Salvador and Dom
Duarte de Guerra's galleon
. Orange broke free, but the two Portuguese ships and the Middelburg all caught fire and sank in the action. The Santa Cruz and Conceição eventually managed to set the Nassau on fire, leading to an explosion that sank her.
Matelief decided to leave the action, with 150 dead on the Dutch side, and around 500 on the Portuguese side. On August 19, 1606, he obtained permission from the Johor Sultan to anchor his fleet for repairs in the Johor River
.
Matelieff sailed in one ship from Ternate
to Canton
, and on June 4th 1607 he captured a Chinese junk
, loaded with spices from Banda. When six Portuguese ships under André Pessoa showed up in front of the Chinese coast, he went back, without an agreement with China or reaching Japan. Matelieff arrived unsuccessfully on Bantam
on November 24, 1607, and sent Willem Jansz with secret instructions to Banda to forestall the English ships. He left Bantam
on January 28, 1608
, a Dutchman who had established a factory in Ayutthaya
in 1604,, and with an embassy of 16 from the Kingdom of Siam
sent by the Siamese ruler Ekathotsarot
. The embassy was brought to Holland by Matelief onboard Orange and arrived in The Hague
on September 10, 1608. The embassy met with Maurice of Nassau, Prince of Orange
.. Following the embassy, a treaty was concluded between the Dutch Republic
and Siam in 1617.
In 1618 Matelieff was appointed in the vroedschap
of Rotterdam, later as a burgemeester of the city. In 1625 he lost his function as a deputy in the States-General
when staying too long in Warsaw
.
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
admiral
Admiral
Admiral is the rank, or part of the name of the ranks, of the highest naval officers. It is usually considered a full admiral and above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet . It is usually abbreviated to "Adm" or "ADM"...
who was active in establishing Dutch power in Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...
during the beginning of the 17th century (1606). His fleet was officially on a trading mission, but its true intent was to try to destroy Portuguese
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
power in the area. The ships had 1400 men on board, including 600 soldiers. Matelieff did not succeed and the Dutch would ultimately gain control of Malacca
Malacca
Malacca , dubbed The Historic State or Negeri Bersejarah among locals) is the third smallest Malaysian state, after Perlis and Penang. It is located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, on the Straits of Malacca. It borders Negeri Sembilan to the north and the state of Johor to the south...
more than thirty years later, again joining forces with the Sultanate of Johor, and a new ally Aceh
Aceh
Aceh is a special region of Indonesia, located on the northern tip of the island of Sumatra. Its full name is Daerah Istimewa Aceh , Nanggroë Aceh Darussalam and Aceh . Past spellings of its name include Acheh, Atjeh and Achin...
, in 1641. He was born and died in Rotterdam
Rotterdam
Rotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and one of the largest ports in the world. Starting as a dam on the Rotte river, Rotterdam has grown into a major international commercial centre...
.
Account
Dutch East India Company
The Dutch East India Company was a chartered company established in 1602, when the States-General of the Netherlands granted it a 21-year monopoly to carry out colonial activities in Asia...
with the destination of Malacca
Malacca
Malacca , dubbed The Historic State or Negeri Bersejarah among locals) is the third smallest Malaysian state, after Perlis and Penang. It is located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, on the Straits of Malacca. It borders Negeri Sembilan to the north and the state of Johor to the south...
, an inconvenient stronghold for non-Portuguese ships heading for the Indonesian Archipelago, China or Japan. The fleet set sail from Holland on May 12, 1605. It was the third (?) such fleet from the Dutch East Indies Company to visit Malacca. Matelieff met with Steven van der Hagen
Steven van der Hagen
Steven van der Hagen was the first admiral of the Dutch East India Company . He made three visits to the East Indies, spending six years in all there. He was appointed to the Raad van Indië...
on the island Mauritius
Mauritius
Mauritius , officially the Republic of Mauritius is an island nation off the southeast coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean, about east of Madagascar...
for a briefing in January. As one of the first Matelieff described the Black Rat
Black Rat
The black rat is a common long-tailed rodent of the genus Rattus in the subfamily Murinae . The species originated in tropical Asia and spread through the Near East in Roman times before reaching Europe by the 1st century and spreading with Europeans across the world.-Taxonomy:The black rat was...
, the Dodo
Dodo
The dodo was a flightless bird endemic to the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius. Related to pigeons and doves, it stood about a meter tall, weighing about , living on fruit, and nesting on the ground....
and the Macaque
Macaque
The macaques constitute a genus of Old World monkeys of the subfamily Cercopithecinae. - Description :Aside from humans , the macaques are the most widespread primate genus, ranging from Japan to Afghanistan and, in the case of the barbary macaque, to North Africa...
monkey. Also his description of the vegetation of the island are most important.
He reached Malacca in April 1606 and in May Matelief de Jonge formed a formal pact with the ruler of Johor
Johor
Johor is a Malaysian state, located in the southern portion of Peninsular Malaysia. It is one of the most developed states in Malaysia. The state capital city and royal city of Johor is Johor Bahru, formerly known as Tanjung Puteri...
, Sultan
Sultan
Sultan is a title with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic language abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", and "dictatorship", derived from the masdar سلطة , meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be used as the title of certain rulers who...
Alauddin Riayat Shah III
Alauddin Riayat Shah III
Sultan Alauddin Riayat Shah III was the 6th Sultan of Johor who reigned from 1597 - 1615. He resided at the new capital of Johor at Batu Sawar, but later moved his administration to Pasir Raja around 1609...
, to expel the Portuguese. In exchange, the Dutch would get Malacca for themselves and would be able to conduct trade with Johor. The Dutch and the Malay also agreed to tolerate each other's religion.
First battle of Malacca (August 1606)
Matelief laid siege to the Portuguese-held Malacca for several months , but was repulsed on land by Portuguese troops under André Furtado de Mendonça and their allies, a contingent of Japanese samuraiSamurai
is the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. According to translator William Scott Wilson: "In Chinese, the character 侍 was originally a verb meaning to wait upon or accompany a person in the upper ranks of society, and this is also true of the original term in Japanese, saburau...
from Red seal ships
Red seal ships
were Japanese armed merchant sailing ships bound for Southeast Asian ports with a red-sealed patent issued by the early Tokugawa shogunate in the first half of the 17th century...
. A very large Portuguese fleet under Dom Martim Afonso de Castro
Martim Afonso de Castro
Martim Afonso de Castro was a Portuguese Viceroy of India. He commanded the Portuguese Navy in the Battle of Cape Rachado, fought over the present day Malaccan exclave of Tanjung Tuan in 1606....
, the Viceroy of Goa
Goa
Goa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...
, arrived on the scene with twenty Portuguese ships on August 14, 1606.
The two fleets fought from August 17th. Nassau was boarded by Santa Cruz and the Nossa Senhora da Conceição. Matelief, onboard Orange, went to the rescue but collided with another Dutch ship, Middelburg. These two ships were then attacked by the São Salvador and Dom
Dom (title)
Dom is a title of respect prefixed to the given name. It derives from Latin Dominus.It is used in English for certain Benedictine and Carthusian monks, and for members of certain communities of Canons Regular. Examples include Benedictine monks of the English Benedictine Congregation...
Duarte de Guerra's galleon
Galleon
A galleon was a large, multi-decked sailing ship used primarily by European states from the 16th to 18th centuries. Whether used for war or commerce, they were generally armed with the demi-culverin type of cannon.-Etymology:...
. Orange broke free, but the two Portuguese ships and the Middelburg all caught fire and sank in the action. The Santa Cruz and Conceição eventually managed to set the Nassau on fire, leading to an explosion that sank her.
Matelief decided to leave the action, with 150 dead on the Dutch side, and around 500 on the Portuguese side. On August 19, 1606, he obtained permission from the Johor Sultan to anchor his fleet for repairs in the Johor River
Johor River
Johor River is the main river in the Malaysian state of Johor. The river is 122.7km long and flows in a roughly north-south direction, originating from Mount Gemuruh and then empties into the Strait of Johor. Its major tributaries are Sayong, Linggui, Tiram and Lebam Rivers. Its banks are also...
.
Second battle of Malacca (Sept. 1606)
Matelief came back to the scene of the first battle about a month later. Castro had sailed away, leaving only ten Portuguese ships before Malacca. Matelief attacked the ships and managed to sink or burn every single one of them, on September 21, 1606. At the end of his trip Matelieff had lost six ships.Matelieff sailed in one ship from Ternate
Ternate
Ternate is an island in the Maluku Islands of eastern Indonesia. It is located off the west coast of the larger island of Halmahera, the center of the powerful former Sultanate of Ternate....
to Canton
Guangzhou
Guangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
, and on June 4th 1607 he captured a Chinese junk
Junk (ship)
A junk is an ancient Chinese sailing vessel design still in use today. Junks were developed during the Han Dynasty and were used as sea-going vessels as early as the 2nd century AD. They evolved in the later dynasties, and were used throughout Asia for extensive ocean voyages...
, loaded with spices from Banda. When six Portuguese ships under André Pessoa showed up in front of the Chinese coast, he went back, without an agreement with China or reaching Japan. Matelieff arrived unsuccessfully on Bantam
Bantam (city)
Bantam in Banten province near the western end of Java was a strategically important site and formerly a major trading city, with a secure harbor on the Sunda Strait through which all ocean-going traffic passed, at the mouth of Banten River that provided a navigable passage for light craft into...
on November 24, 1607, and sent Willem Jansz with secret instructions to Banda to forestall the English ships. He left Bantam
Bantam (city)
Bantam in Banten province near the western end of Java was a strategically important site and formerly a major trading city, with a secure harbor on the Sunda Strait through which all ocean-going traffic passed, at the mouth of Banten River that provided a navigable passage for light craft into...
on January 28, 1608
Return to Europe with a Siamese embassy (1608)
Matelieff returned to Europe in 1608 with Cornelius SpecxCornelius Specx
Cornelis Specx is known as the first European to interact with the Thai court.In 1601 he sailed under Joris van Spilbergen to Aceh. The journey was organised by Balthasar de Moucheron. Specx became a bookkeeper of the Dutch East India Company in 1603...
, a Dutchman who had established a factory in Ayutthaya
Ayutthaya kingdom
Ayutthaya was a Siamese kingdom that existed from 1350 to 1767. Ayutthaya was friendly towards foreign traders, including the Chinese, Vietnamese , Indians, Japanese and Persians, and later the Portuguese, Spanish, Dutch and French, permitting them to set up villages outside the walls of the...
in 1604,, and with an embassy of 16 from the Kingdom of Siam
Ayutthaya kingdom
Ayutthaya was a Siamese kingdom that existed from 1350 to 1767. Ayutthaya was friendly towards foreign traders, including the Chinese, Vietnamese , Indians, Japanese and Persians, and later the Portuguese, Spanish, Dutch and French, permitting them to set up villages outside the walls of the...
sent by the Siamese ruler Ekathotsarot
Ekathotsarot
Prabat Somdet Phra Sanpet III or Somdet Phra Ekatotsarot was the King of Ayutthaya from 1605 to 1610 succeeding his brother Naresuan. His reign was mostly peaceful as Siam was then a powerful state through the conquests of Naresuan...
. The embassy was brought to Holland by Matelief onboard Orange and arrived in The Hague
The Hague
The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
on September 10, 1608. The embassy met with Maurice of Nassau, Prince of Orange
Maurice of Nassau, Prince of Orange
Maurice of Nassau, Prince of Orange was sovereign Prince of Orange from 1618, on the death of his eldest half brother, Philip William, Prince of Orange,...
.. Following the embassy, a treaty was concluded between the Dutch Republic
Dutch Republic
The Dutch Republic — officially known as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands , the Republic of the United Netherlands, or the Republic of the Seven United Provinces — was a republic in Europe existing from 1581 to 1795, preceding the Batavian Republic and ultimately...
and Siam in 1617.
In 1618 Matelieff was appointed in the vroedschap
Vroedschap
The vroedschap was the name for the city council in the early modern Netherlands; the member of such a council was called a vroedman, literally a "wise man"...
of Rotterdam, later as a burgemeester of the city. In 1625 he lost his function as a deputy in the States-General
States-General of the Netherlands
The States-General of the Netherlands is the bicameral legislature of the Netherlands, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The parliament meets in at the Binnenhof in The Hague. The archaic Dutch word "staten" originally related to the feudal classes in which medieval...
when staying too long in Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
.
Further Reading
- Bijlsma, R., "De discoursen van Cornelis Matelieff de Jonge over den staat van Oost-Indië", Nederlandsch Archievenblad, 35 (1927–8), I: 49–53.
- Borschberg, Peter, Hugo Grotius, the Portuguese and Free Trade in the East Indies, NUS Press and KITLV Press, 2011.
- Borschberg, Peter, The Singapore and Melaka Straits: Violence, Security and Diplomacy in the 17th Century, NUS Press and KITLV Press, 2010.
- Frederiks, J.G., 'Cornelis Cornelisz Matelieff de Jonge en zijn geslagt", Rotterdamsche Historiebladen, 3 afd., 1.1. (1871): 204–357.
- l’Hermite, J. (de Jonge), Breeder verhael ende klare beschrijvinghe van tghene den Admiral Cornelis Matelief de Jonge inde Oost-Indien voor de stadt Malacca, ende int belegh der zelver wedervaren is: als ooc den vreesselijcke strijdt ter zee, tusschen den admirael voorsz. ende de Portugijsen, ende andere geschiedenissen meer. Overgeschreven bij eenen der commisen inde vlote, Rotterdam: Jan Janssz., 1608.
- Matelieff de Jonge, C., Historiale ende ware beschrijvinge vande reyse des admiraels Cornelis Matelief de Jonghe, near de Oost-Indien, wtghetrocken in Mayo 1605. Midsgaders de belegeringhe voor Malacca, also ooc den slach ter zee teghen de Portugijsche armade, ende andere discourssen, Rotterdam: By Jan Jansz, 1608.