THE DISCOVERY OF AUSTRALIA BY THE DUTCH

In the 1500 and 1600s Europeans explored the South Seas in search for spices, precious metals and other treasures wanted in Europe. The Dutch followed the Portuguese into the Indo-West Pacific and replaced the Portuguese as the primary European presence in the area that is today known as Indonesia. Until Indonesian independence after the Second World War it was known as the Dutch East Indies.

The Spice Islands, as they were known, from which such spices as ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves and pepper were collected and shipped to Europe, are a small group of islands within the Indonesian archipelago and today known as the Moluccas. To many Europeans of the time, spices were more valuable than gold, a shipload of spices was worth millions in today's dollars.

The Dutch established a base at Batavia (now Djakarta) for the purposes of trade primarily and exploration of the surrounding islands.

From their base in Batavia the Dutch sailed to the east to look for more lands to colonise or to find gold, spices and anything else to ship back home. The ship Duyfken (Little Dove), while exploring the New Guinea coast, discovered the Cape York Peninsula of Australia in 1606, becoming the first recorded Europeans to visit Australia. The captain of the Dyfken, Willem Janszoon, was the first European to map part of Australia. At the time it still was not known if New Guinea and the newly discovered land were joined or separate.

It was not until some months later when the Portuguese mariner Torres sailed through the strait that still bears his name that it was proved that what was named by the Dutch as New Holland and New Guinea were two separate islands.

In 1616 the ship Eendracht, captained by Dirk Hartog, was the second Dutch vessel to make landfall on the continent. He by accident found a group of islands off the Western Australian coast, the largest of which is still known as Dirk Hartog Island. He spent three days exploring the islands and fixed a pewter plate to a post recording his visit. Apart from this plate there is no known record of his visit.

In 1697 Captain Willem de Vlarningh explored the Western Australian coast as far as the Swan River.

The Dutch called the new land that they had discovered New Holland, but never claimed it for the Netherlands. They thought it was too barren for settlement, the natives were unfriendly and that there were no precious metals or anything else to interest them.

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