Book contents
- The Cambridge History of Rights
- The Cambridge History of Rights
- the cambridge history of Rights
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Contributors to Volume III
- General Introduction
- A Note on Translations
- Introduction to Volume III
- 1Roman Law
- 2Natural Rights
- 3Historic Rights in Sixteenth-Century France
- 4Common Law Rights
- 5The Right of States to Self-Preservation
- 6The Right of Natural Persons to Self-Preservation
- 7Divine Right in Early Modern Political Thought
- 8The Right to Punish
- 9The Rights of War and Peace
- 10The Right of Navigation
- 11The Right to Trade, 1500–1700
- 12The Right to Property
- 13Fair Trials in Law
- 14Freedom of Religion
- 15The Right of Resistance
- 16The Right to Political Participation and Representation
- 17Rights and Power in Early Modern Feminism
- 18Gender and Rights
- 19The Rights of Women
- 20The Rights of the Insane
- 21The Rights of Asylum
- 22The Rights of Peoples in Spain and Its Empire
- 23The Rights of People in the English Empire
- 24Rights in the Seventeenth-Century French Empire
- 25Rights, Authority, and Autonomy
- Index
- References
25 - Rights, Authority, and Autonomy
The Dutch East India Company in Seventeenth-Century Southeast Asia
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 31 January 2026
Book contents
- The Cambridge History of Rights
- The Cambridge History of Rights
- the cambridge history of Rights
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Contributors to Volume III
- General Introduction
- A Note on Translations
- Introduction to Volume III
- 1Roman Law
- 2Natural Rights
- 3Historic Rights in Sixteenth-Century France
- 4Common Law Rights
- 5The Right of States to Self-Preservation
- 6The Right of Natural Persons to Self-Preservation
- 7Divine Right in Early Modern Political Thought
- 8The Right to Punish
- 9The Rights of War and Peace
- 10The Right of Navigation
- 11The Right to Trade, 1500–1700
- 12The Right to Property
- 13Fair Trials in Law
- 14Freedom of Religion
- 15The Right of Resistance
- 16The Right to Political Participation and Representation
- 17Rights and Power in Early Modern Feminism
- 18Gender and Rights
- 19The Rights of Women
- 20The Rights of the Insane
- 21The Rights of Asylum
- 22The Rights of Peoples in Spain and Its Empire
- 23The Rights of People in the English Empire
- 24Rights in the Seventeenth-Century French Empire
- 25Rights, Authority, and Autonomy
- Index
- References
Summary
This chapter examines rights, authority, and autonomy under the Dutch East India Company (VOC) in seventeenth century Southeast Asia. Exploring how the Company managed its employees, Asian treaty partners, and diverse populations under its rule, this chapter is divided into three sections. The first delves into the instruments that granted the Company a range of powers, including the Company charter, commissions, as well as employment and disciplinary contracts. In the 1640s these were later supplemented by the Batavian Statutes. The 2nd section explores the VOC’s interactions with Asian rulers by focusing on treaties and alliances. These treaties curtailed the liberty of Asian rulers, compromised their sovereignty, and reinforced their dependency on the VOC. The 3rd section shifts attention to the VOC’s administration of ethnic and religious communities under its rule.
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- The Cambridge History of Rights , pp. 659 - 686Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2026
References
Further Reading
Borschberg, P., “Grotius and the East Indies,” in Lesaffer, R. and Nijman, J. (eds.), The Cambridge Companion to Hugo Grotius (Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2021), pp. 65–88.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chijs, J. A. van der (ed.), Nederlandsch-Indisch Placcaetboek, 1602–1811, 17 vols. (Batavia and The Hague, Landsdrukkerij and Nijhoff, 1865–1900).Google Scholar
Colenbrander, H. T., and Coolhaas, W. P. (eds.), Jan Pieterszoon Coen: Bescheiden Omtrent Zijn Bedrijf in Indië, 9 vols. (The Hague, Nijhoff, 1919–53), freely available online at https://www.cortsfoundation.org/nl/digitheek [accessed April 27, 2025].Google Scholar
Haan, F. de, Oud Batavia; Gedenkboek uitgegeven door het Bataviaasch Genootschap van Kunsten en Wetenschappen naar aanleidieng an het driehonderdjarig bestaan der stad in 1919, 3 vols. (Batavia, Kolff, 1922–23), freely available online at https://www.cortsfoundation.org/nl/digitheek [accessed April 27, 2025].Google Scholar
Haan, F. de, Priangan. De Preanger- Regentschappen onder het Nederlandsch bestuur tot 1811, 4 vols. (Batavia and The Hague, Kolff and Nijhoff, 1910), available online at https://www.cortsfoundation.org/nl/digitheek [accessed April 27, 2025].Google Scholar
Heeres, J. E., and Stapel, F. W. (eds.), “Corpus Diplomaticum Neërlando-Indicum. Verzameling van politieke contracten en verdere verdragen door de Nederlanders in het Oosten gesloten, van privilegiebrieven, aan hen verleend, enz.,” Bijdragen van het Koninklijk Instituut voor Land-, Taal-, en Volkenkunde 57 (1907), 1–586, available online at https://www.cortsfoundation.org/nl/digitheek [accessed April 27, 2025].CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jonge, J. K. J. de (ed.), Opkomst van het Nederlandsch gezag in Oost-Indië: Verzameling van onuitgegeven stukken uit het oud-coloniaal archief, 16 vols. (The Hague, Nijhoff, 1866–1925), freely available online at https://www.cortsfoundation.org/nl/digitheek [accessed April 27, 2025].Google Scholar
Mijer, P. (ed.), Verzameling van Instructiën en Ordonnantien en Reglementen door de Regering van Nederlandsch Indië, vol. I (Batavia, Ter Lands-Drukkerij, 1848), freely available online at https://www.cortsfoundation.org/nl/digitheek [accessed April 27, 2025].Google Scholar
Nagtegaal, L. W., Riding the Dutch Tiger: The Dutch East India Company and the Northeast Coast of Java, 1680–1743 (Leiden, KITLV Press, 1996).Google Scholar
Wolters, O. W., History, Culture and Region in Southeast Asian Perspectives, rev’d ed. (Singapore, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, 1982).Google Scholar
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