How did Portugal lose control of the spice trade?
By Chelsie Vandaveer
January 6, 2004
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By 1515, the Portuguese had a well-organized spice trade running between the East Indies and western Europe. Although the Portuguese controlled the major shipping and put down various rebellions in the islands, they did not replace the Hindu and Muslim traders in India and on the islands. Business was run by treaties between the Portuguese and the Sultanates. Still, the Asians rankled at the power and influence of the Portuguese outsiders.
When spice cargoes arrived in Lisbon, Dutch traders took the commodities into the ports of northern Europe. Dutch sailors were known for their skill and bravery and often crewed aboard Portuguese ships. Problems arose for the Dutch when King Philip II took the Spanish throne in 1556.
Among other countries, King Philip II inherited the Netherlands from his uncle, Ferdinand. Philip proclaimed himself the leader of the Counter-Reformation and sought to stamp out the heresy of the Protestants. The 'liberal' Dutch became his major target and he was ruthless in his treatment of the people. According to Ernst Scott, "For over thirty years the Spanish sword was wet with the blood of the people of the Netherlands."
In 1574, King Sebastiao of Portugal organized an army to support a pretender to the Moroccan throne. He left his uncle, Cardinal Enrique, in charge of his country. In April 1578, at Ksar el Kebir, the Portuguese army was utterly defeated, Sebastiao was killed, the Moroccan king was killed, and the pretender to the throne was killed. Sebastiao left no heirs to the throne.
When the Cardinal died in 1580, King Philip looked fondly at Portugal's wealth. In 1580/1581, the Spanish armies marched through Portugal. Once Philip had control of the Portuguese spice trade, he took the European concessions away from the Dutch. If Philip could not control the Dutch by bloody force, then perhaps monetary loss would bring the 'heretics' to their subservient senses.
Philip never counted on Dutch ingenuity--the sailors already knew the route to the East Indies. With a major loss of capital, the Dutch declared independence. In 1595, Cornelius Houtman led a fleet of Dutch ships to the fabled East Indies.
(Compiled from: A Short History of Australia, Ernst Scott, 1916, internet publication: Nalanda Digital Library, National Institute of Technology, Calicut-673601, India; "Philip II of Spain", NationMaster.Encyclopedia, 2003; "United Provinces", Wikipedia, 2003; and "Ksar el Kebir", Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Columbia University, 2003)
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killerPlants Tendrils: ~~1~~2~~3~~4~~5~~
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