 The East Indiaman Götheborg in Oslo, for the centenary of the dissolution of the union between Norway and Sweden on 10 June 2005 The Swedish East India Company (Swedish: Svenska Ostindiska Companiet or SOIC) was founded in Gothenburg, Sweden in 1731 for the purpose of conducting trade with the far east. The venture was inspired by the success of the British East India Company and grew to become the largest trading company in Sweden during the 18th century, until it folded in 1813. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1280x877, 275 KB) Description: East Indiaman Götheborg Source: Dhirad 2005, picture edited by Torstein Langeland File links The following pages link to this file: Swedish East India Company User:Deep750 East Indiaman Götheborg ...
Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1280x877, 275 KB) Description: East Indiaman Götheborg Source: Dhirad 2005, picture edited by Torstein Langeland File links The following pages link to this file: Swedish East India Company User:Deep750 East Indiaman Götheborg ...
Gothenburg viewed from Liseberg amusement park Gothenburg (Swedish: Göteborg?) is a city and a municipality on the western coast of Sweden, in the County of Västra Götaland. ...
Events 10 Downing Street becomes the official residence of the United Kingdoms Prime Minister when Robert Walpole moves in. ...
The British East India Company, sometimes referred to as John Company, was a joint-stock company of investors, which was granted a Royal Charter by Elizabeth I on December 31, 1600, with the intent to favour trade privileges in India. ...
(17th century - 18th century - 19th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 18th century refers to the century that lasted from 1701 through 1800. ...
1813 is a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ...
The background for the company The roots for the new company was more than a hundred years back, already in 1626 the Dutch Willem Usselinx got royal privileges from the Swedish King for a trading company. Wars and hard times did however stop the company before it got ships off to the far east. Another attempt was made by pirates sailing out from Madagascar, as they thought Sweden better suited as a base. They offered solid financial rewards, and the negotiations was well ahead with the Swedish King Karl XII at his camp in 1718 during his campaign towards Norway. With the Kings death the venture folded. Charles XII is: Charles XII, or Karl XII, (1682 - 1718), King of Sweden - see Charles XII of Sweden a 19th_century racehorse _ see Charles XII (horse) a pub in the Yorkshire village of Heslington, named after the racehorse - see Heslington This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists...
// Events July 21 - Treaty of Passarowitz signed November 22 - Off the coast of Virginia, English pirate Edward Teach (best known as Blackbeard) is killed in battle when a British boarding party cornered and then shot and stabbed him more than 25 times. ...
Sweden was poor after the Great Northern War, trade was therefore seen as an option for rebuilding the country. Opinions were however mixed, as steel and timber were used for trading; was it not a waste to exchange such good for worthless tea and porcelain? The emerging Swedish textile industry was also threatened by the trade, so much that the new company promised to refrain from it. The Great Northern War was the war fought between a coalition of Russia, Denmark-Norway and Saxony-Poland (from 1715 also Prussia and Hanover) on one side and Sweden on the other side from 1700 to 1721. ...
To start a new trading company that would venture into the interests of European powers France and Britain was not easy, but at the same time the monopoly given to trade companies was a help. The Scottish and English merchants left out of the British East India Company were more than eager to have their share of the trade, by financing the new Swedish company. Royal motto: Nemo me impune lacessit (Latin: No one provokes me with impunity) (Scots: Wha daur meddle wi me) Scotlands location within the UK Languages with Official Status1 English Gaelic Capital Edinburgh Largest city Glasgow First Minister Jack McConnell Area - Total - % water Ranked 2nd UK 78,782 km² 1. ...
Royal motto (French): Dieu et mon droit (Translated: God and my right) Englands location within the UK Official language English de facto Capital London de facto Largest city London Area - Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population - Total (mid-2004) - Density Ranked 1st UK 50. ...
Establishing the SOIC In 1729 the Scottish merchant Colin Campbell got help for setting up a company with the Swede Henrik König, after initially discussing the idea with Niclas Sahlgren. The reaction from the Swedish government was reluctant: the failure of a similar company based in Ostende in Austrian controlled Holland was not tempting the Swedes to go against the main powers. König took the matters to the Swedish parliament and succeeded, gaining royal privileges for the company on 14 January 1731, initially for a period of 15 years. Among the rights were: Events July 30 - Baltimore, Maryland is founded. ...
The Dalriada Scots originated from Ireland, from the north of the now-called countyAntrim. ...
Niclas Sahlgren (18 March 1701 – 10 March 1776), Swedish merchant and philanthropist. ...
- The company would have the right to all trade and shipping east of Cape of Good Hope
- All departures and arrivals should be out of Gothenburg
- The Swedish state was to have 100 riksdaler on each shipment, plus taxes.
- The cargo was to be auctioned off in Gothenburg on arrival
- The company could use as many vessels it wanted, but they were to be built and outfittet in Sweden
- The ships were to fly the Swedish flag and have Swedish ships papers
- The company had the right to issue shares to finance the trading trips
- Goods and stores needed for the company were exempted of Swedish customs
- The company's officers would have the same authority as Swedish naval officers
- The crew on the company's ships was exempted from the Swedish military service
- The company had the right to defend itself, to "meet violence with violence"
- The company was to maintain secrecy on finances and shareholders
The reasons behind the last provision were both internal and external: British citizens were forbidden to engage in trade on Asia and within Sweden suspicions ran high against foreigners, as they were thought to siphon off Sweden's riches. Jealousy from merchants not in on the company also played a part. Thus the books were burned after they had been closed and revisioned; effectively concealing the company's dealings. Image:CapeOfGoodHopeSouthAfrica. ...
The letter of privilege was translated into French and Latin and distributed to the major powers. Their reaction was reluctant and they underlined that they considered the new company a most unwelcome competitor. The Swedish ambassador to Britain did not even dare to present the letter to the British government. Pledges of assistance at their bases if needed were not answered. Latin is an Indo-European language originally spoken in the region around Rome called Latium. ...
The first expedition The Scottish trader Colin Campbell was the driving force, he was knighted by the Swedish King and he moved to Gothenburg to organize the first expedition. It sailed in 9 February 1732, on the vessel Friedericus Rex Sueciae, with Campbell onboard, also appointed ambassador to the Chinese court. The captain was Georg Herman af Trolle, both he and Campbell had previously visited China. Altogether the crew was around one hundred. Events February 23 - First performance of Handels Orlando, in London June 9 - James Oglethorpe is granted a royal charter for the colony of Georgia. ...
The expedition started well - the Cape of Good Hope was passed, the vessel arrived safely in Canton and trading was carried out successfully. The main trading post in China at the time, was Canton (Guangzhou). Originaly, the goods sought were spices, however demand soon meant that porcelain and tea made up the bulk of the trade. Location within China Guangzhou (Simplified Chinese: 广州; Traditional Chinese: 廣州; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Kuang-chou; Jyutping: Gwong2zau1; Yale: Gwóngjaū) is the capital of the Guangdong Province in southern China. ...
On the return, the vessel was stopped by the Dutch between Java and Sumatra, and brought to Batavia. Campbell protested and produced his papers, but the Dutch argued that they had suspected the vessel falsely flew the Swedish flag. The expediton was eventually released, but time was lost and the winds unfavourable. Many of the seamen died on route; so many so that the ship had to find Norwegian sailors when reaching the coast of Norway. Map of Java Java (Indonesian, Javanese, and Sundanese: Jawa) is an island of Indonesia, and the site of its capital city, Jakarta. ...
Sumatra (also spelled Sumatara and Sumatera) is the sixth largest island of the world (approximately 470,000 km²) and is the largest part of Indonesia. ...
Batavia is a Latin name used for the Netherlands, derived from the Batavii tribe. ...
On 27 August 1733 the vessel returned to Gothenburg, almost one and a half years after its departure. The voyage was a huge economic success, the auction bringing in some 900,000 Swedish riksdaler. The dividend paid was 25% of the capital. Events February 12 - British colonist James Oglethorpe founds Savannah, Georgia. ...
Overview of expeditions During its existence from 1731 to 1821 the SOIC launched 132 expeditions. Of these a total of 8 ships were lost, totally or partially. Probably the sourest loss was the "Götheborg" in 1745, as it sunk just off Älvsborg Fortress on the entrance to Gothenburg; it had managed safely to China and back. Even though most books were burned its evident that the voyages made huge profits for the shareholders, and many Swedes got wealthy due to the SOIC.
From Gothenburg the vessels carried iron, both in bars and processed, as axes, anchors, steel etc. Copper was also brought, as was timber. The expeditions called at Cadiz where they traded goods to aquire Spanish silver, in the form of coins, "pesos duros". This article is about the Spanish city. ...
The main cargo from China as of value was tea, in an overview from 1774 its share was about 90%. Much of the tea was re-exported and smuggled into England, undercutting the prices of that country's own trade monopoly. The other important item was porcelain, accounting for about 5% of the cargo's value. Over the years its estimated that some 50 million pieces of porcelain was imported by the SOIC.
The return on expeditions could be around 25-30% of capital invested, but up to 60% was achieved. Much depended on the merchants and the captain; the merchants had to close a large numbers of favourable deals, the captain had the extremely difficult task of safely sailing the ship to China and back. The vessels were around 50 meters of lenght, besides cargo and men it also carried around 25-30 guns for selfdefence. The last vessel returned to Gothenburg in March 1806, and even though the company had a privilege until 1821 it ceased to exist in 1813.
Revival of one SOIC vessel In 1993, a project to recreate the "East Indiaman Götheborg" and sail her from Gothenburg to Canton was started. The project is today run by a firm that uses the same name as the original company. The reconstructed vessel sailed in October 2005 for China, with a mixed crew of professionals and students. 1993 is a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ...
East Indiaman Götheborg in Oslo, at the 100 year celebration of the partition between Norway and Sweden on June 10th 2005 The East Indiaman Götheborg is a large wooden sailship, a replica of the vessel with the same name that sank off Gothenburg on the 12 September 1745. ...
Location within China Guangzhou (Simplified Chinese: 广州; Traditional Chinese: 廣州; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Kuang-chou; Jyutping: Gwong2zau1; Yale: Gwóngjaū) is the capital of the Guangdong Province in southern China. ...
See also Image File history File links Commons-logo. ...
The Wikimedia Commons (also called Commons or Wikicommons) is a repository of free content images, sound and other multimedia files. ...
William Chalmers (1748-1811) was a Swedish merchant. ...
Niclas Sahlgren (18 March 1701 – 10 March 1776), Swedish merchant and philanthropist. ...
The British East India Company, sometimes referred to as John Company, was a joint-stock company of investors, which was granted a Royal Charter by Elizabeth I on December 31, 1600, with the intent to favour trade privileges in India. ...
// Events January January 1 - Scotland adopts January 1st as being New Years Day February February 17 - Giordano Bruno burned at the stake for heresy July July 2 - Battle of Nieuwpoort: Dutch forces under Maurice of Nassau defeat Spanish forces under Archduke Albert in a battle on the coastal dunes. ...
The Danish East India Company (in Danish Dansk Ostindisk Kompagni) was founded in 1616, following a privilege of the Danish king Christian IV. It was focused on trade with India and had its base in Tranquebar. ...
Events October 25 — Dirk Hartog makes the second recorded landfall by a European on Australian soil, at an island off the Western Australian coast Pocahontas arrives in England War between Venice and Austria Collegium Musicum founded in Prague Nicolaus Copernicus De revolutionibus is placed on the Index of Forbidden Books...
Dutch colonial possessions, with the Dutch East India Company possessions marked in a paler green, surrounding the Indian Ocean plus Saint Helena in the mid-Atlantic. ...
This page is about the year. ...
Dutch West India Company (Dutch: West-Indische Compagnie or WIC) was a company of Dutch merchants. ...
Events February 9 - Gregory XV is elected pope. ...
The French East India Company (French Compagnie des Indes Orientales) was a commercial enterprise, founded in 1664 to compete with the British and Dutch East India companies. ...
Events March 12 - New Jersey becomes a colony of England. ...
External links - Swedish East India Company - The East Indiaman Project
References - Frängsmyr, Tore (1976) Ostindiska Kompaniet Bokförlaget Bra Böcker AB Höganäs
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