| Amboyna Massacre |
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| CATEGORIES ABOUT AMBOYNA MASSACRE | |
| 1623 | |
| colonialism | |
| british-dutch relations | |
| dutch east india company | |
| stuart england | |
| history of great britain | |
| history of the netherlands | |
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In 1619 the British and Dutch signed a Treaty of Defense which allowed England to have one-third of the spice trade to two-thirds for the Dutch. However, Dutch officials in the East Indies gave no heed to this peace pact and armed conflict continued. Eventually, the British attacked the Dutch at Batavia and drove them out. Thereupon, the Dutch at Amboyna suspected that the British were about to attack them and assassinate their governor. The Dutch raided and overcame the neighboring British East Indian Company factory in 1623 . They tortured the surviving ten British factors and their nine Japanese assistants with fire and water, eventually using gunpowder charges to blow off their arms and legs. Any who survived the brutal torture were killed. The suffering of the captives became a national cause in England, and compensation was eventually paid to the descendants of the victims. The strife between the two nations abated completely only after the Dutch leader William Of Orange became King Of England in 1689. After the Amboyna Massacre, the British reduced their interest in the East Indies and focused their attention on the continent of Asia , specifically the Indian Sub-Continent . In 1796 and 1810 British forces captured Amboyna, but returned the colony to the Dutch upon cessation of hostilities. |
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