Roggeveen, Jacob (1659-1729)

[john sefton]

This article has been kindly submitted by Richard Hindle.

Roggeveen, Jacob (1659-1729)

Expeditions: Circumnavigation, 1721-23.

Ships: Arend, Thienhoven, Afrikaansche Galei.

Dutch navigator, who commanded a voyage to the Pacific.

Roggeveen was born in Middleburg, the capital of the province of Zeeland on 1st February 1659. He became a notary of Middleburg and later studied theology and law. He is recorded working for the V.O.C. (=Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie or Dutch East India Company) in Batavia from 1706-14, as a Raadsheer van Justitie (Council Lord of Justice).

He returned to Holland where his father, Arend Roggeveen , suggested a voyage to the south Pacific for the purpose of discovering an unknown southern continent (Terra australis incognita) and Davis Land . However, his father died before the expedition set sail from Texel on 1st August 1721 (some versions say the 21st August).

Roggeveen was in overall command of the expedition, which was sponsored by the Dutch West India Company.

The ships were as follows:

Arend - Jobon Koster (the historian Carl Friedrich Behrens was also on board).
Thienhoven – Cornelius Bouman.
Afrikaansche Galei – Roelof Rosendahl (=Rosendaal).

The expedition’s route south took them via Trinidad and Brazil to the Falkland Islands, which he named Belgia Australis.

They rounded Cape Horn via the Straits of Le Maire in the (southern) summer of 1721-22. Storms forced them well to the south, where they encountered icebergs. Heading north they arrived at the Juan Fernandez Islands on 24th February and left there on 17th March 1722.

Sailing due west they discovered Paasch Eylandt (=Easter island, =Rapa Nui) on Easter Sunday, 5th April 1722. They landed on the island on the 10th and were well received by the natives. The population was estimated to be between 2 - 3,000.

Continuing west by way of the Tuamoto Islands, the Afrikaansche Galei was wrecked on Schadelijk Eylandt (=Takapoto). Fortunately the crew were saved.

They later discovered Bora Bora and Maupiti in the Society Islands.

They then encountered the Samoan Islands of Rose, Tau and Groeningen (=Upolu).

After sighting Thienhoven Eylandt (=Tutuila) on 1st June 1722. The next day they encountered Verquicking Eylandt (=Makatea), where some of the crew were killed in an ambush.

The ships steered north of the Solomon Islands and New Guinea arriving in Batavia (=Djakarta) in Java on 10th December 1722 (some sources say it was late September) with nearly half of the crew dead from scurvy.

Roggeveen was arrested and found guilty of infringing the territory of the V.O.C. and imprisoned for six months. His ships, crew and cargo were also seized.

He returned to Holland in August 1723.

The States General ordered the V.O.C. to make restitution with two new ships, pay for compensation for the full value of the cargo and also pay the crew. (It isn’t stated in the text, but I believe that in order to return home they had to work their passage home from Batavia without pay.)

He died in Middleburg on 31st January 1729.

Roggeveen’s voyage was one of the last great circumnavigations made by the Dutch.

Sources: Encyclopedia of Exploration to 1800 by Raymond John Howgego published by Hordern House, ISBN 1-875567-36-4. Some of the wording copied verbatim with the author’s kind permission.
Wikipedia.

1. Roggeveen’s father was a mathematician interested in astronomy, geography and navigation. It was he who received a patent for an expedition to find Terra Australis Incognita.
2. Edward Davis, english buccaneer, who split from a group of buccaneers, including William Dampier, following the unsuccessful attempt to capture the Spanish treasure fleet in the pacific off panama. He took his ship, Batchelor’s Delight to 27º 20’ south and sighted land, thought to be part of the southern continent. Although they sailed within about a quarter of a mile off the coast, they made no attempt to land.

Samoa SG386/389

[john sefton]

Samoa issued on June 14 a set of four stamps for the 25th anniversary of Roggeveen's Pacific voyage, in which he commanded three ships, fitted out to the orders of the Amsterdam Chamber of the West India Company. Jacob Roggeveen's instructions were to seek for the legendary Southland. His flagship was the Arend, about 120 ft in length, Capt. Jan Koster, crew about 110. Accompanying vessels were the Thienhoven, Capt. Cornelis Brouwer, about 100 ft. in length, and crew of 80; and the galiot Africaensche Galey, under Capt. Roosedaal, with a crew of 33. The ships carried a total armament of 70 guns. On August 1, 1721, the fleet sailed from the Texel, via the Cape Verde Islands, Rio de la Plata and the Falkland Islands. Sailing until about 60 deg. South, they rounded Cape Horn and arrived at Juan Fernandez Island in the middle of February 1722, sailing again on March 17, taking a Westerly course to look for the supposed Southland. On April 5, Easter Island was discovered. They proceeded westwards again on April 12, but found no traces of any Southland. On May 18, the Islands of the Tuamoto Archipelago were sighted. The following morning the Africaensche Galey ran on a reef off Takapoto Island and became a total loss. The crews were stricken with scurvy and the Thienhoven nearly suffered the same fate as the Africaensche Galey. Discontent arose among the seamen. On June 3, a ship's council was held and decided to sail homewards via New Guinea, disregarding the danger of conflict with the Government there and the great influence of the United East India Company. The two companies were not only rivals but also mortal enemies. On June 15, two islands of the Samoa Archipelago were named after the Arend and Thienhoven, and from there a course was set via the North Coast of New Guinea to Bum, Japara, and Batavia. Many of the seamen died during this part of the voyage. Finally the vessels anchored on October 3, 1722, in Batavia Roads. There the Dutch East India Government seized the ships, and sent them and their crews home as part of a homeward convoy.
The two captains were relieved of their commands and replaced by two captains of the Dutch East India Company, and the crews were distributed among the other vessels of the convoy.
This convoy arrived back in Holland in July 1773.
Depicted on the 2s. stamp are representations of Roggeveen's ships at the commencement of the voyage; the 10s. stamp shows the Arend and Thienhoven at Samoa whilst the 30s. depicts on two globes the outward voyage to South America and the voyage across the Pacific to the Dutch East Indies. The centre of the stamp shows a chart of the Samoan Islands discovered by Roggeveen, now renamed Savaii Upolu, with his two remaining ships.

Article by E W Argyle Sea Breezes August 1972