| Indonesia,the largest country in Southeast Asia by area,was the only place in the world known to grow cloves and nutmeg until the 19 th century.Clove and nutmeg were of great significance in ancient and medieval Europe.They had important symbolic significance in religion,wealth and status,and the hot and dry characteristics also made spices perform well in medical treatment.In addition,the long distance between Indonesia and Europe also caused the demand of spices in the European market to be in short supply,thus formed a huge profit margin.It was due to these symbolic meanings and the lure of great wealth that Indonesia became the primary target of Anglo-Dutch voyages in search of wealth during the era of geographical discovery.Medieval Europe’s was not has clearly cognition of Indonesia’s position.It only conjectured that the spice-rich region was in the east of the world by describing the east in religious classics and European explorers at that time.Therefore,at the end of the 15 th century,with the improvement of navigation,ship and map technology in Britain and Dutch,the two countries sent ships to sail eastward in search of legendary spices to obtain rich wealth.The voyage between England and Dutch did not go very smoothly.The distance between the two places,the complicated sea conditions,ship supplied and the health of the fleet and other problems are always intruding on the two countries sailing fleet,resulting in the situation that Britain and the Dutch have sent ships out to sea many times in the early stage,but they have gained little.Despite the difficulties in navigation,the two countries were not discouraged,and even fought bravely.They set up the East India Company and obtained exclusive trade rights to trade spices between the two countries.So far,the competition between the two countries against Indonesia has changed from ordinary trade competition to economic colonial war with the nature of state machine.After Britain and Dutch established the East India Company,they began to plunder Indonesia.Despite Indonesia’s vast territory,the spices that can made huge profits in Britain and Dutch mostly grown in individual areas,and the number is limited.Therefore,in order to compete for spices,Britain and the Netherlands have experienced a process from conflict to relaxation and then to bloody confrontation through three main events: the Lanne Island War,the signing of the peace agreement and the Ambon Massacre.Finally,after a series of struggles,Britain and Dutch signed various treaties,which ended the spice competition and determined the status of the Netherlands as the colonial sovereign state in Indonesia.The result of the spice trade made all aspects of Indonesia’s historical development from ancient to modern times more influenced by the Dutch colonial rule.In the social aspect,the caste hierarchy and land hierarchy seriously affected the healthy development of Indonesian society,but also indirectly developed the public facilities of Indonesian society;in the economic aspect,the three economic policies of in-kind land rent,forced supply and forced cultivation implemented seriously caused the regression of Indonesian economy;in the political aspect,Dutch carried out large-scale colonial expansion and established a more complex judicial system;in the cultural aspect,the Western culture brought impact and progress to Indonesian society and culture. |
