In 1629, the Batavia, a vessel belonging to the Dutch East India Company, ran aground on the Abrolhos reefs off the coast of Australia. The shipwreck, dramatic at first, soon turned into a tragedy of an altogether different scale, involving mutiny, massacres and terror. Far from the glory promised by its commercial mission, the Batavia became the scene of one of the darkest episodes in maritime history, marked by violence of unprecedented brutality.
The Batavia, pride of the VOC, on its way to the Orient
Built in Amsterdam in 1628, the Batavia is a three-masted flute specially designed for long-distance trade. With a length of 184 feet (56 meters), a beam of 10.50 meters and a displacement of 600 tons, she was a technical masterpiece of her time, built to withstand the perils of long crossings. Its colorful carvings, sturdy hull and 24 cannons made it both a transport ship and an armed vessel, a symbol of power.
Chartered by the Dutch East India Company (VOC), her mission was to reach Batavia (now Jakarta) to deliver spices, textiles and precious metals. On board were 332 people: merchants, soldiers, sailors and civilian passengers. However, tensions soon arose with the commander, François Pelsaert, an austere man with a deep sense of duty. Jeronimus Cornelisz, an unscrupulous apothecary, foments a mutiny with a few accomplices with the aim of taking possession of the ship.
Life on board: surviving a crossing
Life aboard the Batavia was marked by rudimentary, confined living conditions. The crew lived on the cow deck, crammed in with the cargo, in a dark, damp environment permeated by the smells of tar, wood and human sweat. Soldiers were content to sleep on planks, while passengers generally enjoyed private cabins, depending on their social status. The captain and chief merchant enjoyed particular comfort, with a cabin equipped with a personal toilet - an exceptional luxury for the time.
In terms of food, the diet consisted mainly of shipboard cookies, salted meat and water, which deteriorated rapidly. Scurvy and other diseases were a daily affliction, and for the crew, every day was a battle to preserve their health and safety.
Shipwreck in the Abrolhos
After several months at sea, the Batavia was separated from its fleet by a storm. With the captain ill, she continued under the command of Ariaen Jacobsz, a sea dog known not only for his seafaring skills, but also for his penchant for drinking, women and brawling.
On June 4, 1629, the most dreaded event occurred: the ship broke up on a reef in the Abrolhos archipelago, off the coast of present-day Australia. The Batavia quickly broke up, forcing Pelsaert and his crew to evacuate some 280 survivors to nearby islets, barren and bereft of resources. Faced with the emergency, Pelsaert decided to leave with a few men on a longboat to seek help in Batavia. He leaves behind a crew left to their own devices, under the control of two dangerous men.
Terror and mutiny: 3 months of bloodshed and chaos
Jeronimus Cornelisz took advantage of Pelsaert's absence to proclaim himself leader and establish a reign of terror. His plan is implacable: eliminate useless mouths to preserve food supplies and establish his authority. With his accomplices, including Ariaen Jacobsz, he began by murdering the weakest: women, children and the sick. In the space of 3 months, almost 125 castaways were killed. The women were also sexually abused before being executed.
A group of survivors, led by Wiebbe Hayes, refuse to submit. Exiled to another islet, they survive by finding a source of fresh water and hunting birds and seals. When Cornelisz attempts to eliminate this last bastion of resistance, fierce battles ensue, armed with stones and improvised spears studded with nails.
The hour of reckoning
On September 17, 1629, Pelsaert returned with a rescue sloop, the Sardam: a 33-day voyage. On arrival, he discovers the scale of the massacre. The mutineers were arrested, and Cornelisz and his main accomplices were tried on the spot. 8 of them were hanged on the island, while others were sent to Batavia for execution. Cornelisz received an exemplary sentence: he was mutilated and his hands cut off before being hanged. 2 mutineers were abandoned on the Australian coast, probably becoming the first Europeans to live there.
Much of the Batavia's precious cargo was saved, including silver, jewelry and the famous Rubens vase.
