Union of The Three Crowns: The History of The Nordic Empire
- Thread starter Gabingston
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Things are getting interesting indeed... Britain getting more of the Caribbean this early is good for the nascent British colonial empire.
I wonder how the Portuguese would interact with the British and French. Both are good customers of their slaves in Angola and Mosambique (and France is even more horrifying than otl) so things would be interesting.
I wonder how the Portuguese would interact with the British and French. Both are good customers of their slaves in Angola and Mosambique (and France is even more horrifying than otl) so things would be interesting.
Yup, the English will be a big player in the Caribbean, along with the Spanish, Dutch and Scandinavians. The French won't be a major Caribbean player due to their colony in Brazil. As for the slave trade, Britain has already begun to establish its own forts in West Africa, and France will soon do the same, though I'm sure both will buy from the Portuguese to an extent.
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Chapter 21: English Exploration and Colonization in Asia
Union of The Three Crowns: The History of The Nordic Empire
Chapter 21: English Exploration and Colonization in Asia
Chapter 21: English Exploration and Colonization in Asia
I was pretty sure that the English colonial update would be a three parter, but as this kept getting longer and longer I decided to split it yet again into four parts. This part will focus on English efforts in Asia, while the next one will focus on the long anticipated English colony in South Africa. Now that I’ve explained the changes, I think it’s about time we get going on the update itself.
The first voyage by the English Company of the Indies, or ECI to the Orient would leave England in October of 1597, traversing the vast Atlantic Ocean for several months before arriving in the Cape of Good Hope in February of 1598. While these weren’t the first Englishmen to have been in the Cape, this voyage would prove to be extremely important for the future of the region, as the crew would remark that, unlike most of Africa, the Cape was suitable for English settlement, and would also make an advantageous stopover point for future voyages. After a week in the Cape, in which they’d gather supplies like fresh water, interact with the natives and get a much-needed break from sailing the high seas, they would once again embark on their voyage to the east. They’d hug the coastline for a while before stopping in the well known trading city of Zanzibar in April. This also happened to be about the time that the Indian Ocean’s monsoon winds would shift from blowing south to blowing north, so they weren’t going to stay too long, but they did want to make their presence known. The English stayed about two weeks in Zanzibar, learning more about the city and the Indian Ocean trade routes in general, as well as visiting the city’s bustling marketplace. After they’d gathered more supplies and found out the best route to India, the English would depart from Zanzibar, headed northeast towards the subcontinent. With the wind at their backs they would depart from Zanzibar at the beginning of May, expecting a quick voyage to India.
From Zanzibar it would take a month to reach India, with the fleet landing near the city of Cochin. Cochin was one of the largest trading cities in southern India, and one that the Portuguese had maintained a fort in for nearly a century. The English and Portuguese were by this point long time allies and trade partners, so while the Portuguese were definitely surprised by the arrival of the English, things didn’t escalate into hostility. The English made it clear that they were merely exploring and had no intention to seize Portuguese possessions in India or in regions further east, though they never said they wouldn’t establish their own possessions. The English in Cochin would also interact with the natives of the region, visiting the city’s marketplace and meeting with the city’s leadership.
They couldn’t stay in Cochin for too long, though, as the voyage needed to continue. They’d round the southern tip of the Indian Subcontinent and then over to the island of Ceylon. The main city on the island, Colombo, was like Cochin home to a Portuguese presence, which led to another meeting between the English fleet and local Portuguese garrison and merchants. The mission of the voyage was not just to get to India, but also to get to the East Indies, so after departing from Ceylon in early August, the English would traverse the Bay of Bengal en route to the East Indies.
Two and a half weeks into the voyage across the bay, they would run into a sparsely populated but lush chain of islands, which could make for a convenient base of operations in the future. After going through the archipelago, it would be another two weeks before they arrived on the mainland, a jungle coastline dotted with numerous islands. They would soon gather from their interpreter that the big trade cities like Malacca lie to the south, so they went off in that direction. It’d take about two weeks, but eventually they’d start seeing more and more ships sailing through the waters, whether they be local, Indian, Chinese or Portuguese. Hugging the coast of the Malay Peninsula, they would start to see the other shore, that being Sumatra, becoming visible. By this point it was late October of 1598, a full year after their departure, and the crew (well, those that had made it this far) were beginning to miss jolly old England. Fortunately for them, Malacca would be the last major stop on the voyage before the return trip began. They would arrive in Malacca in early November, taking in this great trade city of the east. The city, like many others in the Orient, had been conquered by the Portuguese early in the 16th Century, and with the English being allies (which I’ve mentioned previously) they were allowed in. The vast array of both goods and peoples present in Malacca was amazing, even after visiting Cochin and Ceylon. It was exactly what they’d set out to find, exotic goods that could make boatloads of cash (quite literally). This was just the first voyage, though, any actual installations in the region were to come later. They’d stay in Malacca through Christmas, getting as much info as they could about the region in general, and after the twelve days were up they would depart. All of 1598 had been spent voyaging, and the crew were ready to begin heading home, albeit with quite a story to tell about their adventures. Thus, in January of 1599, they left from the port of Malacca for the long voyage home. They’d traverse the Strait of Malacca and the Sunda Strait before going out into the open Indian Ocean.
A nearly four thousand mile voyage across the Indian Ocean would await them, one that even with the favorable current would take months. Weeks upon weeks passed with nothing but water, and while they knew they’d see land again, the open ocean definitely wore out its welcome. Alas, after two and a half months on the high seas, they spotted Madagascar off in the distance. After briefly stopping to refill on supplies and get some fresh air, they would turn south along the eastern shore of the island, turning towards the west when the coastline curved. They’d hop across the Mozambique Channel to the mainland, and before long they were back in the Cape. In mid June of 1599, they set off from the Cape bound for England, and in October of 1599, two years after they had departed, the English Company of the Indies’ first expedition returned home.
While a sizable number of the men who’d set out in 1597 hadn’t made it home and no outposts had been established, the expedition was widely considered a success, and soon more expeditions were conducted. With the knowledge of ocean currents becoming more established, it was speculated that one could sail directly from the Cape to the East Indies via the southern seas, thus bypassing the inefficient monsoon route. So, in the summer of 1603, an expedition would depart from England to see if this route could work. The initial leg of the voyage would be identical to the first voyage a half decade earlier, traversing the Atlantic before stopping in the Cape. The big change would come after departing from the Cape, where instead of hugging the African coast they would instead go out to sea and catch the eastward ocean current. This route had been theorized but not actually tested, so while it could potentially have huge rewards, it was also a huge risk, as getting lost was easy in these unknown waters. Nonetheless, they were going to give it a shot, so after spending Christmas and New Years’ in the Cape, they would begin their voyage across the southern seas in January of 1604. The mountains of the Cape would fade out of view as they went south to catch the current, and sure enough the sea would start dragging them eastward. Having now caught the current, they would start to move incredibly swiftly towards the east. The southern ocean the fleet would cross was not only incredibly empty, with only one small island being spotted along the 5,000 mile eastward voyage, but also very dangerous, with massive waves being commonplace and icebergs present even in the middle of the Southern Hemisphere’s summer. Still, all of the ships made it, and the captain, who had been present on the first voyage, had a hunch that they were at the same longitude as the East Indies. So, after two months heading east, the fleet would turn north towards the East Indies. Several weeks passed, the sun became brighter, the temperature warmed up, but still, no sign of land.
On the morning of the third of April, though, things would change. One of the crewmen alerted the captain that he had spotted land, which quickly got the captain’s attention. The land he’d spotted, though, wasn’t a lush, tropical island though, but a dry coastline with only small shrubs for vegetation. The captain, while glad to see land again after three long months and impressed by the young sailor’s good eye might, didn’t view the land as anything other than worthless desert, so they would not disembark to get a closer look. Still, the English fleet had inadvertently stumbled across the long fabled Terra Australis, becoming some of, possibly the first, Europeans to lay eyes upon this strange, strange land. England may eventually turn its eye towards Terra Australis, but for now, they would keep their eyes thoroughly fixated on that sweet, sweet spice.
The newly discovered land would fade out of sight as they continued towards the north, and they would wind up back in the open ocean. This didn’t last too long, as it would be just two weeks before the East Indies would be spotted. More specifically, they had spotted the islands of Bali and Lombok, along with several smaller ones. Bali and Lombok were both spectacular volcanic islands with their own native states and cultures, perfect for a 1-2 stop to start their tour of the East Indies. They would spend three weeks split between the two islands, trading with and meeting the local leadership. They would afterwards head east through the Lesser Sundas, weaving their way through the numerous islands and islets of the region. Their goal here was to make it to the Moluccas, which had become famous for their spices like nutmeg and cloves, which lent them the name of the Spice Islands. The Portuguese had become established in the area nearly a century prior, and the English wanted to break the Portuguese monopoly on acquiring the spices among Europeans. The English arrived in the Spice Islands in early June, landing in the Portuguese-controlled island of Ambon. After spending a week in Ambon, they’d sail through more of the Spice Islands like Seram, Buru and the Sula Islands before heading on to the famous trade city of Makassar.
Makassar was one of the premier cities in all of the East Indies, with merchants coming from far and wide to do business, with Malay, Chinese, Indian and Europeans all being present. The Portuguese (notice a trend here) had established a base in the city in the previous century, and their numbers in the city were in the thousands. The English would do their usual trading and diplomatic business in Makassar before disembarking for Java. Java, while not the largest of the East Indian islands, was the most populous due to its incredibly fertile volcanic soil, and was also a place that the Portuguese didn’t have a large presence in. Needless to say, the potential Java had for the ECI was immense. So, as great as Makassar was, the English had their eye on what could be their greatest prize…
In late July the English would embark on the hop across the Java Sea to the island from which it got its name. The journey across said sea was blessedly short and before they knew it Java appeared on the horizon. The first stop the English made in Java was in Surabaya, a major port city in the eastern part of the island. Next up after that was Semarang, which while smaller than Surabaya was still a notable city. After Semarang they would go to Cirebon, another coastal trade city. Finally, they would head to Sunda Kelapa, one of the largest cities in the whole of the East Indies. Visiting these four cities would only solidify for the English that Java could be a huge boon if they were to gain a presence there.
Now it was time for the return voyage. Leaving the East Indies in mid September, they’d take the same route back to Britain as the first voyage. They’d head through the Sunda Strait, across the Indian Ocean to Madagascar, down the Southern African coast to the Cape and then take the long journey north through the Atlantic back home. After nearly two years, they would return to England in April of 1605.
More voyages to the east would be conducted over the coming years, such as to India and to the Far East, but now it wouldn’t be just for exploration, as the ECI’s mission was ultimately to establish a permanent English presence in the east, whether in the Subcontinent or the Indies. The first English installation in the East Indies would be Fort Lampung, located on a large harbor at the southern end of Sumatra, established in 1608. The English would soon thereafter establish bases in Bali, Sumbawa, Butung, Buru and Seram, gaining them a large physical presence in the East Indies. Most importantly, though, would be their efforts to gain influence and land in Java. From Fort Banyuwangi on the eastern end of the island to Fort Cilegon on the western end, the period between 1610 and 1650 would see the establishment of many English forts and trading posts on the island. One installation in particular, Fort Albion, would soon become the most important English base in the East Indies, which the English would eventually become the dominant power in.
English presence in the Orient wasn’t limited to the East Indies, though, as they were also busy building a presence elsewhere, even if it wasn’t as large as the one they had in the East Indies. In the Indian Subcontinent, they had established a large presence along the Coromandel coast, with a main base at Cocanada along with secondary bases at Vizagapatnam and Krishnapatnam. The English also had a base on the west coast of India at Ratnagiri, though their presence there was more limited than in the east. England had also done voyages to the Far East and the Persian Gulf, though they didn’t have a presence there quite yet. There was one other place the ECI had settled, though, that is worthy of discussion, but that’ll be for another day. One that is coming very soon, because the fourth and final part of this English colonial update will be next.
So the English get into Asia earlier than OTL? Will be interesting to see how Asia develops and how it could potentially impact even Japan and China.
My plans as of now are for the English to become the premier power in the East Indies, along with holding some colonies in India (though not to the same extent as IOTL). The Dutch will mainly focus on India ITTL, though they'll likely have some presence in Southeast Asia. One idea I have is for the Dutch to eventually dominate the Bengal region. A Dutch Bangladesh makes too much sense for me to not at least think about it.
Would they have their OTL possessions in Malaya and North Borneo as well?
Ooh this will be very interesting...
I wonder would we see a split India which would fight each other for control over India. A Dutch Bengladesh is very interesting indeed.
PS would we see British settlers in SEA? The Brits did attempt to colonise the islands and a significant portion of it's tribal land. Not that the tropical diseases won't kill a bunch but I could see them be a lot more successful than otl, considering that Java would be the main colony they extracted from.
Also would Portugal be the other main player? They already have a bunch of trading posts there and are British allies (not that that helped them much at the end).
I'm trying to work out what the racial situation in English/British South Africa will be down the line. I don't think the strict Black/White binary that developed IOTL's U.S. is workable in South Africa, where at the very least the Khoisan and Bantu populations will be considered separate (not to mention the further subdivisions within those populations). I could very well see a division in status between native Africans who speak English (especially if it's their first language) and those who don't. That's not even getting into whether a mixed race group similar to the Cape Coloureds will exist ITTL's South Africa. I'm sure some mixed race groups like the Griqua or Basters will develop on the frontier, but the much larger influx of settlers into the Cape means that any mixed offspring of the settlers and the Khoisan may just be assimilated into the Anglo-African population, leaving a small trace of Khoisan blood in the typical Anglo-African (as well as Indian and Southeast Asian blood coming from the native wives of ECI employees). While the average Anglo-African will still be of overwhelmingly European (mainly British) ancestry, they'll likely average around 5% non-European DNA, similar to OTL's Afrikaners. Still, I'd like to hear your input on the matter. The update will be coming soon.
IIRC South Africa was pretty denuded of people when the Europeans first arrived due to their diseases having a similar effect on Sub-Saharan peoples as it did in America, if to a lesser extent.
Add that to England's sheer population and yeah it's quite likely there will be quite a large area of South Africa that has a majority white population. Something like OTL Brazil is most likely for how the racial makeup and mixing would work IMO.
I also think that, unfortunately, there would be an genocide of many Sub-Saharan Africans in South Africa if the English colonize it in the early 17th century which would also lead to a white majority population in many parts of South Africa. So I’m thinking it is possible that something akin to the black/white binary in the Southern USA develops in an English South Africa too. Heck it developed in states with black majorities so it wouldn’t be impossible here for such binary to occur.
I doubt it would be genocide in the form of extermination but ethnic cleansing by white settlers driving them north? The Anglo settlers are infamous for that.
I think a combination of ethnic cleansing and disease (and rinderpest killing off most of the cows the bantu and Khoisan would use) would cause a lot of British south Africa to be white majority at the very least, and allow them to create a much larger state than otl south Africa.
I agree. I expect white majority South Africa to stretch as far north as Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe and parts of Mozambique, Zambia, and Angola.
Same. I expect them to get to the fertile Highlands where the Brits could farm properly, and the Bantu groups be pushed out as the settlers pour in from Britain/have a lot of children.
The settlers starting as being cattle herders who farmed when they could would make sense, and they would be a lot more adept at farming than the Bantus who're still learning, which would be swamped/displaced. Also would ostrich farming be done earlier than otl? Maybe we get albino/piebald ostriches ittl?
I think the southern Bantus being pushed into the Kongo would have great consequences. Imagine roving bands getting into the forest and mucking about. Perhaps we'd get ittl's version of Shaka Zulu in the forest. That's horrifying asf.
Speaking of Shaka Zulu, one big question regarding South Africa is whether something like the Mfecane will occur ITTL. The destruction and chaos caused by the inter-Bantu wars of the early-mid 19th Century greatly increased the ease with which white settlers could conquer the eastern part of South Africa, and without it the Bantu nations could put up much stiffer resistance to the expansion of the colony.