Why the Dutch Traded Manhattan for this Indonesian Island in 1667

The Treaty of Breda was a landmark agreement signed in 1667 between Britain and the Dutch Republic. The Dutch settlement of New Amsterdam (now known as Manhattan) was exchanged for the British-claimed Indonesian spice island of Run. 

As a result of this treaty, the British gained control over the formerly Dutch-held territory that became the city of New York. The Treaty of Breda was a major step in the consolidation of British power in the New World.

What nowadays seems like a terrible deal for the Dutch didn’t seem so at the time. Through the acquisition of Run Island, the Dutch were able to monopolize the valuable nutmeg and mace trade for centuries, drastically increasing the country’s riches.

It was during the height of the spice trade era that sailors from the English East India Company’s second expedition, who stayed in Bantam on Java, first arrived on the island of Run in 1603 and established favorable relations with the locals. On Pulau Nailakka, a small settlement was first attempted.

Captain Nathaniel Courthope and first mate Zachary Barnett Duncan arrived at Run on December 25, 1616, to defend it against the Dutch East India Company’s claims (VOC). A contract was signed with the inhabitants, recognizing James I of England and James VI of Scotland as the island’s sovereigns. The Dutch were outraged at the threat to their monopoly on the lucrative spice trade.

Courthope fortified the island by erecting forts overlooking approaches from the east. However, when the Dutch laid siege to the island, he lost two ships due to mutiny and sinking. Courthope and 39 European defenders, along with native allies, held off the Dutch for 1540 days; however, following his death in a Dutch attack in 1620, the English left the island.

To prevent the English from retaking Run, the Dutch killed or enslaved all adult men, exiled all women and children, and cut down every nutmeg tree on the island. The VOC only let cattle roam freely on Run in order to provide food for the other islands.

It wasn’t until 1638 that the English attempted to re-enter Run, after which VOC officials visited the island on an annual basis to see if they had secretly re-established themselves. 

Run should have been returned to England under the Treaty of Westminster, which ended the First Anglo-Dutch War (1652-1654).

Following the Second Anglo-Dutch War (1665-1667), England and the United Provinces of the Netherlands agreed to the status quo in the Treaty of Breda: the English kept Manhattan, which the Duke of York (the future James II, brother of Charles II) had occupied in 1664, renaming the city on that island New York. In exchange, Run was formally surrendered to the Dutch.

The Dutch monopolized nutmeg and mace until the Napoleonic Wars, when the British, led by Captain Cole, invaded and captured the Spice Islands in 1810. 

The transfer of nutmeg trees to Ceylon, Grenada, Singapore, and other British colonies in 1817 resulted in the Dutch losing their dominance in the spice trade. Although Dutch control of the island ended in 1949 (when the Dutch East Indies became Indonesia), nutmeg trees can still be found on Run today.