Editing Batavia (1628 ship) (section)

==Maiden voyage{{anchor|Batavia Mutiny}}==
On 29 October 1628, the newly built ''Batavia'', commissioned by the VOC, sailed from [[Texel]] in the Netherlands for the [[Dutch East Indies]], to obtain spices.{{sfn|Van Duivenvoorde|2015|p=18}}<ref name="museum-wa">{{cite web|url=http://www.museum.wa.gov.au/collections/databases/maritime/shipwrecks/shipdetail.asp?ID=1316&Shipname=batavia&Shipdate=&Range1=&Range2=&Shiptype=&Discovered=%&Region=0|title=Batavia|work=Department of Maritime Archaeology Online Databases|publisher=Western Australian Museum|access-date=2007-11-11}}</ref> Their orders were to use the [[Brouwer Route]], like all ships of the Dutch East India Company. This involved sailing to the south of a direct course to [[Jakarta]], but without any way of measuring [[longitude]], it was difficult to judge when to make the turn north. A late turn gave the risk of running aground on the coast of Australia.{{sfn|Van Duivenvoorde|2015|p=19}}

She sailed under commander and senior merchant [[Francisco Pelsaert]], with Ariaen Jacobsz serving as skipper. Pelsaert and Jacobsz had previously encountered each other in [[Dutch Suratte]], when Pelsaert publicly dressed-down Jacobsz after he became drunk and insulted Pelsaert in front of other merchants. Animosity existed between the two men after this incident.{{sfn|Dash|2002|p=57}} Also on board was the junior merchant [[Jeronimus Cornelisz]] (30), a bankrupt [[apothecary]] from [[Haarlem]] who was fleeing the Netherlands, in fear of arrest because of his [[heresy|heretical]] beliefs associated with the painter [[Johannes van der Beeck]].

=== Mutiny plot ===
According to Pelsaert's account, Jacobsz and Cornelisz conceived a plan to [[mutiny|take the ship]] during the voyage, which would allow them to start a new life elsewhere, using the huge supply of trade gold and silver on board.{{sfn|Dash|2002|p=87}} After leaving the [[Cape of Good Hope]], where they had stopped for supplies, Jacobsz is alleged by Pelsaert to have deliberately steered the ship off course, and away from the rest of the fleet. Jacobsz and Cornelisz had already gathered a small group of men around them and arranged an incident from which the mutiny was to ensue. This involved [[sexual assault|sexually assaulting]] a prominent young female passenger, [[Lucretia Jans]], in order to provoke Pelsaert into disciplining the crew. They hoped to paint his discipline as unfair and recruit more members out of sympathy. However, the woman was unable to identify her attackers.{{sfn|Dash|2002|p=99}}<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.voc.iinet.net.au/batavia.html |title=VOC ship Batavia |publisher=Voc.iinet.net.au |access-date=2011-03-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110410180412/http://www.voc.iinet.net.au/batavia.html |archive-date=10 April 2011 |url-status = dead }}</ref>

===Shipwreck{{anchor |wrecking}}===
[[File:Houtman Abrolhos location.svg|thumb|Shipwreck location near the Western Australian coast]]
[[File:Ongeluckige voyagie 01.jpg|thumb|Survivors being transferred from the wrecked ''Batavia'' to nearby islands in the ship's boats.]]
[[File:Beacon Island Abrolhos.jpg|thumb|Batavia's Graveyard, now known as [[Beacon Island (Houtman Abrolhos)|Beacon Island]], in the Wallabi Group, Abrolhos Islands]]
On 4 June 1629, ''Batavia'' struck Morning Reef near [[Beacon Island (Houtman Abrolhos)|Beacon Island]], part of the [[Houtman Abrolhos]] off the western coast of Australia.<ref name="museum-wa" /> Of the 322&nbsp;aboard, most of the passengers and crew managed to get ashore, although 40 people drowned. The survivors, including all the women and children, were then transferred to nearby islands in the ship's [[longboat]] and [[yawl]].

An initial survey of the islands found no fresh water and only limited food ([[sea lion]]s and birds). Pelsaert realised the dire situation and decided to search for water on the mainland. A group consisting of Jacobsz, Pelsaert, senior officers, a few crew members, and some passengers left the wreck site in a {{convert|9|m|spell=in|adj=on}} longboat in search of drinking water. After an unsuccessful search for water on the mainland, they left the other survivors and headed north in a danger-fraught voyage to the city of [[Batavia, Dutch East Indies]], the ship's namesake, to seek rescue. En route the crew made further forays onto the mainland in search of fresh water.

In his journal, Pelsaert stated that on 15 June 1629, they sailed through a channel between a [[reef]] and the coast, finding an opening around midday at a latitude guessed to be about 23 degrees south where they were able to land, and water was found. The group spent the night on land. Pelsaert commented on the vast number of [[termite]] mounds in the vicinity and the plague of flies that afflicted them. Pelsaert stated that they continued north with the intention of finding the "river of Jacob Remmessens", identified first in 1622, but owing to the wind were unable to land. Drake-Brockman has suggested that this location is to be identified with [[Yardie Creek]].{{sfn|Drake-Brockman|2006|pp=300–304}}{{sfn|Godard|1993|p=156}}{{sfn|Dash|2002|p=150}}

It was not until the longboat reached the island of [[Nusa Kambangan]] in the Dutch East Indies that Pelsaert and the others found more water.{{sfn|Godard|1993|pp=186–187}} The journey took 33 days, with everyone surviving. After their arrival in Batavia, the [[boatswain]], Jan Evertsz, was arrested and executed for negligence and "outrageous behavior" before the loss of the ship (he was suspected to have been involved). Jacobsz was also arrested for negligence, although his culpability in the potential mutiny was not guessed by Pelsaert.{{sfn|Dash|2002|pp=161–162}}

[[Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies|Governor-General]] [[Jan Pieterszoon Coen]] immediately gave Pelsaert command of {{ship||Sardam|1628|2}} to rescue the other survivors, as well as to attempt to salvage riches from ''Batavia''{{'}}s wreck. Within a month, Pelsaert reached the general area where the shipwreck had occurred, but it took another month of searching to locate the islands again. He finally arrived at the site only to discover that a bloody massacre had taken place among the survivors, reducing their numbers by at least a hundred.{{sfn|Dash|2002|p=162}}

===Murders===
[[File:Batavia Pl.3 State Library of New South Wales M DSM C530.jpg|thumb|left|Massacre of the survivors]]
Cornelisz was one of the few men who stayed on ''Batavia'' to pillage and steal. He was one of the few who survived the final break-up of the ship and made it to Beacon Island after floating for two days. Though neither sailor nor soldier, Cornelisz was elected to be in charge of the survivors due to his senior rank in the Dutch East India Company. He made plans to [[piracy|hijack]] any rescue ship that might return and use the vessel to seek another safe haven. Cornelisz made far-fetched plans to start a new kingdom, using the gold and silver from the wreck. However, to carry out this plan, he first needed to eliminate possible opponents.<ref name="VOC">{{cite web|url=http://www.voc.iinet.net.au/batavia.html|title=Batavia's Graveyard|year=2008|website=Houtman Albrolhos|publisher=VOC Historical Society|access-date=31 December 2009|location=Perth|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110410180412/http://www.voc.iinet.net.au/batavia.html|archive-date=10 April 2011|url-status = dead}}</ref>

[[File:The Fort - West Wallabi Island - Colour.JPG|thumb|[[Wiebbe Hayes Stone Fort]] on [[West Wallabi Island]]]]
Cornelisz's first deliberate act was to have all weapons and food supplies commandeered and placed under his control. He then moved a group of soldiers, led by [[Wiebbe Hayes]], to nearby [[West Wallabi Island]] (located roughly {{convert|8.7|km|mi|disp=or}} to the northwest), under the pretense of having them search for water. They were told to send [[smoke signal]]s when they found water and they would then be rescued.<ref name="VOC" /> Convinced that they would be unsuccessful, he then left them there to die, taking complete control of the remaining survivors.

Cornelisz never committed any of the murders himself, although he tried and failed to poison a baby (who was eventually [[strangled]]).{{sfn|Dash|2002|p=140}} Instead, he coerced others into doing it for him, usually under the pretense that the victim had committed a crime such as theft. Cornelisz and his henchmen had originally murdered to save themselves, but eventually they began to kill for pleasure or out of habit.{{sfn|Dash|2002|p=138}} Cornelisz planned to reduce the island's population to around 45 so that their supplies would last as long as possible. He also feared that many of the survivors remained loyal to the company.{{sfn|Dash|2002|p=122}} In total, Cornelisz's followers murdered at least 110 men, women, and children.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2009-01-01|title=The Batavia Mutiny|url=https://leben.us/the-batavia-mutiny/|access-date=2021-04-22|website=Leben|language=en-US}}</ref> A small number of women were kept as [[sexual slavery|sex slaves]]; among them was Jans, who Cornelisz reserved for himself.<ref name="uwa17">{{cite book |type=booklet |title=Batavia (1629): giving voice to the voiceless – Symposium |date=2017-10-07 |location=Nedlands |publisher=[[University of Western Australia]] |url=http://www.lwgallery.uwa.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/3052375/Batavia-Symposium-Program.pdf |url-status=live |access-date=2020-03-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180320024741/http://www.lwgallery.uwa.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/3052375/Batavia-Symposium-Program.pdf |archive-date=2018-03-20 }}</ref>

===Rescue===
Although Cornelisz had left the soldiers, led by Hayes, to die, they had in fact found good sources of water and food on West Wallabi Island. Initially, they were unaware of the massacres taking place and sent pre-arranged smoke signals announcing their finds. However, they soon learned of the killings from survivors fleeing Beacon Island. In response, the soldiers devised makeshift weapons from materials washed up from the wreck. They also set a watch so that they were ready for Cornelisz's men, and built [[Wiebbe Hayes Stone Fort|a small fort]] out of limestone and coral blocks.{{sfn|Dash|2002|pp=176–179}}

Cornelisz seized on the news of water on the other island, as his own supply was dwindling and the continued survival of the soldiers threatened his own success. He was fearful that any rescue vessel would sight the soldiers first, therefore dispatched his men to eliminate this threat. But the trained soldiers were by now much better fed than Cornelisz' group and easily defeated them in several battles. Seeking to bring Hayes under his command he traveled to the island himself, whereby Hayes and his soldiers took Cornelisz hostage. The men who escaped regrouped under soldier [[Wouter Loos]] and tried again, this time employing [[musket]]s to besiege Hayes' fort and almost defeating the soldiers.{{sfn|Dash|2002|pp=182–183}} However, Hayes' men prevailed again just as ''Sardam'' arrived. A race to the rescue ship ensued between Cornelisz' men and the soldiers. Hayes reached the ship first and was able to present his side of the story to Pelsaert. After a short battle, the combined force captured all of Cornelisz's group.{{sfn|Dash|2002|pp=188–190}}<ref name="Barbarism">{{cite web |title=Barbarism and brutality: surviving the Batavia shipwreck |url=https://www.sea.museum/2016/06/04/barbarism-and-brutality-surviving-the-batavia-shipwreck |website=Australian National Maritime Museum |access-date=2 April 2024}}</ref>

===Aftermath===
[[File:Batavia victim.jpg|thumb|One of the Batavia massacre victims, excavated on Beacon Island and now displayed at Fremantle Shipwreck Museum. Male, aged about 35–39, with a gashed skull, broken shoulder blade and a missing right foot.]]
Pelsaert decided to conduct a trial on the islands, because ''Sardam'' on the return voyage to Batavia would have been overcrowded with both survivors and prisoners. After a brief trial, the worst offenders were taken to [[List of islands in the Houtman Abrolhos|Seal Island]] and executed. Cornelisz and several of his henchmen had both hands chopped off before being hanged.{{Sfn|Kimberly|1897|p=10}}

Loos and a cabin boy, Jan Pelgrom de Bye, who were considered only minor offenders, were marooned on [[mainland Australia]], and were never heard of again. This made them the first Europeans to have permanently lived on the Australian continent.{{Sfn|Leavesley|2003}} This location is now thought to be Wittecarra Creek near [[Kalbarri]], Western Australia, though another suggestion is nearby [[Port Gregory]].{{sfn|Godard|1993|pp=186–187}}

[[File:Image-bat-hist-04b.jpg|thumb|left|The hangings of the ''Batavia'' murderers]]
The rest of Cornelisz' henchmen were taken to Batavia for trial. Five were hanged, while several others were flogged, [[keelhauled]] or [[Yard_(sailing)#The_yardarm's_use_in_maritime_punishment|dropped from the yardarm]] on the later voyage back home.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url=http://museum.wa.gov.au/research/research-areas/maritime-archaeology/batavia-cape-inscription/batavia|title=Batavia's History|website=Western Australian Museum|language=en|access-date=2019-01-22}}</ref> Cornelisz' second in command, Jacop Pietersz, was [[Breaking wheel|broken on the wheel]], the most severe punishment available at the time. Jacobsz, despite being tortured, did not confess to his part in plotting the mutiny and escaped execution due to lack of evidence. What finally became of him is unknown; he might have died in prison in Batavia. A board of inquiry decided that Pelsaert had exercised a lack of authority and was therefore partly responsible for what had happened. His financial assets were seized, and he died within a year of disease. His journals on the matter would be published in 1647 and widely read, spreading knowledge of the dangers of the coast of Western Australia.<ref name="Barbarism"></ref>

Hayes was hailed a hero and promoted to [[sergeant]], which increased his salary, while those who had been under his command were promoted to the rank of [[corporal]].<ref name=":1" /> Of the original 332&nbsp;people on board ''Batavia'', only&nbsp;122 made it to the port of Batavia.{{Sfn|Ariese|2012|p=5}} ''Sardam'' eventually sailed home with most of the treasure previously carried on ''Batavia''. Of the twelve treasure chests that were originally on board, ten were recovered and taken aboard ''Sardam''.{{Sfn|Leavesley|2003}}