Amboyna massacre

The Amboyna Massacre occurred because of the intense rivalry between the East India Companies of England and Holland in the spice trade. The Dutch East India Company (VOC) established a trading post at Amboyna (Ambon Island) in the Molucca Islands in 1609 by driving out the previously established Portuguese factors. The British East India Company established a factory (trading station) nearby at Cambello in 1615.

In 1619 the British and Dutch signed a Treaty of Defense which allowed England to have one-third of the spice trade to two-thirds for the Dutch. However, Dutch officials in the East Indies gave no heed to this peace pact and armed conflict continued. Eventually, the British attacked the Dutch at Jakarta and drove them out.

Thereupon, the Dutch at Amboyna suspected that the British were about to attack them and assassinate their governor. The Dutch raided and overcame the neighboring British East Indian Company factory in 1623. They tortured the surviving ten British factors and their nine Japanese assistants with fire and water, eventually using gunpowder charges to blow off their arms and legs. Any who survived the brutal torture were killed.

The suffering of the captives became a national cause in England, and compensation was eventually paid to the descendants of the victims. The strife between the two nations abated completely only after William of Orange became king of England.

After the Amboyna Massacre, the British reduced their interest in the East Indies and focused their attention on the continent of Asia, specifically the Indian Sub-Continent. In 1796 and 1810 British forces captured Amboyna, but returned the colony to the Dutch upon cessation of hostilities.