Rare Book Monthly
Book Catalogue Reviews - October - 2007 Issue
The Dutch East Indies (Indonesia) from Bestebreurtje Rare Books
Abraham Salm illustration of Java (continued from front cover).
The Dutch then surmised that the higher class Chinese in the city of Batavia (now Jakarta) would join them. The Governor General ordered their homes searched, which quickly turned into a massacre by the Dutch. Some 10,000 surprised and non-resisting Chinese in the city were killed by rampaging colonials during this horrific massacre. This rare broadside in Dutch is headed Waare afbeelding na het leeven van den opstand der Chineesen tegen de Europianen... €2,250 (US $3,177).
Ultimately, Dutch rule would fall. It would be broken in the 1940s when Japan would occupy much of Southeast Asia. Once the Japanese were defeated, the Dutch attempted to reestablish control, but the local population was not about to welcome them back. A rebellion began, and by 1949, the Dutch threw in the towel and recognized Indonesian independence. The impending collapse of Dutch colonial rule is described in The Collapse of a Colonial Society. The Dutch in Indonesia during the Second World War, by L. de Jong, published in 2002. Item 597. €25 (US $35).
You may reach Gert Jan Bestebreurtje Rare Books online at www.gertjanbestebreurtje.com, telephone +31-(0)347-322548.
