Anthony van Diemen

Who was Anthony van Diemen?

Anthony van Diemen was a Dutch colonial governor.

He was born in Culemborg in the Netherlands, the son of Meeus Anthonisz van Diemen and Christina Hoevenaar. In 1616 he moved to Amsterdam, in hope of improving his fortune as a merchant; in this he failed and was declared bankrupt. After a year he became a servant of the Dutch East India Company and sailed to Batavia, capital of the Dutch East Indies. On the voyage out, the East Indiaman Mauritius inadvertently put in on unknown coast of Australia.

Governor Jan Pieterszoon Coen found van Diemen to be a talented official and by 1626 he was Director-General of Commerce and member of the Council for the Indies. In 1630 he married Maria van Aelst. A year later he returned to the Netherlands as Admiral on the ship Deventer. In 1632 he returned to Batavia and in 1635 he was appointed Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies, his appointment taking effect on January 1, 1636.

Van Diemen's nine years as Governor-General were successful and important for both the colony and the commercial success of the East India Company. He devoted much of his energy to expanding the power of the company throughout South-East Asia.