page_title: Zeewijk (1725)
section_title: Background
hierarchical_section_title: Zeewijk (1725) / Background
caption_attribution_description: Map of the East Indies; the official trade zone (octrooigebied) of the VOC according to the VOC Charter, which was between Cape of Good Hope (South Africa) and Street Magallan (South America); printed c. 1700.
context_page_description: The Zeewijk was an 18th-century East Indiaman of the Dutch East India Company that was shipwrecked at the Houtman Abrolhos, off the coast of Western Australia, on 9 June 1727. The survivors built a second ship, the Sloepie, enabling 82 out of the initial crew of 208 to reach their initial destination of Batavia on 30 April 1728. Since the 19th century many objects were found near the wreck site, which are now in the Western Australian Museum. The shipwreck itself was found in 1968 by divers.
context_section_description: The Zeewijk was built in 1725 with a tonnage of 140 lasten, that is 275.8 tonnes (271.4 long tons; 304.0 short tons), and dimensions 145 feet (44 m) long by 36 feet (11 m) wide. It carried 36 iron and bronze guns, and 6 swivel guns. A new ship of the Zeeland Chamber of the VOC, her maiden voyage was from Vlissingen (Netherlands) to Batavia (now Jakarta, Indonesia) departing in November 1726. Upon departure 208 seamen and soldiers were aboard, as well as a cargo of general building supplies and 315,836 guilders in 10 chests. Jan Steyns from Middelburg was the skipper, in his first command, replacing Jan Bogaard who was too sick to sail.
  The VOC required ships to utilise the Brouwer Route to cross from the Cape to Batavia, enjoying the prevailing westerlies by travelling eastwards until turning north. Turning north too late from a miscalculation in the longitude risked being wrecked on the coast or reefs of Australia. However, wishing to call into Western Australia, skipper Jan Steyns ignored VOC directorate and protests from his steersman and headed east-northeast.
caption: A 1700 map of the Indian Ocean
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