Brothers in Arms, Partners in Trade

Mark Meuwese, Ph.D. (2004) in History, University of Notre Dame, is Associate Professor at the University of Winnipeg in Canada. He has published several articles and book chapters on Dutch-indigenous relations in colonial Brazil and New Netherland.

• List of IllustrationsPreface and AcknowledgementsAbbreviations used in footnotes and bibliographyIntroduction1. From ‘Grand Design’ to Bankruptcy: The Rise and Fall of the WIC, 1621-16742. Establishing Alliances: Dutch Expansion and Indigenous Peoples in the Atlantic World, 1590-16233. An Effective but Fragile Alliance: Brasilianen, Tapuyas, and the Dutch-Portuguese Struggle for Brazil, 1624-16564. Deferring Imperial Dreams: WIC alliances with indigenous rulers in Angola and Kongo, 1625-1648 5. Cooperation and Conflict: Dutch-Indigenous Relations in New Netherland, 1624-1664 6. ‘The disloyalty of the Inhabitants’: WIC alliances with African kingdoms on the Gold Coast, 1624-1674 ConclusionBibliographyGlossary of Non-English TermsIndex

"A key strength of Meuwese’s study is its comparative analysis of [the WIC] imperial projects. Another is his determination to bring indigenous peoples to the centre of an Atlantic historiography more often concerned with shipping, European migration, imperial administration, and the adaptation of political and religious culture. [...] Meuwese demonstrates an enviable confidence when dealing with diverse sources and historiographies which he knits together well."Dr Simon Middleton, Reviews in History, no. 1305"As a survey and a starting point for further discussion and research this authoritative book will prove indispensable to many researchers, especially those without access to works written in Dutch."Jaap Jacobs, BMGN - Low Countries Historical Review, Vol. 128-4 (2013)"Meuwese's account offers a fine overview of the Dutch West India Company's emergence and history, a detailed narrative of native affairs in each of these four regions, and an insightful comparison of them. In the end, readers will find themselves better informed of Dutch-native interaction throughout the Atlantic and challenged to reconsider Dutch-Indians affairs in New Netherlands in light of this Atlantic context" Paul Otto, De Halve Maen, Vol. 86, No. 2, Summer 2013