Surinam
Suriname, 1667–1954. Draft, not yet reviewed
Surinam, also unofficially known as Dutch Guiana, was a Dutch plantation colony in the Guianas and the predecessor polity of the modern country of Suriname. Surinam was a Dutch colony from 26 February 1667, when Dutch forces captured Francis Willoughby's English colony during the Second Anglo-Dutch War, until 15 December 1954, when Surinam became a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The economy of the Colony of Suriname depended upon people enslaved at its plantations. Slavery was eventually abolished on 1 July 1863, a date now celebrated as the public holiday of Ketikoti, although slaves were only released after a ten-year transitory period in 1873.
Seat of power: Paramaribo
Rulers
Cornelis van Aerssen van Sommelsdijck
Governor of Suriname, 1683–1688
He was governor from 27 November 1683 until he was murdered by mutinous soldiers on 19 July 1688. He started to encourage French Huguenots and Labadists to settle and start plantations in Suriname.
Portrait of Cornelis van Aerssen van Sommelsdijck: Formerly attributed to Adriaen Hanneman, Public domain, file
.jpg){kind=link}
Abraham de Veer
Governor of Suriname, 1822–1827
In 1822, De Veer became Governor of Suriname. De Veer was honourably discharged from his duties and retired in Suriname.
Portrait of Abraham de Veer: Unknown, Public domain, file
Burchard Joan Elias
Governor of Suriname, 1842–1845
He was the last Governor-General of the Dutch West Indies, a colony that existed between 1828 and 1845, as a merger of Surinam and Curaçao and Dependencies. After Elias left office, the colony was again, split.
Portrait of Burchard Joan Elias: AnonymousUnknown author, CC BY 4.0, file
Willem Hendrik Johan van Idsinga
Governor of Suriname, 1867–1873
He served as Governor of Surinam between 29 June 1867 and 1 August 1873.
Portrait of Willem Hendrik Johan van Idsinga: Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain, file
Titus van Asch van Wijck
Governor of Suriname, 1891–1896
He was appointed Governor of Suriname on 27 June 1891. He reformed agriculture, built new roads and canals, and improved education.
Portrait of Titus van Asch van Wijck: Unknown author, Public domain, file
_-_Titus_van_Asch_van_Wijck.jpg){kind=link}
Cornelis Lely
Governor of Suriname, 1902–1905
Lely was governor of Suriname from 1902 to 1905. In Suriname, he achieved the initiation and construction of the Lawa Railway from Paramaribo to Benzdorp.
Portrait of Cornelis Lely: Unknown, Public domain, file
Alexander Willem Frederik Idenburg
Governor of Suriname, 1905–1908
During his tenure, he developed the "Idenburg Plan" in order to achieve financial independence for the colony, however it did not pass. He passed the Sunday Law enforcing a mandatory free day on Sunday, and forced closure of all shops.
Portrait of Alexander Willem Frederik Idenburg: G. van Steijn, Public domain, file
Johannes Cornelis Brons
Governor of Suriname, 1944–1948
During his tenure as governor, Brons tried to reform suffrage which was limited to wealthy men. His second attempt to award suffrage to all who had finished primary school passed in September 1945. After his tenure, in July 1948, universal suffrage was established in Suriname.
Portrait of Johannes Cornelis Brons: Willem van de Poll, CC0, file
Willem Huender
Governor of Suriname, 1948–1949
Huender was Governor of Suriname between 1948 and 1949 and resigned after only one year, citing health reasons.
Culture
- Sugar, cotton, and indigo were the main goods exported from the colony to the Netherlands until the early 18th century, when coffee became the single most important export product of Surinam.
- Planters' treatment of the slaves was notoriously bad.
- The gold rush that followed the discovery of gold on the banks of the Lawa River spurred the construction of the Lawa Railway in 1902, although construction was halted after gold production proved disappointing.
Picture
Fort Zeelandia is a fortress in Paramaribo, taken by the Dutch in 1667 and renamed Fort Zeelandia.
Image: Junie609, CC BY-SA 4.0, file
_located_at_Abraham_Crijnssenweg_1_paramaribo,_suriname.jpg){kind=link}
Sources
Text adapted from the Wikipedia articles listed as sources, CC BY-SA 4.0.