VU Research Portal Marine Insurance in the Netherlands 1600-1870 Go, S.C. 2009 document version Publisher's PDF, also known as Version of record Link to publication in VU Research Portal citation for published version (APA) Go, S. C. (2009). Marine Insurance in the Netherlands 1600-1870: A comparative institutional approach. General rights Copyright and moral rights for the publications made accessible in the public portal are retained by the authors and/or other copyright owners and it is a condition of accessing publications that users recognise and abide by the legal requirements associated with these rights. • Users may download and print one copy of any publication from the public portal for the purpose of private study or research. • You may not further distribute the material or use it for any profit-making activity or commercial gain • You may freely distribute the URL identifying the publication in the public portal ? Take down policy If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact us providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim. E-mail address: [email protected] Download date: 01. Oct. 2021 Marine Insurance in the Netherlands 1600-1870 For my parents, Anneke and Gwan, Jorna and Maurits VRIJE UNIVERSITEIT Marine Insurance in the Netherlands 1600-1870 A comparative institutional approach ACADEMISCH PROEFSCHRIFT ter verkrijging van de graad Doctor aan de Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, op gezag van de rector magnificus prof.dr. L.M. Bouter, in het openbaar te verdedigen ten overstaan van de promotiecommissie van de faculteit der Economische Wetenschappen en Bedrijfskunde op donderdag 10 december 2009 om 13.45 uur in de aula van de universiteit, De Boelelaan 1105 door Sabine Christa Go geboren te Groningen promotor: prof.dr. C.A. Davids copromotor: prof.dr. B. Compaijen Contents List of tables, graphs and maps 7 List of abbreviations 8 Acknowledgements 9 Chapter 1: Introduction 13 § 1.1 Marine insurance: the historiographical context 13 § 1.2 Methodology and design of this study 17 § 1.3 Dealing with the risks of maritime trade: a variety of options 23 § 1.4 Sources 25 § 1.5 Structure of this study 27 Chapter 2: Groningen: mutual interests and financial innovation in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries 31 § 2.1 Introduction 31 § 2.2 Mutual marine insurance in the province of Groningen 36 § 2.2.1 Guild boxes in the city of Groningen 37 § 2.2.2 Guild boxes in rural Groningen 41 § 2.2.3 From guild box to compact 43 § 2.2.4 From compact to cassa 45 § 2.3 Groningen’s insurance initiatives in context 46 § 2.4 Mutual marine insurance in Groningen: an institutional analysis 52 § 2.5 Conclusion 58 Chapter 3: Amsterdam: individuals, ineffectual regulations and intricate balances of power in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries 61 § 3.1 Introduction 61 § 3.2 Actors and institutions 70 § 3.2.1 Brokers and unauthorised brokers 70 § 3.2.2 The Chamber of Insurance and Average 95 § 3.2.3 The insured 117 § 3.2.4 The underwriters 126 § 3.3 The Amsterdam insurance market: scope and dynamics 145 § 3.4 Conclusion 156 Chapter 4: Rotterdam: commercial and political collusion in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries 159 § 4.1 Introduction 159 § 4.2 Actors and institutions 172 § 4.2.1 Municipal ordinances and the Chamber of Maritime Affairs 172 § 4.2.2 Brokers, pondgaarders and unauthorised brokers 184 § 4.2.3 The insured 197 § 4.2.4 The underwriters 212 § 4.3 The Rotterdam insurance market: scope and dynamics 240 § 4.3.1 Insurance companies and regents: the Rotterdam insurance market between 1760 and 1780 241 § 4.3.2 New practices and opportunities for the Rotterdam insurance business between 1850 and 1870 251 § 4.4 Conclusion 267 Chapter 5: Conclusion 271 § 5.1 The relevance of marine insurance 271 § 5.2 Regional divergence 272 § 5.3 Institutions and actors: influence and interaction 279 Samenvatting (summary in Dutch) 289 Appendices Archival sources 303 Printed Sources and literature 306 Index 319 List of tables, graphs and maps Map 1.1 The Netherlands and its surrounding countries 30 Map 2.1 Groningen and Westerwolde 32 Table 2.1 Overview of mutual insurance boxes in the city and province of Groningen 47 Map 3.1 The financial centre of Amsterdam 64 Figure 3.1 Amsterdam governmental structure 71 Graph 3.1 Number of brokers and unauthorised brokers in Amsterdam (1530-1800) 81 Table 3.1 Overview of principal ordinances, bylaws and alterations relevant to the insurance industry in Amsterdam between c. 1495 and c. 1797 110 Graph 3.2 Volume of insurance cases handled by the Chamber of Insurance and Average 117 Map 4.1 The city of Rotterdam 1733 160 Map 4.2 The city of Rotterdam 1870 168 Graph 4.1 Gross annual fee per commissioner (in guilders) 177 Graph 4.2 Total revenues of the Chamber of Maritime Affairs (gross) 181 Graph 4.3 Composition of total revenues of the Chamber of Maritime Affairs (gross) 181 Table 4.1 Number of brokers and insurance brokers in Rotterdam between 1632 and 1869 195 Graph 4.4 Percentage of Stad Rotterdam’s insured value as originating from the nhm 208 Table 4.2 The 1840 nhm classification of underwriters 226 Graph 4.5 Insured value generated by nhm as part of the total turnover of Stad Rotterdam 230 Abbrevations ga Groninger Archieven (Groningen Archives) gar Gemeentearchief Rotterdam (Municipal Archives Rotterdam) kb Koninklijke Bibliotheek (Royal Library) The Hague na Notary Archives neha, bc Nederlandsch Economisch-Historisch Archief, Bijzondere collecties nsm Nederlands Scheepvaart Museum Amsterdam (Maritime Museum Amsterdam) ona Oud Notarieel Archief (Old Notary Archives) op Catalogus van de collectie van publicaties van de overheid (Catalogue of the collection of publications of the government) ora Oud Rechterlijke Archieven van Rotterdam (Old Judicial Archives of Rotterdam) osa Oud Archief van de stad Rotterdam (Old Archives of the city of Rot- terdam) saa Stadsarchief Amsterdam (City Archives Amsterdam) Acknowledgements Writing a thesis, completing a PhD project, is hardly ever a solo endeavour. I was accompanied on this journey by many people who have supported, inspired and helped me. It was on a Friday afternoon that my journey began, when I knocked on the door of the office of Karel Davids. Although I was initially interested in the voc, Karel soon convinced me to focus on the unknown: marine insur- ance. The lure was evident and I have not regretted the choice since. In the early stages of my research, I felt like a ship’s boy, the most junior member of a crew, an absolute novice. The fact that I have been able to finish this project is due to Karel who, as an experienced captain, guided me through the unknown world of economic-historians, of archival research, of illegible handwritings, ancient and modern. Apart from his near inexhaustible knowledge and expertise, Karel is gifted with the rare ability to motivate, to inspire and to challenge. I could not have wished for a better supervisor. I am forever indebted to him for his unre- lenting support and patience and for bringing out the best in me. I would also like to thank Bernard Compaijen, my co-supervisor, for the many years of support, advice and observations, for his friendship and the laughs we had while sharing an office. My sincere thanks to the members of my Pro- motie committee, Frank den Butter, Femme Gaastra, Paul van de Laar and Clé Lesger for their willingness to read my manuscript and their helpful comments for improving it. I would also like to thank Kees Camfferman, not only for his valuable commentary as a member of the committee, but also for his support in times of distress, and his trust in offering me the opportunity to work at the de- partment of Accounting. I am grateful to the Vrije Universiteit, and in particular to the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, for giving me the opportunity to pur- sue my dreams – special thanks to Janny Westra for her understanding and sup- port, to Frans Snijders, Mira Maletic, Ina Putter, Jan-Willem Visser and Saskia Brand. Trudi, Manon, Vera and Bouk: thank you for all your help. I have en- joyed working with my colleagues at the departments of Economics, Finance and Accounting, in particular Phil Kint, Bas van der Klaauw (always willing to remind me of dissertation deadlines), Peter Kroos and Frits Duimstra. I would like to extend my thanks to all at the Tinbergen Institute, in par- ticular Arianne de Jong. Although I was officially a member of staff at the Faculty of Economics, I was warmly welcomed by the department of Economic and Social history of the Faculty of Humanities of the Vrije Universiteit, for which I thank in particular 10 Marine Insurance in the Netherlands 1600-1870 Wantje Fritschy and Petra van Dam, as well as Doreen Arnoldus. In the course of the years, I have had the pleasure of meeting and interacting with a number of scholars of whom I would like to particularly thank Marjolein ‘t Hart for her advice and expertise, and in general for her understanding and patience. I am indebted to Oscar Gelderblom for his valuable remarks on earlier papers, for his enthusiasm and for inviting me to seminars and workshops. Often forgotten, but invaluable to many – and certainly to me – are the people from the vu li- brary and of the ict department, in particular Shaam Mannie Sing, who helped me in many ways. Robert Mosch, Herbert Rijken, André Lucas, – thank you for your support during the past years. In recent years I have greatly benefited from the expertise of staff members of the various archives.