From the mid-1500s until the mid-1900s, the Dutch created a trading empire and founded colonies all over the globe to supply their trade routes.
In the 1500s, much of Europe was fighting wars with each other in the name of religion or for the sake of their kings. Instead of joining these fights for land or nobility in Europe, some Dutch businessmen decided to try to find money and power by trading with other parts of the world. They founded the Dutch East India Trading Company which traveled to Africa and Asia, and the Dutch West India Trading Company which traveled to North and South America.
The Dutch East India Trading Company was called Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie in Dutch, or VOC for short. The VOC quickly became incredibly profitable and very powerful. It bought and sold goods produced by other people, shipped the goods all over the world, built ships in order to transport the goods and became involved in the production of spices, sugar and wine. The VOC also sold stocks of the company to the public, which allowed regular people to buy a tiny share of ownership in the company and to receive some of the profits. Dutch investors in the VOC became very, very wealthy.
As part of their trading empire, the Dutch set up trading posts and colonies all over the world.
