By Jayde Andrews Many people find it remarkable how my great grandmother survived two Japanese internment camps from 1941-1946 in the Dutch East, the Indonesian revolution and a famine on her way back to Holland in 1946- all before the age of 17. What is even more remarkable is Mary Read more
The newspaper article by Malcolm Quekett explores postwar migration to Western Australia through the history of the Graylands Reception and Training Centre, later known as the Graylands Migrant Hostel, and through the personal experiences of migrants who passed through it. The story brings together Dr Nonja Peters’ research on migration Read more
Kasteel Batavia stood as the administrative heart of the Dutch East Indies, begun in 1619 under Jan Pieterszoon Coen. The rectangular fortress, built on the western bank of the Groote Rivier (now Kali Besar), featured four bastions—Amsterdam, Zeelandia, Hollandia and Westfriesland—connected by thick walls enclosing offices, warehouses, and the Governor-General’s Read more
In the heart of Jakarta’s Old Town, once the centre of the Dutch East Indies, stands Café Batavia — a landmark that embodies both colonial history and modern restoration. Overlooking Fatahillah Square, the café occupies a building dating back to the 1830s, originally used by the Dutch East India Company Read more
(Profile current as of October 2025) Chris Hemsworth (born 11 August 1983), Liam Hemsworth (born 13 January 1990), and Luke Hemsworth (born 5 November 1980) are Australian actors whose shared success has brought international attention to their family’s diverse heritage. Through their mother, Leonie (née van Os), they have Dutch Read more
(Published October 2025) Alister Andrew Henskens (born 30 December 1963) is an Australian politician and member of the Liberal Party, currently representing the electorate of Wahroonga in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly. He previously held senior ministerial portfolios including Skills and Training, Science, Innovation and Technology, and Leader of Read more
Nicolette Boele (born 10 November 1970) is an Australian independent Member of Parliament representing the federal seat of Bradfield in Sydney’s north since May 2025. The daughter of Dutch migrants who settled in Australia in the 1960s, she belongs to a new generation of Dutch-Australian leaders active in public life. Read more
In the years leading up to 1962, several Dutch, Papuan and Australian thinkers imagined a new political constellation for the Pacific: a Melanesian Union or Federation. This proposed bloc would have united Dutch New Guinea, the Australian-administered territories of Papua and New Guinea, and perhaps other nearby islands such as Read more
Isaac Le Maire: entrepreneur, dissident, and pioneer explorer Isaac Le Maire (c. 1558–1624) was a Dutch merchant of Walloon origin, born in Tournai (now Belgium). After settling in the Dutch Republic, he became one of the largest investors in the Dutch East India Company (VOC). However, Le Maire soon clashed Read more
The transfer of Dutch New Guinea to Indonesian control in 1963 marked the abrupt end of one of the most promising experiments in decolonisation in the Pacific. During the late 1950s and early 1960s, the Netherlands had begun preparing the Papuan people for a future of self-government, establishing representative institutions Read more