|
«FOR THE PEACE AND WELL-BEING OF THE COUNTRY»: INTERCULTURAL MEDIATORS AND
DUTCH-INDIAN RELATIONS IN NEW NETHERLAND AND DUTCH BRAZIL, 1600-1664
A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate School of the University of Notre Dame in
Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of
Philosophy by Marcus P. Meuwese, M.A. Gregory E. Dowd, Director, Graduate Program in
History Notre Dame, Indiana September 2003
http://etd.nd.edu/ETD-db/theses/available/etd-09272003-005338/unrestricted/MeuweseMP092003.pdf.
[EXTRAIT]
Page 64
The usefulness of Atlantic creoles as intercultural mediators was especially
revealed by the controversy surrounding Mathieu da Costa. Unfortunately, the
available sources referring to Da Costa do not tell us much about this
individual. One of the few things we do know is that he is mentioned as a
«naigre» in French sources and as «een swart», or a black person in Dutch
notarial documents. Although his personal background is a mystery, Da Costa was
originally hired by Pierre Dugua de Mons, a French Protestant nobleman who led a
private colonization project under the auspices of the French Crown in what is
now Nova Scotia during the early seventeenth century. Starting in 1604 or 1605,
Da Costa probably functioned as interpreter between the French and local
Algonquian-speaking natives. In 1606, Da Costa was kidnapped or persuaded to
change allegiances by the crew of a Dutch vessel that was cruising the coastal
waters around Nova Scotia, preying on Iberian ships, and trading with American
Indians. This was one of the earliest recorded Dutch ships in the Northern
Atlantic, and their interest in Da Costa clearly indicates that the Dutch
considered Atlantic creoles to be valuable intercultural mediators. (59)
Page 65
However, Dugua de Mons also viewed Da Costa as an important interpreter, and the
Frenchman quickly dispatched an agent to Amsterdam to retrieve the creole
through legal means. Moreover, the privateering raid of the Dutch vessel in Nova
Scotia in 1606 angered the French Crown. Supported by such pressure, Dugua de
Mons was able to regain control over Da Costa, with whom he subsequently made a
contract again in Amsterdam in 1608. Indicative of his importance as
cross-cultural mediator for Europeans in Canada, Dugua de Mons employed Da Costa
for three full years and compensated him with a considerable annual salary of 60
crowns. After this contract, Da Costa almost disappears from the historical
records. He is mentioned one more time, in December 1609, as having been put in
custody in the French port-city of Le Havre for showing disrespect. Although it
is not entirely clear why Da Costa was thrown in prison, historian A.J.B.
Johnston has rightly suggested «that Da Costa possessed an independent spirit
and spoke his mind freely.» (60)
_____________________________________________________________
59. The most recent, balanced, and comprehensive discussion of Da Costa is provided by Johnston,
«Mathieu da Costa.» For a reconstruction of Da Costa's life that differs
slightly from Johnston's, see Peter Bakker, «First African into New Netherland,
1613-1614,» DHM LXVIII, No. 3 (Fall 1995): 50-53. For Da Costa being called a
«Naigre», see Robert le Blant and Rene Baudry, eds. Nouveaux documents sur
Champlain et son époque Volume I (1560-1622) (Ottawa, 1967), document 105
(December 11, 1609). I thank Laurier Turgeon for providing me with a copy of
this document. For Da Costa being called a «swart», see Amsterdam City Archives
(GAA), Notarial Archives, Inv. No. 263 (microfilm 133): folios 172-173 (October
8, 1607). For the colonial project of Dugua de Mons, see J. Kupp, «Quelques
aspects de la dissolution de la compagnie de M. de Monts, 1607," Revue de
l'histoire de l'amérique française 24, No. 3 (1970): 357-374.
60. This paragraph is based on Johnston, «Mathieu da Costa,» 18-20. For the quotation, see page 19.
|