Sources relating to the Central Moluccas 1900-1942

Edited by Ch.F. van Fraassen and P. Jobse

The Central Moluccas (Ambon, the Uliase, Seram and Buru) have played a critical role in the history of the Indonesian archipelago and that of the Dutch presence there. During the 17th and 18th centuries these islands were the main suppliers of cloves. From the middle of the 19th century they were an important recruitment area for low level civil servants and military personnel and later, during the 20th century, the nationalist movement had a strong presence in the Moluccas, particularly on the more developed island of Ambon.

This four-volume edition documents the history of the Central Moluccas for the years 1900-1942. The edition aims to give as broad as possible an image of Ambon’s past, along with that of the surrounding islands, as well as the political activities of Amboinese people elsewhere in the Dutch East Indies. For this purpose government policy documents have been included in the edition along with letters and reports from missionaries and anthropological notes on folktales and myths in which indigenous Moluccans express their vision of their society, history and culture.

Volumes I to III contain the documents, while Volume IV contains the introduction, a survey of civil servants working for the administration and military commanders on the Central Moluccas, a glossary of terms originating from the local languages, a bibliography, map material and several other appendices.