512 ANNUAL REGISTER, 1817. 



burned on this occasion, as the 

 produce of the Moluccas was then 

 but little, if at all, known to the 

 Romans. Nero is reported to 

 have burned a quantity of cinna- 

 mon and casia at the funeral of 

 Poppsea greater than the countries 

 from which it was imported pro- 

 duced in one year. 



In 1498 Vasco de Gama landed 

 at Calicut. Indian commerce now 

 took a different route, and the 

 Portuguese supplied Europe with 

 the articles which had formerly 

 passed through the hands of the 

 Venetians. Eager to engross the 

 cinnamon trade, the Portuguese, 

 early in the 16th century, arrived 

 at Ceylon, and obtained leave from 

 one of the chiefs to establish a 

 factory, which led to the erection 

 of the Fort of Colombo. Not- 

 withstanding the permission of 

 the chief, their landing was obsti- 

 nately opposed by the Arab mer- 

 chants, who had for many ages 

 supplied Europe with cinnamon, 

 and who dreaded an immediate 

 termination of their monopoly. 

 Shortly after a fort had been built, 

 the Portuguese succeeded in con- 

 cluding a treaty with the king of 

 Kandy, wherein he agreed to fur- 

 nish tliem annually with 124,0001b. 

 of cinnamon : on the part of the 

 Portuguese, it was stipulated that 

 they were to assist the king and 

 his successors, both by sea and 

 land, against all his enemies. 



The thriving and rich settle- 

 ments of the Portuguese in the 

 East Indies eventually attracted 

 the attention of the adventurous 

 and opulent merchants of the 

 states of Holland. Soon after 

 they had gained some footing in 

 India, they became anxious to en- 

 gross the cinnamon trade^ which. 



as Baldeus emphatically observes, 

 is " the Helen or bride in contest 

 of Ceylon;" and early in the 17th 

 century found means to ingratiate 

 themselves with the king of Kandy, 

 who invited them to aid him to 

 expel the Portuguese from the 

 island. 



In 1G12 the king engaged to 

 deliver to the Dutch East India 

 Company all the cinnamon that 

 he was able to collect. 



In 1638 the garrison of Batti- 

 caloa was captured by the com- 

 bined Dutch and Kandian forces. 

 On this occasion a treaty was con- 

 cluded between the king and the 

 Dutch general, wherein it was 

 stipulated that none of the king's 

 subjects were to be permitted to 

 sell the Dutch any cinnamon, 

 &c. &c. except what was sold by 

 his order. He retained the entire 

 and exclusive privilege of prepar- 

 ing and selling this article of 

 commerce. 



Peace was concluded between 

 the Portuguese and Dutch in 1644 

 or 1645. By this treaty a moiety 

 of the cinnamon trade was ceded 

 to the Dutch. The cinnamon was 

 collected in the following manner : 

 — Both parties employed chalias 

 to cut and prepare cinnamon, 

 which was to be deposited in a 

 convenient spot upon the river 

 Dandegam, near to Negombo. At 

 the end of the cinnamon harvest, 

 the quantity collected was equally 

 divided between the two parties ; 

 and each party paid the iisual 

 price to the chalias for peeling 

 their share of cinnamon. War 

 again commenced in 16.52. Co- 

 lombo surrendered to the Dutch 

 in 1656; and Jaffna, the last 

 place of strength of the Portu- 

 guese, fell in 1658. 



For 



