Dutch Colonial Holdings Around the World

The Netherlands built a global colonial empire from the 16th to the 20th century, spanning Asia, Africa, the Americas, and the Caribbean.

Asia

• Dutch East Indies (Indonesia)
• Ceylon (Sri Lanka)
• Malacca (Malaysia)
• Formosa (Taiwan)
• Japan (trading posts)

Africa

• Cape Colony (South Africa)
• Gold Coast (Ghana)
• Ivory Coast (Côte d’Ivoire)
• Senegal
• Gambia

Americas

• New Netherland (New York)
• Dutch Guiana (Suriname)
• Curaçao, Aruba, Bonaire

Caribbean

• Sint Eustatius, Saba, Saint Martin

The empire declined in the 18th century as British and French power grew, and was dissolved in the 20th century.