| Summary: | Item does not contain fulltext At the end of the seventeenth century, Dutch whaling reached a peak in yearly production, with 45,500 barrels of whale oil. Over the course of the century, whaling had transformed from hunting in the bays of Spitsbergen and Jan Mayen to hunting along the ice. To withstand the force of the ice, ships with a thicker hull were necessary, resulting in heavy vessels that were less profitable for trade. This study looks into the commanders between 1675 and 1695, which were in charge of the whaling ships. Did they combine whaling with trade or should they be seen as specialists? Three trade routes were researched: the trade through the Sont, the trade with Archangel and the salt trade with France and Portugal. This study shows that of the 124 commanders that were researched, 41 were also active as skippers in trade routes. There were differences per route as to why the commanders switched from whaling to trade. The route through the Sont was preferred in times of crisis, the route towards Archangel was used to make up for a disappointing whaling season and the Salt trade was chosen when whaling did not work out for the commander. There were differences between the whaling regions in the Dutch Republic. The Wadden Islands and the Noorderkwartier were relatively new in the whaling business and had a small number of commanders actively taking part in trade routes. Friesland and West-Friesland saw a decline in the number of whaling commanders during the second half of the seventeenth century. In the latter two regions the number of commanders that combined whaling and trade was high. Important in the commanders’ choice to switch to trade, were the relation between whaling and trade, and the size of the whaling industry. 18 p.
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