The Dutch in the Arctic in the late 19th century

Abstract

ABSTRACTFollowing the founding of the Aardrijkskundig Genootschap [Dutch Geographical Society] in 1873 there was a brief revival of Dutch interest and participation in the Arctic. The schooner Willem Barents, specially built for the purpose, made annual voyages into the European Arctic from 1878 to 1884, placing memorial stones at sites where the Dutch had operated in earlier centuries and collecting scientific data. During the International Polar Year, 1882–83 the Dutch expedition was caught in pack ice and its ship Varna was lost. Thereafter Dutch interest in the Arctic waned, and Willem Barents was sold in 1886.