doodle of my favs

May 15. I have just received a letter from General Janssens in response to mine of the day before yesterday, in which he speaks very favorably of the new works and establishments that he has seen and examined in the part of the island he has just visited. (...) His Majesty the Emperor had been pleased to grant my prayers by naming a successor for me and that his choice had fallen on General Janssens. (...) I subsequently wrote to General Janssens that, having thus handed over the government to him, I will continue with pleasure until my departure to provide all information, not only regarding governmental affairs but also regarding everything that may affect his happiness and personal well-being in this colony

May 22. Today at noon, General Janssens returned here from Batavia. He reviewed the troops and was extremely pleased with them. He was astonished that with such limited resources I had managed to form these very fine-looking and very well-disciplined troops.

May 29. I spent the evening at His Excellency General Janssens's.

May 30. General Janssens and his staff spent the evening at my house in the hotel of Mr. V. Braam, President of the Council of the Indies

He [Daendels] encloses a copy of, certainly, the above-mentioned letter to the Sovereign Prince. But no answer came, neither from the Emperor, nor from the Crown Prince of Sweden, nor from the Sovereign Prince. And again he writes an urgent plea to Bernadotte: "my previous letters have certainly not reached you. I beg you to put in a good word for me with the Emperor once more." But Bernadotte remained silent.

(...) Governor D. was sent out, among other things, to introduce greater expertise and integrity in Batavian administration and in all departments of governance. His loud proclamations upon landing in Batavia were accordingly grand. (...)

He [Daendels] threatened to hang and shoot people, and swore that he would tolerate no interference from anyone, that nothing but the interests of the country, as judged solely by certain individuals, would be considered in all his actions. "Vox et praeterea nihil!" (A voice and nothing more!)—nothing came of it. (...)

Will people in the homeland be surprised by this, or rather, will they have the right to be? If so, they will thereby prove how little they understood the heavy burden placed on General Daendels' shoulders. (...)

Fearless courage—or rather, recklessness and rashness in the face of danger—has long been recognized as his outstanding characteristic. (...)

(...) one might add nobility of spirit and frankness—qualities that, while valuable in certain cases and circumstances, do not necessarily make a person suitable for governing colonies, maintaining political and commercial relations with nations that are only partially known to him. (...)

(...) he [Daendels] was not made for great deeds or difficult enterprises. (...)

(...) too much has been expected or feared of him, for everyone not to be able to judge him (...)

(...) When the news of the appointment of General D. to the supreme command in the Indies came to my attention, I had to expect that his wild passion would turn everything upside down there (...)

when he arrived at the place where he had so many great deeds to perform, and there found the importance of the task he had undertaken, his mind would become wild and his eye would become dim, whereby his former self-confidence would make way for the deep feeling of his inadequacy and unsuitability for the great work assigned to him (...)

(...) I foresaw which combinations would be formed to entangle him and embarrass him, and that, if he were to discover this, he would judge that he had no other choice left, than to fight his way through it in the wild, or to let himself be carried away and guided by it (...)

(...) Gen. D. was better acquainted than any of his predecessors, and was therefore able to proceed with greater certainty (...)

(...) His [Daendels] Government was far from perfect, but he was not indifferent to public opinion both in the Indies and in the Fatherland, and he took an interest in appearing virtuous and even religious. (...)

(...) important matter had been entrusted to General D.; how much power had been given to him for this; how easy it had been for him is to answer to the great purpose of his mission, and one then knows how little this has been fulfilled, one will not find it too severe to say that all those great expectations have vanished into thin air through cowardly concessions, side consideration, or through a complete unsuitability and incompetence of the General D. (...)

(...) In this perilous situation, Gen. D. will resort in vain to the Council to be assembled by him; a Council which he himself has humiliated in the judgment of the Public and even of the Natives, by his ill-advised appointments and by allowing members to remain in it who had long since acquired the general and well-deserved contempt. (...)

(...) He [Daendels] will now find that he himself has thereby weakened his own government, at a time when it needed the most strength, and that he himself has undermined and destroyed that respectability of the public administration, which must most strongly support the highest authority (...)

I can assure you that the rash zeal of General D. has already increased the danger of our situation in Java. (...)

It must not be unknown to him that a military commander must not seek his strength in the numbers but in the nature of his soldiers (...) in order to make a beginning with his unnecessary increase of the regular armed force, he has established a Battalion of slaves, in which every one has discharged his rascals (...) This is a most dangerous experiment

(...) Gen. D. may increase his military force there to many thousands, to make it seem as far as the number is concerned, an Army, without this deserving the least concern or the remark of the English. (...)

(...) It is known in Batavia that the English have a complete knowledge of our general state of affairs in Java, and even of the secret decisions of the High Government, which was also written to me from there by the Commissioner for the collection of prisoners of war from Ceylon, Prediger, and yet General D. did not consider it worth his while to take this into account (...)

The military designs of General D. therefore place our safety in Java in eminent danger, without any prospect that we will be strengthened in our state of defense against the enemy. (...)

I will not comment on the preference given by Gen. D. in his appointments to incompetent subjects; it is possible that he is incapable of judging the ability or incompetence of civil officials (...)

(...) Van Braam, a sickly, peevish, self-willed and conceited man, who has proved so much on Cheribon that he is not at all capable of government, and has no aptitude for dealing with the natives (...) If one had intended to work into the hands of the English, one could not have thought of a better way than to entrust our interests there in the hands of this man

(...) government of Gen. D. that are sufficient to discover the spirit of that government. And what other consequences can one expect from that than that the corruption and malpractices in the Indies will henceforth rise to a previously unheard of height; that all courage and emulation in the service will be completely destroyed; that everyone will unabashedly seize the opportunity to enrich himself at the expense of the country

(...) Brigadier de Sandol Roy will now wish to have followed my advice and example; he would thereby have spared himself much sorrow and humiliation, and would have prevented Gen. D. from committing another shameful injustice in his demission in the name of the King. (...)

Soon the consequences of the government of Gen. D. will be experienced (...) it will be happy when our King's eyes will be opened before the evil will be irreparable.

My intention is, in no way, to stand up as a prosecutor against General D., or to weaken the trust that has been placed in him. One can do no better now than to let him continue and await the consequences of his actions (...)

(...) It was intended to let him first rant and rave about the rogues and scolds, and to let him tire himself in his threats, in order to be able to lead him the more easily afterwards.

what consequences one may expect from the government of Gen. D.? If his conscience is not under too strong ties in Batavia, he is as well able as anyone to answer this question.

(...) The former revolutionary and enthusiastic Patriot [Daendels] had too much Orangist sentiment in his blood. Much has been said about the distrust with which William I viewed him. The city authorities in the Netherlands also did not welcome the former governor-general, preferring to send him back to the colonies where he came from. (...)

(...) Daendels hoped to recover what had been lost, believing that King William I would allow him another opportunity. But the old governor was a man of action, not a diplomat. His barbaric style did not align with the refined atmosphere of the Dutch royal court, where noble favors were granted in softer tones. (...)

(...) His reputation made him an unsuitable candidate for an official position. Perhaps he hoped that "Father Willem" would see him as a useful administrator, but he was never granted a role. Maybe he was aware of the famous saying "Better to be the first in a small place than the second in a large one." (...)

(...) His tenure was seen as so insignificant that the position was compared to a "prison sentence." (...)

(...) Other writers have suggested that Daendels "did more good than harm" on the Gold Coast, but that does not mean he was welcome in the Netherlands. (...)

(...) A few years later, Mr. J.A. Sillem proposed selling the colony of Elmina to England, raising the question: "If Daendels had lived longer, protected, encouraged, and guided the colony, could it have flourished under his leadership?" (...)

(...) The judgment of Daendels' actions has always been divided. Some have called him a "hero" and a "reformer", while others saw him as a "tyrant of the East". (...)

(...)"Every government, when compared to his, seemed indecisive and weak, but he ruled with absolute certainty, imposing his will on the land." (...)

(...) A poet once wrote: "If his memory is cursed, he shall live on in eternity. For even in disgrace, there is glory, leading him to immortality." (...)

Postscript – 7th winter month. Two English frigates are anchored off the roadstead, preventing the Americans from departing. Twice, they have unsuccessfully attempted to attack the Maracaibo Bay with sloops.

8th winter month. Having written this far, I have been struck by the tertian fever, which I have already had three times and expect again tomorrow. I flatter myself that it will have no further consequences, other than greatly weakening me and thus further undermining my health.

For several days now, an English ship of the line and a frigate have been positioned off this harbor, though without having captured any prizes.

It appears they have not dared to attack the ships stuck in the mud, as these are as much as possible protected by gunboats, including the American schooner The Nimrod, which they plan to seize. However, they rely so much on its speed that they hardly count the other two ships.

The owners of this schooner, Messrs. Hinturn and Champlin of New York, had, at the time of its departure from America, sent a similar schooner to Amsterdam. The captain and supercargo of this vessel intended for it to be dispatched directly from there to Batavia.

Speaking with them about the possibility of sailing directly to Texel, they judged that such a course would not be more dangerous than sailing from here to New York. This strongly supports the proposal I have the honor of submitting to Your Excellency for consideration.

Highly Noble and Strict Sir, The day before yesterday, I had the honor of receiving Your Excellency's first dispatches since my arrival in this colony, delivered by Mr. Nahuys. They were all the more pleasant for me, as not only His Majesty but also Your Excellency expressed satisfaction with my administration and work. This was despite the fact that, having only recently arrived in the colony, I had not yet been able to initiate or complete any significant matters. I therefore flatter myself that the dispatches sent earlier through Colonel Gicquel des Touches, Captain Cuneo d’Ornano, and others, as well as the ones recently dispatched secretly at night with Buykses, if they have arrived safely, will further secure the high approval of His Majesty and Your Excellency.

In my official correspondence today, I have answered Your Excellency’s letters and sent along the documents regarding the appointment of a new President of the High Government and a provisional successor in the event of his death. I have also enclosed the most recent organizational plans for the Great East and the new instructions for officials of the General Directorate. In this confidential communication, I will provide Your Excellency with insight into the particular reasons that compelled me to establish the office of President, appointing J.A. van Braam to the position, and to designate him as my interim successor should I pass away. At the same time, I have broadly outlined in my previous official dispatches the general reasons why I consider a President indispensable in all cases.

I remain steadfast in this opinion and furthermore regard the position of Director-General as dangerous to the interests of the colony. This is because the second-ranking person in the government, in most cases—at least under the previous administration—was unable to maintain their high dignity and influence, often compromising the highest interests of the country in various transactions.

I found matters in this state upon my arrival, and the decisions I immediately made regarding purchases and the acceptance of gifts by the High Government should convince Your Excellency of the truth of these findings. However, the generous increase in the lawful emoluments of the Director-General had partly given me hope, and I had received solemn assurances that all such practices would cease. I had also flattered myself that this measure would have been inspired by a genuine zeal for the interests of His Majesty’s service in this colony. Instead, I found in the Director-General of IJsseldijk the greatest indifference and a spirit of wastefulness, which had, from the very beginning, been evident in many respects.

I had to choose as Director between N. Engelhard and Van IJsseldijk, two sworn enemies. Since I wished to reconcile these different factions with the government as much as possible, and above all did not want to give absolute control to either, I initially considered making Mr. Engelhard, who ranked above Van IJsseldijk, president and IJsseldijk director. I was convinced that no one in the world would supervise the actions of the Director-General more closely than President Engelhard.

I have not obtained legal proof that gifts were received through purchases, but there have been unauthorized and harmful proposals made to the High Government without my knowledge. Decisions were made and contracts concluded, which made me fear that something of the sort had indeed occurred, especially as the prohibition against accepting gifts and foodstuffs from the Chinese was openly violated and mocked in the house of the Director-General.

As for the virtues, abilities, and qualities that Mr. IJsseldijk might possess in private and specific matters, I have found—and the Director-General himself has openly admitted—that he is entirely unfit for the position of Director-General. The effort I have had to exert to correct the errors of the General Directorate and the difficulties caused by its operations exceed all imagination.

The Director-General of IJsseldijk himself was very eager to be relieved of the General Directorate, and with the departure of General Buyskes, he was elected President.

In this matter as well, he showed me so much weakness in leading meetings, so much confusion and irregularity in the proceedings, in drafting the minutes, and so much carelessness in handling affairs—such as unilaterally altering the minutes and making very important and burdensome proposals without my knowledge and approval—that I had to supervise his actions daily.

If the Director-General of IJsseldijk had been appointed President by me, it was self-evident that he would have had to succeed me ad interim in the event of my death. This could have occurred under these critical circumstances, in which I am convinced that the plan still exists to declare this colony neutral. If financial circumstances had placed the leadership of a weak government in disarray, I knew the Director-General, despite all his supposed talents, to be the weakest man and the worst financier in Java.

J. A. van Braam, on the other hand, having worked under me in many respects—politically, financially, and administratively—and having gained complete knowledge in a very short time of the new administration of this colony, its resources, income, and necessary expenditures, as well as of the political systems concerning the Javanese princes, regents, and Javanese people, the King's subjects, and all European malcontents, was the only one I considered capable of governing in my absence. Therefore, I first appointed him as President and subsequently designated him as my provisional successor.

I also have the satisfaction that both this measure and the improvement in the general administration have received widespread approval. This will certainly be evident in the letters from General Siberg, which, regarding this or future matters, will be sent to Your Excellency and will bear the clearest indications of this approval.

Furthermore, I can assure Your Excellency that the former General Siberg gives daily, indisputable proof to both me and President Van Braam that he agrees with almost all actions of this government, and for these reasons relations with Mr. N. Engelhard have cooled significantly, as he accuses the old man of great inconsistency, which I cannot deny. However, I do acknowledge that in the beginning, not knowing me, he made major changes—previously unthinkable and considered dangerous—which he openly expressed.

I flatter myself that this confidential and candid statement will show Your Excellency the difficulties I have struggled with and how, in the service of His Majesty and for the welfare of this colony, I have brought it to a situation where my death will not cause the loss of the fruits of my labor, which has undermined my health.

In my previous letters, I have repeatedly requested my resignation, and I even consider it necessary for the interests of His Majesty’s service in this colony that I, as Your Excellency previously intended, obtain a successor.

Not only must I continue to insist on this, but I must also assure Your Excellency that my health is deteriorating daily. Just recently, I suffered a nervous attack, which still causes me great suffering, and my physician has declared that without a reduction in workload, it will not be possible for me to recover.

Although dedicated to the service of His Majesty and convinced that His Highness is satisfied with me, I nevertheless lost heart and felt my hands grow weak upon receiving Your Excellency’s dispatches, which announced the appointment of the former Brigadier de Sandol Roy as Major General and Mr. Van Polanen as an ordinary Councilor of the Indies.

The first of these choices placed me in a situation where I had no choice but to expedite these dispatches after his appointment had been made known to him. This man was forced to resign at my request, as I would otherwise have had to hand him over to a court-martial due to numerous complaints against him—concerning, among other things, the sale of military posts, the leasing of military canteens, and collusion with quartermasters and suppliers of military clothing and equipment.

The second decision concerns the appointment of Mr. Van Polanen as an ordinary Councilor of the Indies, with his continuation in a position that is already obsolete, now useless, and unfamiliar to Your Excellency. The weakness of General Wiese led to the forced Commission. The handling of this matter will be communicated to Your Excellency in the official letter, while I, to make His Highness more familiar with this man, take the liberty of adding two authentic copies of his letters—one addressed to Secretary L. W. Meyer, who sent me the original, and the other to Prefect Goldbach, of which I kept the original and sent a copy to his address.

However, as I am repeatedly unable to withstand similar matters and, fearing that I might lose the favor of His Majesty and Your Excellency if I were forced to disobey the highly respected orders of His Highness to preserve the Colony, I must humbly beg Your Excellency to propose my successor upon the receipt of this letter to His Majesty and to allow my immediate departure with His Highness's approval. I would not be able to survive, having, with so much success, through my own tireless efforts and at the expense of my health, transformed this Colony into one useful for the service of His Majesty. I cannot afford to become the victim of circumstances, as I had the honor of previously explaining to Your Excellency.

At the same time as receiving Your Excellency’s highly respected letters—wherein the difficulty of supplying this Colony with necessities from the Motherland in exchange for products was discussed—I also learned the unpleasant news that the English Government has refused to ratify the concluded convention with North America. Instead, it has ordered that, as of June 10, all North American ships traveling to or coming from Holland be seized.

If the Americans are unable to collect their products from here, even though they were initially imported through America to Holland with certified permission from His Majesty, our King, then the Colony must be supplied by all means necessary, leaving nothing untried. To that end, I have sought to find a solution that does not burden the treasury of the Motherland or, at the very least, partially covers its costs—by purchasing in North America 25 fast-sailing schooners of 120 to 150 barrels capacity, built in the style of swift boats.

Successively, shipments were to bring back piasters, ducats, iron, and other necessities, which would be paid for here with coffee, spices, and other products destined directly for the Motherland. Three-quarters of these shipments would likely reach a safe harbor, provided that the choice of captains and helmsmen was good. However, even if only half of these shipments arrived safely, the Government would surely be adequately compensated.

Your Excellency will also, whether through America or via Spanish and French ports, have to arrange for the recruitment and dispatch of officers, non-commissioned officers, soldiers, and political officials on this occasion.

I declare that, contrary to the general opinion and to the surprise of many, I have managed to keep the machinery operational here for another year, though I cannot take responsibility beyond this period. With this declaration, I relieve myself of all further responsibility. At the same time, I must openly express my extreme disappointment and sorrow in witnessing that, since the minor possession of Isle de France, successive ships of that nation—including an imperial frigate from Vlissingen—have been received both by the Government and private parties.

According to Your Excellency’s letters, since the departure of the frigate Gelderland, the brig De Vlieg, and the transport ship De Hoop in late 1807 or early 1808, nothing has been attempted in favor of this Colony from the ports of the kingdom, France, Spain, or North America. Therefore, I humbly request Your Excellency to present this proposal immediately to His Majesty and to make arrangements with respectable firms, such as Messrs. De Smeth, Staphorst, and J. Dull & Sons, to prevent the misfortune that could befall this Colony.

On my part, I will take every measure to encourage private individuals to engage in such speculations, even personally participating in these efforts. Your Excellency can well understand that we are at a critical juncture, already suffering from a complete lack of several essential goods.

Furthermore, I thank Your Excellency for the good news regarding Mrs. Daendels and her family. I ask that she not be troubled with memories or requests concerning my previously written matters, including those related to the estate from past occasions. Buitenzorg and the settlement of my various accounts, such as those of travel expenses and of the brig Virginia, to be pressed further, hereby the duplicate of my previous letter with the enclosures. His Majesty's order concerning the payment of my salary in the following year here, has already been submitted to the High Government, and reported to the Accounts Office and the Salary Office for execution, having just made the reflection that a small error had crept into the sum, since with the approval of Your Excellency I had left 168,800 and therefore 800 more, of which I have informed the High Government.

While I still have the pleasure of informing Your Excellency that although the Lord of Teylingen has made himself incapable of holding any office through drink, and has even been custodial for some time at the request of his wife, this family is favored by me in every possible way, in accordance with Your Excellency's desire, and the sons are employed above their years, having the intention of nominating Madame with neither time nor money for it as Intendante or Casteleinesse of Bodjang near Samarang, with a salary of 2000 rds. silver per year.

I shall endeavor to employ Mr. Nahuys in accordance with His Majesty's orders, on a basis that he may be useful, have an orderly existence and, pending further proofs of stability in this first post, be neither detrimental to himself nor to the country.

By the way, I have the honor (etc.)

(Signed) Daendels