What was the Ostend Company?

Established in 1722, the Ostend Company was a chartered trading enterprise based in the Austrian Netherlands that traded with the East and West Indies. It quickly became a fierce competitor to established British, Dutch, and French companies, particularly in the lucrative Chinese tea trade. However, intense diplomatic pressure from Britain forced Austria to close the company down in 1731 as a precondition for an international alliance.

What we know

• The Ostend Company was officially known as the General Company Established in the Austrian Netherlands for Commerce and Navigation in the Indies. [1, 2]
• The company was established in 1722 to trade with the East and West Indies, taking its name from the Flemish port city of Ostend. [2, 3]
• The enterprise provided strong competition for established British, Dutch, and French East India Companies, particularly in the China tea trade, and established two settlements in India. [2]
• Despite its profitability, the company was ordered to close in 1731 after the British government exerted diplomatic pressure on Austria, making its disestablishment a precondition for the Treaty of Vienna. [2]

Where to go next

• what caused itWhy was the company forced to close?
• compared withWhat was the later Austrian East India Company?
• the bigger pictureHow did the tea trade with China function during the 18th century?
• whereWhere was the port city of Ostend located?
• a case in pointWhat settlements did the company establish in India?
• an unexpected connectionHow does a 19th-century American document share a name with this Belgian port?The Ostend Manifesto—a controversial 1854 U.S. proposal to acquire Cuba—was drafted secretly by American diplomats who met in the same Belgian port city of Ostend.

Sources

• [1]Ostend Company (Wikidata Q700040) · CC0 1.0
• [2]Ostend Company · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [3]Ostend · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [4]Ostend Manifesto · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [5]Siege of Ostend · CC BY-SA 4.0