Rulers index

The diplomatic letters were sent to Batavia Castle by hundreds of different kings, sultans, governors and other power holders from across a very broad region which included not only the Indonesian archipelago, but the whole of Asia, and stretching west as far as the Middle East, Africa and Europe. All of these rulers had their successors, and this is also evident when studying these letters. In different ways, this page provides a clear overview of all the rulers found in these letters, including their kingdoms’ locations, the period of their respective reigns, and the amount of letters they sent and received.

The top ten diplomats and monarchs who corresponded with Batavia by diplomatic letter are presented here:

Download the full overview here of the rulers and ordered by their total number of letters

Download the full overview here, ordered geographically and chronologically

Download more background information about the rulers and the chronology of their reign, as presented here in a separate overview by Maarten Manse and Simon Kemper


Browsing and searching for rulers

The names of the rulers engaged in this diplomatic correspondence can be browsed and searched for. This includes both the original correspondents and those receiving the letters. The ruler’s names are standardized according to modern spelling and are arranged alphabetically. Rulers may have different alternative names in the letters, and these alternative names are also mentioned for each ruler. For research purposes, the ruler’s alternative names will all direct the researcher to the standardized name.

You searched for: first_letter is G. We found 81 results.


Name Alternative names Location Number of letters
Governor Gabriel Roberts (1702-1705) Gabriel Roberts
Madras 1
Governor Ghiyas-ud-din Governor of Surat
Ghiyas-ud-din Khan
Surat 2
Governor Isaac Pyke (1719-1723) Isaac Pyke
Benkulu 1
Governor Itibar Khan Itibar Khan
Surat 1
Governor Joseph Collett (1712-1714) Joseph Collett
Benkulu 9
Governor Kao Chi Chuo Amoy 1
Governor Luís de Melo Sampaio (1679-1682) Governor-General of Portuguese Macau
Macau 1
Governor Manuel Borges da Silva (1670-1672) Governor of Macao
Macao 4
Governor Manuel de Souto-Maior (1709-1714) Manuel de Souto-Maior
Lifau 1
Governor Matthew Mildmay (1696-1699) Benkulu 2
Governor Nayabat Khan (1690-1693) Nayabat Khan
Surat 2
Governor Pedro do Rego Barreto da Gama e Castro (1731-1734) Lifau 1
Governor Putih Governor of Kota Tengah
Padang 1
Governor Richard Farmer (1717-1718) Richard Farmer
Benkulu 2
Governor Robert Lennox (1736-1746) Robert Lennox
Benkulu 4
Governor Sebastião Lobo da Silveira (1638-1645) Macao 1
Governor Thomas Pitt (1698-1709) "Diamond" Pitt
Thomas Pitt
Madras 2
Governor Wang An-kuo (1740-1744) Governor of Canton
Wang An-kuo
Canton 1
Governor William Gyfford (1681-1687) Madras 3
Governor Yang Unpis (1734-1738) Yang Unpis
Governor of Canton
Canton 1