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 of Tegal Tegal 1
Governor Álvaro da Silva (1667-1670) Governor of Macao
Macau 1
Governor-General Diego de Salcedo (1663-1668) Manilla 2
Governor-General Domingo Zabálburu de Echevarri (1701-1709) Domingo Zabálburu de Echevarri
Manila 2
Governor-General Fausto Cruzat y Góngora (1690-1701) Manila 6
Governor-General Fernando Manuel de Bustillo Bustamante y Rueda (1717-1719) Fernando Manuel de Bustillo Bustamante y Rueda
Manila 2
Governor-General Fernándo Valdés y Tamon (1729-1739) Fernándo Valdés y Tamon
Manila 4
Governor-General Gaspar de la Torre (1739-1745) Gaspar de la Torre
Manila 1
Governor-General Juan de Vargas y Hurtado (1678-1684) Governor-General of the Philippines
Manila 0
Governor-General Juan de Vargas y Hurtado (1678-1684) Governor-General of the Philippines
Manila 3
Governor-General Jácome de Morais Sarmento (1706-1710) Jácome de Morais Sarmento
Lifau 5
Governor-General Pierre Dulivier (1712-1717) Pierre Dulivier
Puducherry 2
Governors of Xiamen Amoy 1
Governors of the British East India Company London 2
Grand Warehouse Master of Ayutthaya Ayutthaya 1
Guilhem (1679-1682) Regent of the French East India Company in Banten
Jean de Guilhem
Banten 4
Guru Kecil Trong Solor 1
Gusta Raja Gegei Ngurah Karang Asam Selaparang 9
Gusti Agung King of Badung
Bali 1
Gusti Agung Made Alang- kajeng (1722-1740) Mengwi 1