Polity · 1803 CE – 1872 CE
Napoleonic Batavia Republic
Nederlandse Kaapkolonie
- Peak recorded area
- 284,409 km²
- 1805 CE
- Data series
- 8
- 1803 CE–1872 CE
Overview
The Dutch Cape Colony, officially known as the Cape of Good Hope Waystation, was a colony of the Dutch East India Company (VOC) and Batavian Republic in Southern Africa. Centered on the Cape of Good Hope, from where it derived its name, it was founded in 1652 by a VOC expedition under Jan van Riebeeck to serve as a re-supply and layover port for VOC vessels trading with Asia. The Cape was under VOC rule from 1652 to 1795 and Batavian rule from 1803 to 1806.
Lead section from Wikipedia, reused under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article.
Territory
15 dated territorial extents on record from Cliopatria. Areas are measured off the recorded polygons; the line steps because each extent holds until the next one is recorded — nothing is interpolated.
The record
The best-attested series in each category; where several projects publish the same quantity, the one with the most observations is shown. Each row is the most recent value the record holds at or before 1872 CE, shown with the year that value belongs to. Some statistical series also publish forward projections — the year column is the honest guide. Nothing on this page is interpolated or estimated by us.
People
| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| Population53 obs · 1820 CE–1872 CE | 33.4Mpersons1872 CE · Maddison Project Database 2023 |
Economy
| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| GDP per capita58 obs · 1815 CE–1872 CE | 8302011 int'l $1872 CE · Maddison Project Database 2023 |
| GDP per capita PPP53 obs · 1820 CE–1872 CE | 1,090int'l $ (inflation adj.)1872 CE · Gapminder |
Governance
| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| Electoral Democracy Index70 obs · 1803 CE–1872 CE | 0.019index (0-1)1872 CE · V-Dem v15 |
| Liberal Democracy Index70 obs · 1803 CE–1872 CE | 0.021index (0-1)1872 CE · V-Dem v15 |
| Participatory Democracy Index70 obs · 1803 CE–1872 CE | 0.008index (0-1)1872 CE · V-Dem v15 |
| Rule Of Law Index70 obs · 1803 CE–1872 CE | 0.121index (0-1)1872 CE · V-Dem v15 |
Development
| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| Freedom Of Expression Index70 obs · 1803 CE–1872 CE | 0.078index (0-1)1872 CE · V-Dem v15 |
Language & currency
- Official & national languages
- Dutch
Sources
Every figure above comes from one of these. Nothing on this page is estimated, interpolated or model-generated.
Seshat Global History Databank. Cliopatria: a historical basemap of polity borders (cliopatria.geojson).
Gapminderv14 / systema globalis
Gapminder Foundation. Gapminder systema globalis dataset.
CC BY 4.0
Maddison Project Database 20232023
Bolt, J. & van Zanden, J.L. (2024). Maddison Project Database 2023. University of Groningen GGDC.
CC BY 4.0
V-Dem v15v15
Coppedge, M. et al. (2025). V-Dem Country-Year Dataset v15. Varieties of Democracy Project.
Free academic/non-commercial use, attribution
Wikipedia contributors. Article lead sections, reused under CC BY-SA 4.0.
CC BY-SA 4.0
Napoleonic Batavia Republic is one of the polities with a sourced record deep enough to publish.