FUSE 2 Vaarroutes

Local Broker, Global Network

The Netherlands Steamship Company (Stoomvaart Maatschappij Nederland, SMN) was founded in 1870. Its aim was to establish a direct steamship connection between the Netherlands and the Dutch East Indies. This route was mainly intended for the transport of mail and passengers via the recently opened Suez Canal.

Jacob Theodoor Cremer (1847–1923) was a key figure in Dutch colonial trade. He played an important role in the development of tobacco cultivation in Deli (Sumatra) and in the shipping networks connected to it.

Cremer was not a direct founder of the SMN. However, he had a major influence on the company’s growth and strategic direction. As a powerful tobacco planter and later administrator — including director of the Deli Company and commissioner of the SMN — he helped strengthen the shipping connection between Amsterdam and the Dutch East Indies.

Cremer was widely known as the “King of Deli.” He ensured that tobacco produced in Sumatra was shipped to Amsterdam via SMN vessels. This trade was crucial for Amsterdam’s position as a colonial port.

He was also involved in the Netherlands Trading Society (Nederlandse Handel-Maatschappij), the bank that supported trade in the colonies. In addition, he served as commissioner or board member of several large companies that relied on SMN ships.

After his successful career in the Dutch East Indies, Cremer became active in politics in the Netherlands. He served as a member of parliament and later as Minister of Colonies. In these roles he represented the interests of colonial trade — and therefore also those of the SMN.