China/Belgium-Austrian East India (China) Co.-1783- loan 1000 guilders -UNIQUE-

Description

Austrian East India (China) Company (Société impériale asiatique de Trieste et Anvers) 13-2-1783
Investment of 1000 guilders with a premium of 350 guilder in the ship Zinzendorff that sailed for Guangzhou (广州),China in 1783 for the China tea trade.
Liquidation payment 1788: 233,20 guilders.
See full story below
Issuer : Austrian East India Company (Société impériale asiatique de Trieste et Anvers)
Type : 35% premium bond
Nominal : 1000 guilders
Country : Belgium
Place: Antwerp
Issue date : 13-2-1783
Cancelled : No
Coupons : No
Quality : VF, folded, small piece of tape (see photo)
Austrian East India Company is a catchall term referring to a series of Austrian trading companies based in Ostend and Trieste. The Imperial Asiatic Company of Trieste and Antwerp (French: Société impériale asiatique de Trieste et Anvers) and Asiatic Company of Trieste or the Trieste Company (Société asiatique de Trieste) were founded by William Bolts in 1775 and wound up in 1785.
The Imperial Asiatic Company under the direction of the Proli group focussed on the China tea trade. In 1781, 1782 and 1783 the price of tea in Europe, especially in England, had risen to unheard of levels. In 1781 and 1782 no Dutch or French ships appeared at Guangzhou (then romanized as "Canton") as a result of the American War, and in 1782 only eleven English, three Danish and two Swedish ships called there. Only four out of thirteen English ships returned safely in 1783 due to French naval activity. Attempting to seize the opportunity to make good profits, the Proli group sent five ships to Canton: the Croate, the Kollowrath, the Zinzendorff, the Archiduc Maximilien, and the Autrichien.
However, the opportunity had been missed as, with the signing of an armistice in January 1783 the former belligerents were able to send their ships to Canton safely, and the summer of 1783 saw a total of thirty-eight ships there, including the five Imperial vessels. They had to buy tea at a high price, and when they returned to Ostend in July 1784 they had to sell at a low price on a glutted market, as well as having to pay for permission to return to that port. The price of tea at Ostend collapsed when the British Government introduced the Commutation Act in 1784, which reduced the tax on tea from fifty to ten per cent and made smuggling from the Netherlands unprofitable. The price of tea in Europe fell suddenly from 30 to 33 French sols to 11 to 14 sols, or around sixty per cent. Disastrously, a sixth ship, the Belgioioso, carrying a large amount of silver specie for the purchase of Chinese goods, foundered in a storm in the Irish Sea soon after departing Liverpool, where she had fitted out for the voyage to Canton. Matters came to a head in January 1785 when the Company suspended all payments, and shortly afterwards it was declared bankrupt, bringing the Proli banking house down with it. Charles Proli committed suicide. An article in the Dublin press of 25 May 1786 recorded the sale of the dissolved company’s ships, Zinderdorf , Kollowrath, Kaunitz, Maximilian and Austrian, “together with their whole apparel, guns, stores, & c.” and observed: “The destruction of this company, as well as several others in Europe, is in a great measure owing to the commutation tea tax in England, and the advantages which territorial possessions throw in favour of the British company.
Full Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Austrian_East_India_Company
Shipment Worldwide
Europe
USA
China
Russia
< 100 grams
6,00
6,00
6,00
6,00
100 - 350 grams
12,00
12,00
12,00
12,00
>350 grams
18,00
20,00
20,00
20,00
I will combine shipment costs for multiple wins.
Winning bidder to pay by PayPal. Other payment methods may be accepted upon request. Please note that I am located in the Netherlands.
Amounts above USD 200 require to be send by registered mail at an additional cost.