Henry Hudson's Search for the East Indies from the North
By Katherine Pym Henry Hudson In the first decade of 17th century, Henry Hudson worked for several merchantmen companies, both in England and in Holland. His goal was to find the northern route to the Spicerie Islands in the South Pacific. He worked for the Muscovy Company, England's East India Company, and the Dutch East India Company. These companies pooled their resources, made their captains sign extensive contracts, gave them long lists of rules and regulations, then sent them on their way to find the easiest, fastest passage to Spicerie ports of call. The route south through the Cape of Good Hope was fraught with danger, i.e., weeks of calm or killer storms, scurvy, the bloody flux, pirates. Once into the Cape, there were added dangers of rogue waves that came out of nowhere, swamping and sinking a ship to the depths of the sea. If it weren't for the ice that filled the northern regions, that route would be far easier to navigate. When they went north towa...