Dutch East India Company war treaties mint coins

A trading company could wage war and mint coins

The Dutch East India Company had shares that people could trade, but its charter also gave it powers usually held by a state. It could wage war, make treaties, imprison and execute convicts, mint coins, and establish colonies.

The Latin alphabet spread far beyond Europe

It is the world’s most widely used writing system, adopted by languages across the Americas, sub-Saharan Africa and Oceania, as well as by Vietnamese. The alphabet came through Etruscan from Greek.

The Roman Empire survived almost a thousand years after Rome's western fall

The western Roman imperial government collapsed in 476 CE, but the empire's eastern half continued from Constantinople. Its inhabitants still regarded themselves as Romans, even as Greek became increasingly dominant. The state survived wars, territorial losses and major transformations until Constantinople fell to the Ottomans in 1453. Rome's political history did not end when the city lost its western emperor.

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Dutch East India Company war treaties mint coins

A trading company could wage war and mint coins

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