Beurtvaart

Beurtvaart was a Dutch line shipping system for (mostly) inland navigation, that existed from the late 15th century.

Departures were scheduled, with ships even sailing when not fully laden, and local authorities took legal measures to rule out the competition.

Also, the Zuiderzee, a large body of water in the middle of the northern part of the country, was a major interchange for shipping.

Before the beurtvaart, merchants had to hire an entire ship if they wanted something transported, although middlemen like shipbrokers probably saw to some break bulk cargo as well.

Meanwhile, the cities increasingly involved themselves in regulating the transport business, primarily to advance their own skippers at the expense of those from other places.

For instance, the right of lastbreken meant that a shipment of goods had to be unloaded upon arrival, involving fees for porters, warehouses and such.

As competing skippers would regularly get involved in fistfights over rights, shipments and times to load and sail, the cities made more and more rules and regulations.

The two would enter negotiations to establish the demand for transport, fix prices and schedules, and make a list of requirements for the ships and the skippers.

The system guaranteed travellers and merchants reliable shipping at fixed prices and it provided the skippers with a reasonable income, even in bad times.

One source states that the beurtvaart system is in part responsible for the fact that in the Netherlands not one port was growing to dominate the sea trade, as was the case in surrounding countries.

[1] When early 19th century the guilds were legally abolished, the beurtvaart system was continued by royal decree.

Between 1859 and 1880 local and national authorities withdrew legal intervention, ending the beurtvaart in a stricter sense.

Main reasons for this are the industrialisation in the Netherlands and Germany, greatly pushing the demand for transportation, and the fact that the Dutch network of waterways is far more intricate than the railways would ever be.

The young country of Belgium had chosen to rapidly build an intricate railway network, which would carry freight to a greater extent than the Dutch one.

Companies like Van der Schuyt lost ships, the yard and offices in the Rotterdam Blitz.