The Shipping in the 17th and 18th Centuries - Dutch Fleet-6 Ferry service (Beurtvaart)

[Anatol]

Beurtvaart was a Dutch line shipping system for (mostly) inland navigation, that existed from the late 15th century. It was a form of packet trade and a precursor of public transport. The beurtships transported passengers, livestock and freight along fixed routes at fixed prices. Departures were scheduled, with ships even sailing when not fully laden, and local authorities took legal measures to rule out the competition.
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. From the end of the 15th century wealth and trade were growing in the Netherlands, pushing the demand for transportation. 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.
Beurtvaart was set up as a contract between two cities or a city and a lord. 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. Then ship owners were bound to the system by licenses and competition was made impossible. For instance, merchants shipping goods to another city were obliged to make use of the beurtvaart. On the other hand, ships had to sail at scheduled times, fully laden or not. The system guaranteed travellers and merchants reliable shipping at fixed prices and it provided the skippers with a reasonable income, even in bad times.
In the margin of the MS.
In scheduled shipping, passenger cargo was transported between two fixed locations. This first public shipping in the Netherlands was always subject to permits from the cities. The word "beurtart" in this context refers to the prescribed order in which freight forwarders had to transport cargo.
The stamps design on Ms is based on etchings by Gerrit Groenewegen (1754–1826), a Rotterdam artist best known for his seascapes and masterful ship etchings. Between 1786 and 1801, he created a series of 84 etchings, each a detailed depiction of a contemporary vessel.
Nederland 2025, (1,1,1,1,1) Ms;
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beurtvaart.