East Indies a European perspective), archaically called Hither India and Further India. The first is the former British India, the second is Southeast Asia. Regions of the East Indies are sometimes known by the colonial empire they once belonged to, hence, "British East Indies" refers to Malaysia, "Dutch East Indies" means Indonesia, and "Spanish East Indies" means the Philippines. Historically, the king of Abyssinia (modern Ethiopia) was identified with "Prester John of the Indies", since that part of the world was imagined to be one of "Three Indias". Exploration of these regions by European powers first began in the late 15th century
Batavia, Dutch East Indies new port. In 1885, the port of Tanjung Priok was finally completed, replacing the centuries-old Sunda Kelapa, which was deemed as inadequate for a long time. This would then significantly increase commercial and tourism in Batavia and the Dutch East Indies in general. The Dutch cultuurstelsel, or cultivation system, was a Dutch government policy in the mid-nineteenth century which required a portion of agricultural production to be devoted to export crops. Indonesian historians refer to it as tanam paksa, enforcement planting. The abolition of the cultuurstelsel in 1870 led to the rapid development of private enterprise in the Dutch Indies.