The Cape Colony (Dutch: Kaapkolonie) was between 1652 and 1691 a commandment, and between 1691 and 1795 a governorate of the Dutch East India Company. The colony was founded by Jan van Riebeeck as a re-supply and layover port for vessels of the Dutch East India Company trading with Asia. Much to the dismay of the rulers of the Dutch East India Company, who were primarily interested in making profit from the Asian trade, the colony rapidly expanded into a settler colony in the years after its founding.