New Netherland New Netherland () was a colony of the Dutch Republic located on the East Coast of what is now the United States. The claimed territories extended from the Delmarva Peninsula to Cape Cod. Settlements were established in what became the states ...

, or ''Nieuw-Nederland'' in Dutch, was the 17th century colony of the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands on the northeastern coast of

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

. The claimed territory included southern

Cape Cod Cape Cod is a peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer months. The ...

to parts of the

Delmarva Peninsula The Delmarva Peninsula, or simply Delmarva, is a peninsula on the East Coast of the United States, occupied by the majority of the state of Delaware and parts of the Eastern Shore of Maryland and Eastern Shore of Virginia. The peninsula is l ...

. Settled areas are now part of the

Mid-Atlantic states The Mid-Atlantic is a region of the United States located in the overlap between the nation's Northeastern and Southeastern states. Traditional definitions include seven U.S. states: New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virg ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...

and

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

. Its capital,

New Amsterdam New Amsterdam (, ) was a 17th-century Dutch Empire, Dutch settlement established at the southern tip of Manhattan Island that served as the seat of the colonial government in New Netherland. The initial trading ''Factory (trading post), fac ...

, was located at the southern tip of the island of

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

Upper New York Bay New York Harbor is a bay that covers all of the Upper Bay. It is at the mouth of the Hudson River near the East River tidal estuary on the East Coast of the United States. New York Harbor is generally synonymous with Upper New York Bay ...

. Explored in 1609 by

Henry Hudson Henry Hudson ( 1565 – disappeared 23 June 1611) was an English sea explorer and navigator during the early 17th century, best known for his explorations of present-day Canada and parts of the Northeastern United States. In 1607 and 16 ...

while sailing on an expedition for the

Dutch East India Company The United East India Company ( ; VOC ), commonly known as the Dutch East India Company, was a chartered company, chartered trading company and one of the first joint-stock companies in the world. Established on 20 March 1602 by the States Ge ...

, the region was later surveyed, charted and given its name in 1614. The Dutch named the three main rivers of the province the ''Zuyd Rivier'' or "South River", the ''Noort Rivier'' or "North River", and the ''Versche Rivier'' or "Fresh River", and intended to use them to gain access to the interior, to the Native Americans and to the lucrative

fur trade The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of a world fur market in the early modern period, furs of boreal ecosystem, boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals h ...

International law International law, also known as public international law and the law of nations, is the set of Rule of law, rules, norms, Customary law, legal customs and standards that State (polity), states and other actors feel an obligation to, and generall ...

required not only discovery and a

charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the ...

, but also the founding of forts and villages to confirm a territorial claim. Large-scale settlements were rejected by the Dutch in favor of the '' factorijen'', a

trading post A trading post, trading station, or trading house, also known as a factory in European and colonial contexts, is an establishment or settlement where goods and services could be traded. Typically a trading post allows people from one geogr ...

with soldiers and a small group of settlers. During the first decade the

New Netherland Company New Netherland Company () was a chartered company of Dutch merchants. Following Henry Hudson’s exploration of the east coast of North America on behalf of the Dutch East India Company in 1609, several Dutch merchants sent ships to trade wi ...

built Fort Nassau in

Mahican The Mohicans ( or ) are an Eastern Algonquian Native American tribe that historically spoke an Algonquian language. As part of the Eastern Algonquian family of tribes, they are related to the neighboring Lenape, whose indigenous territory was ...

/ Mohawk territory on the North River. Among the places it is believed ''factorijen'' were set up are

Schenectady Schenectady ( ) is a City (New York), city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the United States Census 2020, 2020 census, the city's population of 67,047 made it the state's ninth-most populo ...

, Schoharie, Esopus,

, Communipaw, Roodenburg, and Ninigret. The

Dutch West India Company The Dutch West India Company () was a Dutch chartered company that was founded in 1621 and went defunct in 1792. Among its founders were Reynier Pauw, Willem Usselincx (1567–1647), and Jessé de Forest (1576–1624). On 3 June 1621, it was gra ...

(WIC) was granted a charter by the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands on June 3, 1621, forming a joint venture to exploit trade in

. The first settlers landed on Noten Island in 1624 and began the fortification and population of the colony. The names Fort Nassau and

Fort Orange Fort Orange () was the first permanent Dutch settlement in New Netherland; the present-day city and state capital Albany, New York developed near this site. It was built in 1624 as a replacement for Fort Nassau, which had been built on n ...

were used by the Dutch in the 17th century for several fortifications around the world in honor of the

House of Orange-Nassau The House of Orange-Nassau (, ), also known as the House of Orange because of the prestige of the princely title of Orange, also referred to as the Fourth House of Orange in comparison with the other noble houses that held the Principality of Or ...

New Sweden New Sweden () was a colony of the Swedish Empire between 1638 and 1655 along the lower reaches of the Delaware River in what is now Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Established during the Thirty Years' War when Sweden was a g ...

was first settled in 1637 on territory claimed by the

Dutch Republic The United Provinces of the Netherlands, commonly referred to in historiography as the Dutch Republic, was a confederation that existed from 1579 until the Batavian Revolution in 1795. It was a predecessor state of the present-day Netherlands ...

, which was unable to prevent the incursion and did not officially recognize the colony. It was brought under Dutch control in a military expedition led by Director-General of New Netherland

Peter Stuyvesant Peter Stuyvesant ( – August 1672)Mooney, James E. "Stuyvesant, Peter" in p.1256 was a Dutch colonial administrator who served as the Directors of New Netherland, director-general of New Netherland from 1647 to 1664, when the colony was pro ...

in 1655.dead lin
''State of Delaware (A Brief History)''
. State of Delaware, 2007-01-21. In that year the government enacted regulations requiring settlers throughout the province to construct

stockade A stockade is an enclosure of palisades and tall walls, made of logs placed side by side vertically, with the tops sharpened as a defensive wall. Etymology ''Stockade'' is derived from the French word ''estocade''. The French word was derived f ...

s to which they could withdraw if attacked, the most extensive being at

Wiltwyck Kingston is the only Administrative divisions of New York#City, city in, and the county seat of, Ulster County, New York, United States. It is north of New York City and south of Albany, New York, Albany. The city's metropolitan area is grou ...

Dutch forts

* Fort Nassau (1614), on the North River (at

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It is located on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River. Albany is the oldes ...

), lost to floods *

(1624), Castle Island in the North River (at

) *

Fort Amsterdam Fort Amsterdam, (later, Fort George among other names) was a fortification on the southern tip of Manhattan Island at the confluence of the Hudson River, Hudson and East River, East rivers in what is now New York City. The fort and the island ...

(1625), the Manhattoes harbor at the mouth of the North River (at the site of Alexander Hamilton U.S. Custom House in southern

) *

Fort Wilhelmus Fort Wilhelmus was a '' factorij'' in the 17th-century colonial province of New Netherland, located on what had been named Hooghe Eyland (High Island) (also called Verhulsten Island) on the Zuyd Rivier, now Burlington Island in the Delaware Rive ...

(1625), on the South River (at Burlington Island, New Jersey), soon abandoned * Fort Nassau (), near the South River (at Gloucester City, New Jersey), relocated 1651, becoming

Fort Casimir Fort Casimir or Fort Trinity was a Dutch fort in the seventeenth-century colony of New Netherland. It was located on a no-longer existing barrier island at the end of Chestnut Street in what is now New Castle, Delaware. Background The Dutch c ...

* Fort Huis de Goede Hoop (1633), on the Park River near the Fresh River (at

Hartford, Connecticut Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...

) *

(1651), on the South River (at

New Castle, Delaware New Castle is a city in New Castle County, Delaware, United States. The city is located six miles (10 km) south of Wilmington, Delaware, Wilmington and is situated on the Delaware River. As of 2020, the city's population was 5,551. New Cast ...

), briefly known as Fort Trefaldigheets (1654–1655) and later

New Amstel New Castle is a city in New Castle County, Delaware, United States. The city is located six miles (10 km) south of Wilmington and is situated on the Delaware River. As of 2020, the city's population was 5,551. New Castle constitutes part o ...

Fort Beversreede Fort Beversreede (after 1633–1651) was a Dutch-built palisaded factorij located near the confluence of the Schuylkill River and the Delaware River. It was an outpost of the colony of New Netherland, which was centered on its capital, New Amste ...

(1651), on the

Schuylkill River The Schuylkill River ( , ) is a river in eastern Pennsylvania. It flows for U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map(). accessed April 1, 2011. from Pottsville, Pennsylvania, Pottsville ...

(at Southwest Philadelphia) near the South River * Fort Altena (1655), the name given to

Fort Christina Fort Christina, also called Fort Altena, was the first Sweden, Swedish settlement in North America and the principal settlement of the New Sweden colony. Built in 1638 and named after Christina, Queen of Sweden, it was located approximately 1&nb ...

(at Wilmington)

Swedish forts

(1638) - at the Brandywine Creek and

Christina River The Christina River is a tributary of the Delaware River, approximately 35 miles (56 km) long, in northern Delaware. It also flows through small areas of southeastern Pennsylvania and northeastern Maryland. Near its mouth, the river ...

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington is the List of municipalities in Delaware, most populous city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish colonization of the Americas, Swedish settlement in North America. It lie ...

, later renamed Fort Altena (1655) *Fort Mecoponacka (1641) - in

Chester Chester is a cathedral city in Cheshire, England, on the River Dee, Wales, River Dee, close to the England–Wales border. With a built-up area population of 92,760 in 2021, it is the most populous settlement in the borough of Cheshire West an ...

, near Finlandia or Upland in

Delaware County, Pennsylvania Delaware County, colloquially referred to as Delco, is a County (United States), county in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. With a population of 576,830 as of the 2020 census, it is the List of counties in Pennsylv ...

* Fort Nya Elfsborg (1643) - between present-day Salem Creek and Alloway Creek near

Bridgeport, New Jersey Bridgeport is a census-designated place (CDP) and unincorporated community that is part of Logan Township, in Gloucester County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. At the 2020 United States census, the population of the CDP was 389. in the 201 ...

* Fort Nya Gothenborg (1643) - on Tinicum Island near the site of

The Printzhof The Printzhof, located in Governor Printz Park in Essington, Pennsylvania, was the home of Johan Björnsson Printz, governor of New Sweden. History In 1643, Johan Printz moved his capital from Fort Christina (located in what is now Wilmington, ...

Essington Essington is a village and civil parish in the South Staffordshire district of Staffordshire, England, northeast of the city of Wolverhampton. Nearby are the towns of Bloxwich and Cannock and the villages of Cheslyn Hay, Great Wyrley (Landywood ...

*Fort Nya Vasa (1646) - at Kingsessing, on the eastern-side of Cobbs Creek in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

* Fort Nya Korsholm (1647) - on the

near the South River in

Other fortifications

* Noten Eylandt (1624), now

Governors Island Governors Island is a island in New York Harbor, within the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Manhattan. It is located approximately south of Manhattan Island, and is separated from Brooklyn to the east by the Buttermilk ...

New York Harbor New York Harbor is a bay that covers all of the Upper Bay. It is at the mouth of the Hudson River near the East River tidal estuary on the East Coast of the United States. New York Harbor is generally synonymous with Upper New York Bay, ...

* Fort Ninigret (c.1637), on the mainland north of

Block Island Block Island is an island of the Outer Lands coastal archipelago in New England, located approximately south of mainland Rhode Island and east of Long Island's Montauk Point. The island is coterminous with the town of New Shoreham, Rhode Isl ...

Rhode Island Rhode Island ( ) is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Connecticut to its west; Massachusetts to its north and east; and the Atlantic Ocean to its south via Rhode Island Sound and Block Is ...

* Roodenburg (c.16??), possibly a fort or ''factorij'' at the mouth of the

Quinnipiac River The Quinnipiac River ( ) is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 1, 2011 long river in the New England region of the United States, located entirely in the state of ...

* De Wal (1653), a wooden palisade or rampart, now

Wall Street Wall Street is a street in the Financial District, Manhattan, Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It runs eight city blocks between Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway in the west and South Street (Manhattan), South Str ...

''Timeline'': A selected Wall Street chronology
. PBS Online, 21 October 2004. Retrieved 11 January 2009 * The Rondout (1657) at Rondout, New York near the North River, at

Colonization of Kingston, New York at National Park Service website
/ref> * Fort Bergen, (1661) atop Bergen Hill, part of the Palisades in New JerseyFort Bergen at American Forts Network
/ref> *

Gravesend, Brooklyn Gravesend is a neighborhood in the south-central section of the New York City Boroughs of New York City, borough of Brooklyn, on the southwestern edge of Long Island in the United States, U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It is bounded ...

References

External links

American Forts Network
lists forts in the US, former US territories, Canada, and Central America * http://www.newhollandfoundation.nl/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/PDF-Dutch-Colonial-Fortifications-in-North-America.pdf {{DEFAULTSORT:Fortifications Of New Netherland New Netherland New Sweden Military history of the Thirteen Colonies Populated places established in the 17th century

Dutch forts

Swedish forts

Other fortifications

See also

References

External links