Douwe Aukes (c. 1612–1668) was a Frisian sea captain of 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 ...

or VOC. The Douwe Aukes class minelayer and its name-ship the HNLMS ''Douwe Aukes'' were named after him.

Life

He was the son of another VOC captain, also called Douwe Aukes. He made several trips to

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

on the ships ''Maastricht'' and ''Vrede'' and in 1641 he was made captain of the 40-gun ''Vogelstruys'' of the VOC's Amsterdam Chamber, which was seconded to

Michiel de Ruyter Michiel Adriaenszoon de Ruyter (; 24 March 1607 – 29 April 1676) was a Dutch States Navy officer. His achievements with the Dutch navy during the Anglo-Dutch Wars earned him the reputation as one of the most skilled naval commanders in ...

's fleet in 1652 during the

First Anglo-Dutch War The First Anglo-Dutch War, or First Dutch War, was a naval conflict between the Commonwealth of England and the Dutch Republic. Largely caused by disputes over trade, it began with English attacks on Dutch merchant shipping, but expanded to vast ...

(with Aukes thus indirectly becoming a naval officer). At one point during the

Battle of Plymouth The Battle of Plymouth was a naval battle in the First Anglo-Dutch War. It took place on 16 August 1652 (26 August 1652 (Gregorian calendar) and was a short battle, but had the unexpected outcome of a Dutch victory over England. General-at-S ...

he wandered from the Dutch fleet and was almost surrounded by English ships, but Aukes threatened to ignite a powder keg and blow up the ship, rather than surrender. His crew then managed to beat off an English boarding party, almost sink two English ships, badly damage a third and finally regain the main Dutch fleet. After the war Aukes continued as a VOC captain, being mentioned in a 1657 document as the captain of a koopvaarder (merchant ship) trading with the

Levant The Levant ( ) is the subregion that borders the Eastern Mediterranean, Eastern Mediterranean sea to the west, and forms the core of West Asia and the political term, Middle East, ''Middle East''. In its narrowest sense, which is in use toda ...

and in one from 1665 as a merchant in Amsterdam. When Tjerk Hiddes de Vries was killed in 1666, during the

Second Anglo-Dutch War The Second Anglo-Dutch War, began on 4 March 1665, and concluded with the signing of the Treaty of Breda (1667), Treaty of Breda on 31 July 1667. It was one in a series of Anglo-Dutch Wars, naval wars between Kingdom of England, England and the D ...

, Aukes was requested to replace him as lieutenant-admiral in the

Admiralty of Friesland The Admiralty of Friesland or Frisian Admiralty (Dutch: ''Admiraliteit van Friesland'' or ''Friese Admiraliteit''; West Frisian: ''Fryske Admiraliteit'') was one of the five Dutch admiralties of the Dutch Republic. Set up on 6 March 1596, it wa ...

by the

States of Friesland The States of Friesland were the sovereign body that governed the province of Friesland under the Dutch Republic. They were formed in 1580 after the former Lordship of Frisia (a part of the Habsburg Netherlands) acceded to the Union of Utrecht ...

, but Aukes declined, being then on the return voyage from India, during which he died. He is buried in Amsterdam's Oude Kerk. {{DEFAULTSORT:Aukes, Douwe 1610s births 1668 deaths Burials at the Oude Kerk, Amsterdam Dutch naval personnel of the First Anglo-Dutch War People from Friesland Sailors on ships of the Dutch East India Company