On 9 August 1673 ( N.S.; 30 July 1673 (O.S.)), during the

Third Anglo-Dutch War The Third Anglo-Dutch War ( nl, Derde Engels-Nederlandse Oorlog), 27 March 1672 to 19 February 1674, was a naval conflict between the Dutch Republic and England, in alliance with France. It is considered a subsidiary of the wider 1672 to 1678 ...

(which was part of the

Franco-Dutch War The Franco-Dutch War, also known as the Dutch War (french: Guerre de Hollande; nl, Hollandse Oorlog), was fought between France and the Dutch Republic, supported by its allies the Holy Roman Empire, Spain, Brandenburg-Prussia and Denmark-No ...

) a combined Dutch fleet commanded by Cornelis Evertsen the Youngest of the

Admiralty of Zeeland The Admiralty of Zeeland was one of the five admiralties of the navy of the Dutch Republic. One of its famous admirals was Joost Banckert. The Admiralty of Zeeland was disestablished in 1795, alongside the other admiralties. Board of the Zeelan ...

and

Jacob Binckes Jacob Binckes (1637, Koudum – 12 December 1677) was a Dutch commodore. Jacob himself used the name Benckes. Jacob was seafarer trading mostly on Norway in the transport of wood. In 1665 Jacob Binckes started his service with the Admiralty of ...

of the

Admiralty of Amsterdam The Admiralty of Amsterdam was the largest of the five Dutch admiralties at the time of the Dutch Republic. The administration of the various admiralties was strongly influenced by provincial interests. The territory for which Amsterdam ...

recaptured

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

, which had been English since the

Peace of Breda The Peace of Breda, or Treaty of Breda was signed in the Dutch city of Breda, on 31 July 1667. It consisted of three separate treaties between England and each of its opponents in the Second Anglo-Dutch War: the Dutch Republic, France, and Denma ...

of 1667. The town of New York was re-christened "New Orange" and New Netherland was re-established as a Dutch colony under governor-general

Anthony Colve Anthony or Anthonij Colve (fl. 1667-1695) was a Dutch naval captain and the Director-General of New Netherland during a brief restoration of Dutch rule in New Netherland (roughly present-day New York and New Jersey). Career Colve was likely inv ...

. The

Dutch Republic The United Provinces of the Netherlands, also known as the (Seven) United Provinces, officially as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands ( Dutch: ''Republiek der Zeven Verenigde Nederlanden''), and commonly referred to in historiography ...

, however, returned the colony to English rule under the

Treaty of Westminster (1674) The Treaty of Westminster of 1674 was the peace treaty that ended the Third Anglo-Dutch War. Signed by the Dutch Republic and the Kingdom of England, the treaty provided for the return of the colony of New Netherland (now New York) to England an ...

, in exchange for the colony of

Suriname Suriname (; srn, Sranankondre or ), officially the Republic of Suriname ( nl, Republiek Suriname , srn, Ripolik fu Sranan), is a country on the northeastern Atlantic coast of South America. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north ...

, which eventually led to the replacement of governor Colve by governor

Edmund Andros Sir Edmund Andros (6 December 1637 – 24 February 1714) was an English colonial administrator in British America. He was the governor of the Dominion of New England during most of its three-year existence. At other times, Andros served ...

on 10 November 1674 (N.S.)

Background

Before the

Second Anglo-Dutch War The Second Anglo-Dutch War or the Second Dutch War (4 March 1665 – 31 July 1667; nl, Tweede Engelse Oorlog "Second English War") was a conflict between England and the Dutch Republic partly for control over the seas and trade routes, whe ...

had even started an English fleet took over the colony

New Netherland New Netherland ( nl, Nieuw Nederland; la, Novum Belgium or ) was a 17th-century colonial province of the Dutch Republic that was located on the east coast of what is now the United States. The claimed territories extended from the Delmarva ...

of the

Dutch West India Company The Dutch West India Company ( nl, Geoctrooieerde Westindische Compagnie, ''WIC'' or ''GWC''; ; en, Chartered West India Company) was a chartered company of Dutch merchants as well as foreign investors. Among its founders was Willem Usselincx ( ...

in 1664 in a bloodless coup in the name of

the Duke of York Duke of York is a title of nobility in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. Since the 15th century, it has, when granted, usually been given to the second son of English (later British) monarchs. The equivalent title in the Scottish peerage was Du ...

. The colony was renamed

, and the town of

New Amsterdam New Amsterdam ( nl, Nieuw Amsterdam, or ) was a 17th-century 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'' gave rise ...

was given the same name. This situation was left in place in the

of 1667. After the Third Anglo-Dutch War broke out in 1672 the

embarked on a

commerce raiding Commerce raiding (french: guerre de course, "war of the chase"; german: Handelskrieg, "trade war") is a form of naval warfare used to destroy or disrupt logistics of the enemy on the open sea by attacking its merchant shipping, rather than eng ...

style of naval warfare with England and France outside Europe, while in the European theater the main Dutch fleet under admiral

Michiel de Ruyter Michiel Adriaenszoon de Ruyter (; 24 March 1607 – 29 April 1676) was a Dutch admiral. Widely celebrated and regarded as one of the most skilled admirals in history, De Ruyter is arguably most famous for his achievements with the Dutch ...

successfully followed a "fleet-in-being strategy" to keep the combined English and French fleets at bay, to prevent a seaborne invasion of the Dutch mainland. Several naval expeditions were launched by the Dutch, among which an ambitious secret design by the Admiralty of Zeeland, set up by the

Zeeland , nl, Ik worstel en kom boven("I struggle and emerge") , anthem = "Zeeuws volkslied"("Zeelandic Anthem") , image_map = Zeeland in the Netherlands.svg , map_alt = , m ...

Grand Pensionary

Pieter de Huybert Pieter is a male given name, the Dutch form of Peter. The name has been one of the most common names in the Netherlands for centuries, but since the mid-twentieth century its popularity has dropped steadily, from almost 3000 per year in 1947 ...

and his nephew

Justus de Huybert Justus de Huybert (Zierikzee, 1610 - Zierikzee, 4 September 1682) was a Dutch politician and diplomat. He held offices of the States of Zeeland in the middle years of the 17th century. Life Personal life Justus (who was actually baptized Joos, af ...

, who was the secretary of the Admiralty Board of Zeeland. This naval expedition, commanded by Cornelis Evertsen, was not very successful at first, but when the Zeeland squadron met the squadron of Jacob Binckes, sent out with a similar objective by one of the Holland admiralties, near

Guadeloupe Guadeloupe (; ; gcf, label=Antillean Creole, Gwadloup, ) is an archipelago and overseas department and region of France in the Caribbean. It consists of six inhabited islands— Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galante, La Désirade, and the ...

, the two commanders decided to join forces (and to form a joint command). They knew that the tobacco fleet of the

Colony of Virginia The Colony of Virginia, chartered in 1606 and settled in 1607, was the first enduring English colonial empire, English colony in North America, following failed attempts at settlement on Newfoundland (island), Newfoundland by Sir Humphrey GilbertG ...

and the

Province of Maryland The Province of Maryland was an English and later British colony in North America that existed from 1632 until 1776, when it joined the other twelve of the Thirteen Colonies in rebellion against Great Britain and became the U.S. state of Maryl ...

would soon depart for the English Motherland, and they therefore decided to make an attempt to repeat the feat accomplished by

Abraham Crijnssen Abraham Crijnssen (died 1 February 1669) was a Dutch naval commander, notable for capturing the English colony in Suriname in 1667 during the Second Anglo-Dutch War, resulting in the establishment of a long-term colony under Dutch control. The ...

in 1667, who in the

Battle of The James River (1667) The Battle of The James River took place in June 1667 during the Second Anglo-Dutch War. A Dutch force of five ships led by Abraham Crijnssen sailed through the James River in Virginia searching for English ships. They eventually found them - whe ...

had managed to capture that fleet. This led to the

Second Battle of the James River (1673) The Second Battle of the James River, also known as the Battle of Lynnhaven Bay was a naval battle between a Dutch fleet under joint command of admirals Cornelis Evertsen the Youngest and Jacob Binckes and an improvised English squadron on 12 an ...

in July 1673. After the battle the two commanders received intelligence that New York was only weakly defended and that the governor,

Francis Lovelace Francis Lovelace (c. 1621–1675) was an English Royalist and the second Governor of New York colony. Early life Lovelace was born circa 1621. He was the third son of Sir William Lovelace (1584–1627) and his wife Anne Barne of Lovelace Pla ...

happened to be absent. They therefore decided opportunistically to make an attempt to recapture New Netherland, and sailed to

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located in the city's southwest portion, the borough is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull an ...

, where they arrived on 28 July 1673 (O.S).Shomette and Haslach, pp. 123-150

Reconquest

New Amsterdam lately New York retaken by the Netherlanders on 24 Aug 1673

After the Dutch fleet of 21 ships (including

prizes A prize is an award to be given to a person or a group of people (such as sporting teams and organizations) to recognize and reward their actions and achievements.

) arrived on the

roadstead A roadstead (or ''roads'' – the earlier form) is a body of water sheltered from rip currents, spring tides, or ocean swell where ships can lie reasonably safely at anchor without dragging or snatching.United States Army technical manual, TM 5 ...

of Staten Island, a number of small boats with Dutch colonists aboard soon approached Evertsen's flagship ''Swaenenburgh''. They brought him the latest news about the situation in New York, confirming the intelligence the Dutch commanders had previously received about the absence of governor Lovelace and the unreadiness of Fort James. The fort was commanded by captain John Manning. It had a garrison of about 100 men, and it would take them around four days to rally an additional 300–400 men to defend it. The Dutch were now convinced that they could recapture it. A

council of war A council of war is a term in military science that describes a meeting held to decide on a course of action, usually in the midst of a battle. Under normal circumstances, decisions are made by a commanding officer, optionally communicated ...

was held on how to attack it and when. The Dutch colonists were afraid that the rest of the Dutch population were neutral and would not support them. So the Council decided to draft a proclamation to the inhabitants of New York to assure them that they would be unharmed if they agreed to submit again to the

States General of the Netherlands The States General of the Netherlands ( nl, Staten-Generaal ) is the supreme bicameral legislature of the Netherlands consisting of the Senate () and the House of Representatives (). Both chambers meet at the Binnenhof in The Hague. The States ...

This proclamation was issued in the evening of 8 August 1673 (N.S.).De Waard, pp.39-40 Meanwhile the Dutch ships had been discovered by the English and a strong guard was set at the fort and beacons were fired to warn those who still did not know. On the morning of 9 August (N.S.), everyone was prepared, and rumours were rampant. All of the soldiers were hoping for reinforcements from governor Lovelace. The Dutch fleet waited patiently for the flood. A force of 600

marines Marines, or naval infantry, are typically a military force trained to operate in littoral zones in support of naval operations. Historically, tasks undertaken by marines have included helping maintain discipline and order aboard the ship (ref ...

and sailors were selected for the assault on

Manhattan Island Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. stat ...

. But first the commanders sent a demand for surrender to Fort James. Captain Manning then sent three

parlimentaire A Parlimentaire (also Parlementaire) is defined by the U.S. Department of Defense as "an agent employed by a commander of belligerent forces in the field to go in person within the enemy lines for the purpose of communicating or negotiating openl ...

s, one, Thomas Lovelace, a brother of governor Lovelace, the other two by the names of John Carr and John Sharpe, to the ''Swaenenburgh''. When the English parlimentaires demanded to see his commission. Evertsen huffily replied that "his commission stuck in the muzzle of his guns, which they would soon discover if they did not surrender forthwith".De Waard, p. 42 Meanwhile the wind had risen and was blowing landward so the Dutch ships weighed anchor and sailed toward the fort, where they again anchored in the

Hudson River The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between Ne ...

, under the ramparts of the fort, but outside the range of its guns. There was another exchange of messages with Manning by way of parlimentaire. It became clear that Manning was stalling, so the Dutch decided to break off the negotiations. They opened up on the fort with their ship's artillery, which fire was answered by the fort. The Dutch landing force was then sent ashore under the command of marine captain

somewhat north of the town, where Broadway Street (formerly ''Heerenstraat'') began. The Dutch troops marched down that street toward the fort on the tip of the island while the Dutch colonists cheered them on, and several joined them. When they arrived before the fort captain Manning ran up a white flag and asked for honorable terms to surrender. He was granted the

honors of war The honours of war are a set of privileges that are granted to a defeated army during the surrender ceremony. The honours symbolise the valour of the defeated army, and grew into a custom during the age of early modern warfare. Typically a surren ...

. The English troops consequently marched out of the gate, flags flying and drums beating, and laid down their arms in front of the fort. The Dutch troops then entered the fort and locked up the rank and file English soldiers in the

Dutch Reformed Church The Dutch Reformed Church (, abbreviated NHK) was the largest Christian denomination in the Netherlands from the onset of the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century until 1930. It was the original denomination of the Dutch Royal Family a ...

within the fort; the English officers were left in possession of their own quarters. The next day all prisoners of war were transferred to the Dutch ships, as was governor Lovelace, after he asked for a

safe conduct Safe conduct, safe passage, or letters of transit, is the situation in time of international conflict or war where one state, a party to such conflict, issues to a person (usually an enemy state's subject) a pass or document to allow the enemy ...

to negotiate with the Dutch commanders.De Waard, pp. 43-44Shomette and Haslach, pp. 157-172

Aftermath

The Dutch commanders swiftly began to consolidate their conquest by sending out commissions to outlying settlements to demand submission to the new regime, and set up new local governments under the control of the new governor-general they appointed to rule the colony as the new

Director of New Netherland This is a list of Directors, appointed by the Dutch West India Company, of the 17th century Dutch province of New Netherland (''Nieuw-Nederland'' in Dutch) in North America. Only the last, Peter Stuyvesant, held the title of Director General. As ...

. This was captain Anthony Colve. (They also sent out a small task force under captain Boes to harass the English fisheries near

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

.De Waard, p. 44) Colve was to rule the colony, while reinforcing its defenses in the expectation that an invasion from the surrounding English colonies in

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian province ...

would be imminent. The town of New York was rechristened ''New Orange'', while fort James would be known as ''Fort Willem Hendrick'' after the

stadtholder In the Low Countries, ''stadtholder'' ( nl, stadhouder ) was an office of steward, designated a medieval official and then a national leader. The ''stadtholder'' was the replacement of the duke or count of a province during the Burgundian and ...

. There were indeed diplomatic and military interactions with

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

and

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

, while

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; ...

troops sacked the small Dutch settlement of ''Hoerenkil'' in the winter of 1673/74 and the spring of 1674. The Dutch also captured numerous English ships along the coastline. However, meanwhile in Europe, on the instigation of

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' ( Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

, which had been neutral in the war with France, but was ready to join the Dutch in an alliance, provided the war with England were ended, the Peace of Westminster was concluded with the Court of St James's in February 1674. One of the provisions of the peace was that the Dutch Republic would give up New Netherland in exchange for Suriname. The news of this reached New Orange in May of 1674, and Colve started to make preparations for the required transfer of power, which eventually took place on 10 November 1674 (N.S.)Shomette and Haslach, pp. 305-313

Notes

References

Sources

* * {{cite book , last=De Waard , first=Cornelis , title=De Zeeuwsche expeditie naar de West onder Cornelis Evertsen den Jonge 1672-1674: Nieuw Nederland een jaar onder Nederlandsch Bestuur), publisher=Linschoten Vereeniging , year=1928, url=https://geheugen.delpher.nl/nl/geheugen/view?coll=ngvn&identifier=KONB10%3A000000000000006F, language=nl, access-date=20 June 2023 Battles of the Anglo-Dutch Wars Conflicts in 1673 Battles involving England Battles involving the Dutch Republic 17th-century conflicts 1673 in North America 1673 in the British Empire Naval battles of the Third Anglo-Dutch War New Netherland Franco-Dutch War