Dutch Republic Upper Rhine France Southern Italy North Germany and Scandinavia Pyrenees Americas Naval battles The Dutch Raid on North America[a] took place from December 1672 to February 1674 during the Third Anglo-Dutch War, a related conflict of the Franco-Dutch War.

A naval expedition led by Cornelis Evertsen the Youngest and Jacob Binckes attacked English and French possessions in North America.

Evertsen originally planned to attack the homeward-bound convoy of the English East India Company, but abandoned the idea when his ships were intercepted by a superior Royal Navy squadron off Cape Verde.

After linking up with Binckes, their combined force instead attacked the Americas intending to inflict as much damage as possible.

Both were concerned by French expansion under Louis XIV of France, while exchanging the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam for the spice island of Run resolved a major area of dispute.

[2] Despite this, in the 1670 Secret Treaty of Dover, Charles II of England agreed to support an attack by Louis on the Dutch and initiated the Third Anglo-Dutch War in April 1672.

[3] Dutch survival depended on control of the sea lanes, which ensured they could bring in vital supplies and keep trade routes open.

[5] His unexpected success proved a mixed blessing for Louis, since the possibility of France controlling the Republic, the largest commercial power in Europe, brought the Dutch support from Emperor Leopold and Spain among others and increased opposition to the war in England, where many had opposed an alliance with Catholic France from the start.

[6] Meanwhile his German ally, the Bishop of Münster, besieged Groningen, but was unsuccessful in this endeavor and retreated with heavy casualties.

They chose the experienced and capable Cornelis Evertsen the Youngest to lead the fleet composed of 6 ships and 586 sailors, militia and marines.

Evertsen exercised caution as he prepared to slip south through the narrow, 20 mile wide Strait of Dover, one of the classic naval choke points of Europe.

The Dutch squadron thus escaped due to Evertsen's fast thinking and the remarkable seamanship of his crew.

The following day Munden invited Evertsen to surrender since his situation seemed hopeless, and threatened that the English would otherwise launch a fire ship to burn them out.

While sailing around Martinique he met by coincidence another Dutch squadron, of six ships from the Admiralty of Amsterdam, under Jacob Binckes.

They decided to join forces, agreeing to alternate command weekly and to attack both English and French colonies.

The Dutch squadron remained there for a while, capturing prizes, and expropriating the local African slaves as punishment for the disloyal behavior of the local Dutch settlers,[14] but they eventually set sail for the neutral island of Spanish Puerto Rico where they planned to sell slaves they had captured from the English.

They arrived at San Juan, where, however the Spanish governor proved uncooperative and kept delaying, refusing permission for revictualling and watering.

The English commanders Thomas Gardiner and Edward Cotterell decided to play a waiting game, but they were forced to act when on 12 July the Maryland tobacco ships suddenly appeared coming down the Chesapeake Bay and unsuspectingly sailing straight at the waiting Dutch.

They were met by a boat carrying parlimentaires representing the garrison commander of Fort James, captain John Manning.

According to Evertsen he "thought that very unreasonable, and I replied that it [the commission] was stuck in the muzzle of my gun, as they would find out if they did not surrender the fort.

This was granted and the Dutch troops entered the fort, after which the English garrison marched out and laid down its arms.

While they were at this neutral harbor HMS Tyger (38) also entered and issued what the Dutch considered an insulting challenge.

Evertsen pressured captain Passchier de Witte of the Schaeckerloo (28) to accept it, and this resulted in a single combat in the Cadiz roadstead between the two ships on 13 February 1674 (O.S.

In November 1674, the colony reverted to English control on the basis of the Treaty of Westminster (1674), serving as a bargaining chip in the peace process.