Kingdom of England The Dutch invasion of Saint Helena took place in January 1673, capturing the South Atlantic island from the English East India Company (EIC).

The Cape proved an inferior anchorage so the Dutch took advantage of the Third Anglo-Dutch War to seize Saint Helena, with little resistance from the EIC garrison.

An English East India Company (EIC) expedition, sent on the orders of Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell, landed on Saint Helena on 5 May 1659 and established a fort, the Castle of St John.

[4] The governor of Saint Helena, Anthony Beale, spiked the garrison's guns (which were more numerous than those brought by the Dutch), spoiled the gunpowder and transferred several valuable items onto his ship before escaping to Colonial Brazil.

[4] Beale hired a sloop in Brazil and sent a number of soldiers and slaves away in it to warn English vessels that the island had been lost.

The sloop met with a Royal Navy and EIC expedition under Captain Richard Munden who had been sent to reinforce the garrison of Saint Helena.

[4] One of Beale's slaves, Black Oliver, knew a route up this cliff face and on 4 May, he and a party of Munden's men, led by Assistance's lieutenant Richard Keigwin, were landed here after dark.

[7] The EIC sent regular troops to reinforce the garrison of Saint Helena and later that year organised a feudal militia from the settlers to defend the island.

He led a revolt against the EIC in December 1683 and seized power as unofficial governor of Bombay, serving for almost a year before surrendering, upon receiving a pardon.

[6] Black Oliver was granted his freedom for his actions in the recapture of Saint Helena and was given a tract of land, the modern estate of Walbro near Hutt's Gate; he was later hanged for involvement in a mutiny.