On 11 July 1693, Ridderschap van Holland departed Wielingen on a voyage to Batavia under Captain Dirk de Lange.

She sailed from the Cape with a crew of around 300, and two passengers, including Admiral Sir James Couper.

Contemporary rumours suggested that she had sprung her mast rounding the Cape, limped north, and was captured by pirates based at Fort Dauphin, near the southeastern corner of Madagascar.

It is probable that Ridderschap van Holland was actually wrecked in the Pelsaert Group of the Houtman Abrolhos islands off the coast of Western Australia.

Any archaeological remains were destroyed by guano mining on the island in the early 20th century, so positive identification of the wreck is now impossible.