Dutch Brazil

Dutch Brazil / New Holland
Nederlands-Brazilië or Nieuw-Holland
Dutch colony
1630–1654
Flag Coat of arms
Dutch Brazil 1630-1654
Capital		Mauritsstad (Recife)
Languages		Dutch Indigenous languages
Religion		Dutch Reformed
Government		Colony
Governor
•	1637-1643	John Maurice, Prince of Nassau-Siegen
•	1643-1654	Dutch West India Company
History
•	Start	16 February 1630
•	Arrival of Maurice of Nassau	23 January 1637
•	First Battle of Guararapes	19 April 1648
•	Second Battle of Guararapes	19 February 1649
•	Defeat by the portuguese	28 January 1654
Currency		Braziliaanse Guldens (Brazilian Guilders)
Preceded by Succeeded by Colonial Brazil Colonial Brazil
Today part of		Brazil
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Reconquest of Recife
Part of Dutch-Portuguese War
A letter written by the Portuguese King John IV ordering the attack on Recife
Date May 1652 – February 1654 Location Pernambuco, Brazil Result Decisive Portuguese victory Dutch expelled from Brazil
Belligerents
Portugal Brazilian Colonial Forces	Dutch Republic
Commanders and leaders
Francisco Barreto Pedro Jacques de Magalhães	Walter Van Loo
Strength
2,500 men	Unknown
Casualties and losses
Unknown	Unknown

Dutch Brazil, also known as New Holland, was the northern portion of the Portuguese colony of Brazil, ruled by the Dutch during the Dutch colonization of the Americas between 1630 and 1654. The main cities of the Nieuw Nederland were the capital Mauritsstad (today Recife), Frederikstadt (João Pessoa), Nieuw Amsterdam (Natal), Saint Louis (São Luís), São Cristóvão, Fortaleza (Fort Schoonenborch), Sirinhaém and Olinda.

From 1630 onward, the Dutch Republic came to control almost half of Brazil's area at the time, with their capital in Recife. The Dutch West India Company (WIC) set up their headquarters in Recife. The governor, Johan Maurits, invited artists and scientists to the colony to help promote Brazil and increase immigration. However, the tide turned against the Dutch when the Portuguese won a significant victory at the Second Battle of Guararapes in 1649. On 26 January 1654, the Dutch surrendered and signed the capitulation, but only as a provisory pact. By May 1654, the Dutch demanded that the Dutch Republic was to be given New Holland back. On 6 August 1661, New Holland was formally ceded to Portugal through the Treaty of The Hague.

While of only transitional importance for the Dutch, this period was of considerable importance in the History of Brazil. Local Portuguese settlers had to oppose the Dutch largely by their own resources, and made use of their knowledge of local conditions; this struggle is counted, in Brazilian historical memory, as laying the seeds of Brazilian nationhood. This period also precipitated a decline in Brazil's sugar industry, as conflict between the Dutch and Portuguese disrupted Brazilian sugar production, amidst rising competition from British, French, and Dutch planters in the Caribbean.