Dunkirkers
Encyclopedia
During the Dutch Revolt
(1568 - 1648) the Dunkirkers or Dunkirk Privateers, were commerce raiders in the service of the Spanish Monarchy
. They were also part of the Dunkirk fleet, which consequently was a part of the Spanish Monarchy's Flemish fleet (Armada de Flandes). The Dunkirkers operated from the ports of the Flemish coast
: Nieuwpoort
, Ostend
, and in particular Dunkirk. Throughout the Eighty Years' War, the fleet of the Dutch Republic
repeatedly tried to destroy the Dunkirkers. The first Dunkirkers sailed a group of warship
s outfitted by the Spanish government, but non-government investment in privateering soon led to a more numerous fleet of privately-owned and outfitted warships.
re-established the sovereign
ty of his uncle Philip II of Spain
as count of Flanders. Dunkirk was, at the time, an important, strategically positioned port with its approaches shielded by sandbanks. In 1583, Parma assembled a small royal squadron
of warships to destroy Dutch naval trade and fisheries. However, it did not take long before the Habsburg authorities in the Low Countries began issuing letters of Marque, and privately-owned warships filled the ranks of the Dunkirkers. These privately-owned warships were known in Dutch as the particulieren, to distinguish them from the royal warships that were also part of the fleet. At their peak, the Dunkirkers operated about a hundred warships. The crews were mostly made up of Flemish
fishermen, supplemented with Walloons
, Spaniards and many individuals from the Northern Netherlands and other European countries. Apart from targeting trade and fishing, the royal squadron was often used to convoy troops between Spain and the Spanish Netherlands.
, famous for capturing a Spanish treasure fleet
, was killed. The Dutch declared the Dunkirk privateers pirates in 1587; captains of Dutch naval vessels had to swear an oath that they would throw or beat all prisoners from Dunkirk warships into the sea (euphemistically known as voetenspoelen, "washing the feet"). Due to its excessive harshness and the fact that it provoked equally cruel retributions from the side of the privateers, this standing order was very unpopular with Dutch crews and the general public. The order was often evaded by putting Dunkirk seamen off on one of the many shallow shoals off the Flemish coast from which they could wade to dry land.
The Dunkirkers had an extremely wide range for their era. Although mainly operating in and around the Channel, they also sailed near the Danish
and German
coastal areas to intercept Dutch ships returning from the Baltic
, and operated in Spanish
and Mediterranean waters. They cooperated closely with the Spanish navy, for instance, in the Battle of the Downs
. This combined effort reached a peak of effectiveness during the time the Eighty Years War merged with the Thirty Years' War
. To evade the Dutch navy the Dunkirk admiralty had a special type of small and very maneuverable warship constructed, the frigate
. Frigate-like ship types were soon adopted by many professional navies and still have their modern-day counterparts.
In 1600 the Dutch sent an army
to conquer the city of Dunkirk and stop the privateering once and for all. The Dutch invasion force clashed with a Spanish army
and although the Dutch won the resulting Battle of Nieuwpoort
the Dutch commander, stadtholder
Maurits of Nassau, realised his lines were dangerously over-stretched and so turned back to the Republic. The Flemish Fleet continued to be especially damaging to the herring
fisheries of Holland
and Zeeland
, almost completely wiping out the sector on several occasions. However, Dutch merchantmen proved far more valuable targets, sometimes vessels on their way back from Russia
or as far as the Indies
were captured, along with their valuable cargoes.
After 1621, when the Twelve Years' Truce
ended, the Dunkirkers captured on average 229 merchantmen and fishing vessels per year from the Dutch. During this period they took about sixty English
vessels each year, as neutral shipping carrying munitions and victuals to the enemy were also considered 'good prize'. This was one of the major concerns of Charles I of England
's diplomatic representative in Brussels
, Sir Balthasar Gerbier, who eventually managed to have tobacco taken off the list of 'victuals'. One of the most successful raiders of this period was Jacob Collaert
. It was not until October 1646, when the French captured Dunkirk with Dutch naval support, that the danger from the privateers was greatly reduced. In 1652, Spanish forces recaptured the city and the Dunkirkers once again became a major threat. The Dunkirkers wiped out English trade after England resumed hostilities against Spain in 1654, before Dunkirk was captured by a Franco-English force in 1658. When, after 1672, France and the Dutch Republic
became enemies, privateering activities were resumed, this time for France, and this would last intermittently until 1712. A famous Dunkirk privateer from this period was Jean Bart
.
Dutch Revolt
The Dutch Revolt or the Revolt of the Netherlands This article adopts 1568 as the starting date of the war, as this was the year of the first battles between armies. However, since there is a long period of Protestant vs...
(1568 - 1648) the Dunkirkers or Dunkirk Privateers, were commerce raiders in the service of the Spanish Monarchy
Spanish Empire
The Spanish Empire comprised territories and colonies administered directly by Spain in Europe, in America, Africa, Asia and Oceania. It originated during the Age of Exploration and was therefore one of the first global empires. At the time of Habsburgs, Spain reached the peak of its world power....
. They were also part of the Dunkirk fleet, which consequently was a part of the Spanish Monarchy's Flemish fleet (Armada de Flandes). The Dunkirkers operated from the ports of the Flemish coast
County of Flanders
The County of Flanders was one of the territories constituting the Low Countries. The county existed from 862 to 1795. It was one of the original secular fiefs of France and for centuries was one of the most affluent regions in Europe....
: Nieuwpoort
Nieuwpoort, Belgium
Nieuwpoort is a municipality located in Flanders, one of the three regions of Belgium, and in the Flemish province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Nieuwpoort proper and the towns of Ramskapelle and Sint-Joris. On January 1, 2008 Nieuwpoort had a total population of 11,062....
, Ostend
Ostend
Ostend is a Belgian city and municipality located in the Flemish province of West Flanders. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerke , Stene and Zandvoorde, and the city of Ostend proper – the largest on the Belgian coast....
, and in particular Dunkirk. Throughout the Eighty Years' War, the fleet of the Dutch Republic
Dutch Republic
The Dutch Republic — officially known as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands , the Republic of the United Netherlands, or the Republic of the Seven United Provinces — was a republic in Europe existing from 1581 to 1795, preceding the Batavian Republic and ultimately...
repeatedly tried to destroy the Dunkirkers. The first Dunkirkers sailed a group of warship
Warship
A warship is a ship that is built and primarily intended for combat. Warships are usually built in a completely different way from merchant ships. As well as being armed, warships are designed to withstand damage and are usually faster and more maneuvrable than merchant ships...
s outfitted by the Spanish government, but non-government investment in privateering soon led to a more numerous fleet of privately-owned and outfitted warships.
Origins and function
Dunkirk was in the hands of the Dutch rebels from 1577 until 1583, when Alexander Farnese, Duke of ParmaAlexander Farnese, Duke of Parma
Alexander Farnese was Duke of Parma and Piacenza from 1586 to 1592, and Governor of the Spanish Netherlands from 1578 to 1592.-Biography:...
re-established the sovereign
Sovereign
A sovereign is the supreme lawmaking authority within its jurisdiction.Sovereign may also refer to:*Monarch, the sovereign of a monarchy*Sovereign Bank, banking institution in the United States*Sovereign...
ty of his uncle Philip II of Spain
Philip II of Spain
Philip II was King of Spain, Portugal, Naples, Sicily, and, while married to Mary I, King of England and Ireland. He was lord of the Seventeen Provinces from 1556 until 1581, holding various titles for the individual territories such as duke or count....
as count of Flanders. Dunkirk was, at the time, an important, strategically positioned port with its approaches shielded by sandbanks. In 1583, Parma assembled a small royal squadron
Squadron (naval)
A squadron, or naval squadron, is a unit of 3-4 major warships, transport ships, submarines, or sometimes small craft that may be part of a larger task force or a fleet...
of warships to destroy Dutch naval trade and fisheries. However, it did not take long before the Habsburg authorities in the Low Countries began issuing letters of Marque, and privately-owned warships filled the ranks of the Dunkirkers. These privately-owned warships were known in Dutch as the particulieren, to distinguish them from the royal warships that were also part of the fleet. At their peak, the Dunkirkers operated about a hundred warships. The crews were mostly made up of Flemish
Flemish people
The Flemings or Flemish are the Dutch-speaking inhabitants of Belgium, where they are mostly found in the northern region of Flanders. They are one of two principal cultural-linguistic groups in Belgium, the other being the French-speaking Walloons...
fishermen, supplemented with Walloons
Walloons
Walloons are a French-speaking people who live in Belgium, principally in Wallonia. Walloons are a distinctive community within Belgium, important historical and anthropological criteria bind Walloons to the French people. More generally, the term also refers to the inhabitants of the Walloon...
, Spaniards and many individuals from the Northern Netherlands and other European countries. Apart from targeting trade and fishing, the royal squadron was often used to convoy troops between Spain and the Spanish Netherlands.
Effectiveness
Despite a near constant blockade of the Dunkirkers' ports by Dutch warships, the privateers routinely managed to evade the blockaders and inflict damage on Dutch shipping. Though the Dutch at times prevented the Dunkirkers from reaching open sea, during the winter months the blockade was extremely difficult to maintain and permitted virtually free passage. Sometimes naval battles ensued when privateers tried to break out or when Dutch warships tried to destroy the privateers in their harbours. During one of these Dutch attacks, the Dutch folk hero Piet Pieterszoon HeinPiet Pieterszoon Hein
Pieter Pietersen Heyn was a Dutch naval officer and folk hero during the Eighty Years' War between the United Provinces and Spain.-Early life:...
, famous for capturing a Spanish treasure fleet
Spanish treasure fleet
The Spanish treasure fleets was a convoy system adopted by the Spanish Empire from 1566 to 1790...
, was killed. The Dutch declared the Dunkirk privateers pirates in 1587; captains of Dutch naval vessels had to swear an oath that they would throw or beat all prisoners from Dunkirk warships into the sea (euphemistically known as voetenspoelen, "washing the feet"). Due to its excessive harshness and the fact that it provoked equally cruel retributions from the side of the privateers, this standing order was very unpopular with Dutch crews and the general public. The order was often evaded by putting Dunkirk seamen off on one of the many shallow shoals off the Flemish coast from which they could wade to dry land.
The Dunkirkers had an extremely wide range for their era. Although mainly operating in and around the Channel, they also sailed near the Danish
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
and German
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
coastal areas to intercept Dutch ships returning from the Baltic
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
, and operated in Spanish
Bay of Biscay
The Bay of Biscay is a gulf of the northeast Atlantic Ocean located south of the Celtic Sea. It lies along the western coast of France from Brest south to the Spanish border, and the northern coast of Spain west to Cape Ortegal, and is named in English after the province of Biscay, in the Spanish...
and Mediterranean waters. They cooperated closely with the Spanish navy, for instance, in the Battle of the Downs
Battle of the Downs
The naval Battle of the Downs took place on 31 October 1639 , during the Eighty Years' War, and was a decisive defeat of the Spanish, commanded by Admiral Antonio de Oquendo, by the United Provinces, commanded by Lieutenant-Admiral Maarten Tromp.- Background :The entry of France in the Thirty...
. This combined effort reached a peak of effectiveness during the time the Eighty Years War merged with the Thirty Years' War
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War was fought primarily in what is now Germany, and at various points involved most countries in Europe. It was one of the most destructive conflicts in European history....
. To evade the Dutch navy the Dunkirk admiralty had a special type of small and very maneuverable warship constructed, the frigate
Frigate
A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...
. Frigate-like ship types were soon adopted by many professional navies and still have their modern-day counterparts.
In 1600 the Dutch sent an army
Army
An army An army An army (from Latin arma "arms, weapons" via Old French armée, "armed" (feminine), in the broadest sense, is the land-based military of a nation or state. It may also include other branches of the military such as the air force via means of aviation corps...
to conquer the city of Dunkirk and stop the privateering once and for all. The Dutch invasion force clashed with a Spanish army
Habsburg Spain
Habsburg Spain refers to the history of Spain over the 16th and 17th centuries , when Spain was ruled by the major branch of the Habsburg dynasty...
and although the Dutch won the resulting Battle of Nieuwpoort
Battle of Nieuwpoort
The Battle of Nieuwpoort, between a Dutch army under Maurice of Nassau and Francis Vere and a Spanish army under Albert of Austria, took place on 2 July 1600 near the present-day Belgian city Nieuwpoort.-Campaign:...
the Dutch commander, stadtholder
Stadtholder
A Stadtholder A Stadtholder A Stadtholder (Dutch: stadhouder [], "steward" or "lieutenant", literally place holder, holding someones place, possibly a calque of German Statthalter, French lieutenant, or Middle Latin locum tenens...
Maurits of Nassau, realised his lines were dangerously over-stretched and so turned back to the Republic. The Flemish Fleet continued to be especially damaging to the herring
Herring
Herring is an oily fish of the genus Clupea, found in the shallow, temperate waters of the North Pacific and the North Atlantic oceans, including the Baltic Sea. Three species of Clupea are recognized. The main taxa, the Atlantic herring and the Pacific herring may each be divided into subspecies...
fisheries of Holland
County of Holland
The County of Holland was a county in the Holy Roman Empire and from 1482 part of the Habsburg Netherlands in what is now the Netherlands. It covered an area roughly corresponding to the current Dutch provinces of North-Holland and South-Holland, as well as the islands of Terschelling, Vlieland,...
and Zeeland
County of Zeeland
The County of Zeeland was a county of the Holy Roman Empire in what is now the Netherlands. It covered an area in the Scheldt and Meuse delta roughly corresponding to the current Dutch province of Zeeland, though it did not include the region of Zeeuws-Vlaanderen which was part of...
, almost completely wiping out the sector on several occasions. However, Dutch merchantmen proved far more valuable targets, sometimes vessels on their way back from Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
or as far as the Indies
Indies
The Indies is a term that has been used to describe the lands of South and Southeast Asia, occupying all of the present India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, and also Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Brunei, Singapore, the Philippines, East Timor, Malaysia and...
were captured, along with their valuable cargoes.
After 1621, when the Twelve Years' Truce
Twelve Years' Truce
The Twelve Years' Truce was the name given to the cessation of hostilities between the Habsburg rulers of Spain and the Southern Netherlands and the Dutch Republic as agreed in Antwerp on 9 April 1609. It was a watershed in the Eighty Years' War, marking the point from which the independence of the...
ended, the Dunkirkers captured on average 229 merchantmen and fishing vessels per year from the Dutch. During this period they took about sixty English
Kingdom of England
The Kingdom of England was, from 927 to 1707, a sovereign state to the northwest of continental Europe. At its height, the Kingdom of England spanned the southern two-thirds of the island of Great Britain and several smaller outlying islands; what today comprises the legal jurisdiction of England...
vessels each year, as neutral shipping carrying munitions and victuals to the enemy were also considered 'good prize'. This was one of the major concerns of Charles I of England
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
's diplomatic representative in Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
, Sir Balthasar Gerbier, who eventually managed to have tobacco taken off the list of 'victuals'. One of the most successful raiders of this period was Jacob Collaert
Jacob Collaert
Jacob Collaart or Collaert was a Flemish admiral who served as privateer and one of the Dunkirkers in Spanish Habsburg service during the Dutch Revolt....
. It was not until October 1646, when the French captured Dunkirk with Dutch naval support, that the danger from the privateers was greatly reduced. In 1652, Spanish forces recaptured the city and the Dunkirkers once again became a major threat. The Dunkirkers wiped out English trade after England resumed hostilities against Spain in 1654, before Dunkirk was captured by a Franco-English force in 1658. When, after 1672, France and the Dutch Republic
Dutch Republic
The Dutch Republic — officially known as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands , the Republic of the United Netherlands, or the Republic of the Seven United Provinces — was a republic in Europe existing from 1581 to 1795, preceding the Batavian Republic and ultimately...
became enemies, privateering activities were resumed, this time for France, and this would last intermittently until 1712. A famous Dunkirk privateer from this period was Jean Bart
Jean Bart
Jean Bart was a Flemish sailor who primarily served the French crown as naval commander and privateer.-Early life:...
.