François de Wittert
Encyclopedia
François Wittert was an admiral
in the service of the Dutch republic
.
François Wittert was the son of Hendrik Adriaenz. Wittert and Volckgen Clementsdr. van Overschie. He descended from a prominent family from Rotterdam, members of which still live there today.
He was an officer on the ship Rotterdam, part of an expedition of 14 ships that sailed on 17 June 1602, from Texel
under the command of Wybrand van Warwyck, to the East-Indies
. His destination was Bantam
. Once there, the king of Bantam gave the Dutch permission to build a fort to serve as a Factory (trading post)
. François Wittert was appointed as its president. He was also the first governor of Bantam from 1603-1605.
After his return to the Netherlands, Witters was appointed as vice-admiral of an expedition of 13 ships, that set sail towards East-India on 22 December 1607 under command of admiral Pieter Willemsz. Verhoeven.
On the 18th of august, presumably 1608, Wittert ravaged Mozambique
. He arrived at Bantam in 1609, and went on to erect a lodge on Sulawesi
. On 22 may, 1609, admiral Verhoeven was killed by the Bandanese, and Wittert succeeded him as admiral. On 22 June the king of Ternate
signed a favourable agreement with him. On 22 September Wittert sailed to the Philippines
, where he landed on the island Mortir, which he named Nassau, before he sailed for Manila
to do battle with the Spanish
there in order to remove the Moluccas from Spanish authority. He was able to capture 23 merchants vessels, winning a huge amount of plunder, but he was ambushed by a superior force on 23 April 1610, and killed. His base of operations was an island called Islas Hermanas near Manila, also called Witterts island. This island was a future point of operations for Dutch expeditions.
Admiral
Admiral is the rank, or part of the name of the ranks, of the highest naval officers. It is usually considered a full admiral and above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet . It is usually abbreviated to "Adm" or "ADM"...
in the service of the Dutch republic
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
.
François Wittert was the son of Hendrik Adriaenz. Wittert and Volckgen Clementsdr. van Overschie. He descended from a prominent family from Rotterdam, members of which still live there today.
He was an officer on the ship Rotterdam, part of an expedition of 14 ships that sailed on 17 June 1602, from Texel
Texel
Texel is a municipality and an island in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It is the biggest and most populated of the Frisian Islands in the Wadden Sea, and also the westernmost of this archipelago, which extends to Denmark...
under the command of Wybrand van Warwyck, to the East-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...
. His destination was Bantam
Bantam
Bantam may refer to:* Bantam , a small variety of poultry* Bantamweight, a weight class in boxing-Places:* Bantam , a city and former sultanate on Java island, in Indonesia...
. Once there, the king of Bantam gave the Dutch permission to build a fort to serve as a Factory (trading post)
Factory (trading post)
Factory was the English term for the trading posts system originally established by Europeans in foreign territories, first within different states of medieval Europe, and later in their colonial possessions...
. François Wittert was appointed as its president. He was also the first governor of Bantam from 1603-1605.
After his return to the Netherlands, Witters was appointed as vice-admiral of an expedition of 13 ships, that set sail towards East-India on 22 December 1607 under command of admiral Pieter Willemsz. Verhoeven.
On the 18th of august, presumably 1608, Wittert ravaged Mozambique
Mozambique
Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...
. He arrived at Bantam in 1609, and went on to erect a lodge on Sulawesi
Sulawesi
Sulawesi is one of the four larger Sunda Islands of Indonesia and is situated between Borneo and the Maluku Islands. In Indonesia, only Sumatra, Borneo, and Papua are larger in territory, and only Java and Sumatra have larger Indonesian populations.- Etymology :The Portuguese were the first to...
. On 22 may, 1609, admiral Verhoeven was killed by the Bandanese, and Wittert succeeded him as admiral. On 22 June the king of Ternate
Ternate
Ternate is an island in the Maluku Islands of eastern Indonesia. It is located off the west coast of the larger island of Halmahera, the center of the powerful former Sultanate of Ternate....
signed a favourable agreement with him. On 22 September Wittert sailed to the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, where he landed on the island Mortir, which he named Nassau, before he sailed for Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
to do battle with the Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
there in order to remove the Moluccas from Spanish authority. He was able to capture 23 merchants vessels, winning a huge amount of plunder, but he was ambushed by a superior force on 23 April 1610, and killed. His base of operations was an island called Islas Hermanas near Manila, also called Witterts island. This island was a future point of operations for Dutch expeditions.