Directors of New Netherland facts for kids

Imagine a time when parts of what we now call New York, New Jersey, and Delaware were a Dutch colony! This place was called New Netherland (or Nieuw-Nederland in Dutch). It was a busy trading area in North America during the 1600s. The colony was managed by a company called the Dutch West India Company, which appointed special leaders called Directors. These Directors were like governors, in charge of everything that happened in the colony.

The most famous of these leaders was Peter Stuyvesant, who was called the Director General. As New Netherland grew, people living there wanted more say in how things were run. They formed groups like the Twelve Men, Eight Men, and Nine Men to advise the Director. The capital city of New Netherland was New Amsterdam. This city later became New York when the English took control of the colony in June 1665.

For a short time, from August 1673 to November 1674, the Dutch took New Netherland back. During this period, Anthony Colve was appointed as the first Dutch governor.

Leaders of New Netherland

Early Directors (1624–1664)

Here are the people who led New Netherland for the Dutch West India Company:

Picture	Director or Director-General	Started Job	Left Job	Important Facts
	Cornelius Jacobsen May (active 1600s)	1624	1625	Explored important waterways like Delaware Bay and the Hudson River. Set up a main base at Nut Island and small forts, including Fort Nassau. Cape May in New Jersey is named after him.
	Willem Verhulst (or van der Hulst) (active 1600s)	1625	1626	Started building Fort Amsterdam on the southern tip of Manhattan Island. Also began building Fort Wilhelmus on the Delaware River. He wasn't very popular with the colonists and was quickly replaced.
	Peter Minuit (1580–1638)	1626	1631	Famous for buying Manhattan Island from Native Americans on May 24, 1626. He paid with goods worth about 60 Dutch guilders.
	Sebastiaen Jansen Krol (1595–1674)	1632	1633
	Wouter van Twiller (1606–1654)	1633	1638	He used his family connections to get the job. Bought Nut Island (now Governor's Island) from the Canarsee tribe. Lost control of the Connecticut River valley to English settlers. Successfully pushed back settlers from Virginia who tried to move into the Delaware River valley.
	Willem Kieft (1597–1647)	1638	1647	Tried to force out the Lenape tribe, which led to conflicts. His attacks on Pavonia and Corlears Hook started a war known as Kieft's War. The Dutch West India Company fired him in 1647. He died at sea while sailing back to Amsterdam.
	Peter Stuyvesant (c. 1612–1672)	1647	1664	He approved the founding of towns like Communipaw and Bergen (now Jersey City). New Amsterdam and other areas were attacked by the Munsee during the short Peach War in 1655. He won the Esopus Wars against the Lenape and Esopus tribes. He eventually surrendered New Netherland to the English. He was also the Director of Curaçao from 1642 to 1664.

Dutch Rule Returns (1673–1674)

In 1673, during the Third Anglo-Dutch War, the Dutch managed to take back New Amsterdam from the English. The English had renamed it "New York." Admiral Cornelis Evertsen the Youngest and Captain Anthony Colve led this effort. Evertsen renamed the city "New Orange." However, Evertsen returned to the Netherlands in July 1674 and faced accusations of not following orders. He was supposed to conquer other English colonies, not retake New Amsterdam. In 1674, the Dutch had to give New Amsterdam back to the English because of a peace agreement called the Second Treaty of Westminster.

See also

In Spanish: Director de Nuevos Países Bajos para niños

• Joris Andringa
• Johan Björnsson Printz
• List of colonial governors of Delaware
• List of colonial governors of New Jersey
• List of colonial governors of New York
• Dutch colonization of the Americas
• List of mayors of New York City
• History of New York City
• New Amsterdam judicial system