Dutch Claims in North America: New Netherland

The Dutch Republic claimed the territory they called New Netherland (Nieuw-Nederland), encompassing:

• Manhattan Island (New Amsterdam, later New York City)
• Hudson River Valley up to Albany (Fort Orange)
• Delaware River Valley (parts of NJ, PA, DE)
• Connecticut River (briefly, Fort Huys de Hoop/Hartford)

Key Facts

• 1624: Dutch West India Company establishes first permanent settlement on Governors Island, then Manhattan.
• 1626: Peter Minuit "purchases" Manhattan from Lenape.
• 1664: English seize New Netherland; rename it New York (Duke of York).
• 1673–74: Brief Dutch recapture; returned to England by Treaty of Westminster.

The Dutch legacy persists in NYC place names (Brooklyn, Harlem, Staten Island, Broadway, Wall Street, Yonkers) and legal traditions.