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Piet Hein

Type Figure Region Dutch Republic Time 1577–1629 Also known as Piet Hein、Pieter Pieterszoon Hein

Piet Hein (1577–1629), a renowned Dutch Republic naval commander and privateer captain who rose from sailor to fleet commander of the West India Comp…

Timeline

  1. 1577–1597Rotterdam · Dutch RepublicBorn in the port district of Rotterdam, he went to sea as a youth, was captured by the Spanish and forced to row as a galley slave, later released and returning to Holland, accumulating rich experience in navigation and combat.
  2. 1598–1600Dutch coast · North SeaIn the late 1590s he joined privateering and convoy operations against Spain, attacking Spanish shipping in the North Sea and the Channel, winning a reputation for boldness and laying the foundation for later command of a fleet.
  3. 1607–1629Caribbean Sea · Caribbean SeaHe served successively as commander of West India Company fleets, capturing the Spanish silver fleet in Bahía de Manzanillo in 1628 and taking enormous spoils; in 1629 he led a fleet in the siege of Havana and was killed in action before Fort El Morro.

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