Dutch merchants in London and elsewhere

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Dutch merchants in London and elsewhere

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17/11/12: CSG, created page






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Dutch merchants in Amsterdam


Frederick Wolfe, living near Saint Anthonies port in Amsterdam, merchant

Frederick Wolfe was an Amsterdam merchant, who was the correspondent of Domingos vas da Britto, a forty year old merchant living in London. Wolf lived near Saint Anthonies port in Amsterdam, where da Britto's servant, Manoel Perera had lived with him for four and a half years

  • "37. To the seaventh article hee saith that hee well knoweth the producent

38. ffrederick Wolfe and hath soe donne for theise thirteene yeeres last past
39. or thereabouts, and saith the said ffrederick for eight yeeres of that time
40. hath lived at Amsterdam, where hee was and is an Inhabitant and
41. Burger, and keepes his wife, children and familie there neere in his
42. house being neere Saint Anthonies port, as hee this deponent hath
43. lived fower yeeres and a halfe with him, ended about three yeeres since
44. and this deponents master Mr da Britto hath continuall correspondence
45. with him by lettres of this deponents knowledge, And saith the said producent
46. was and is a subiect of the States of the United Netherlands and
47. for such commonly accompted. And otherwise hee cannot depose."

Henrietta de Bruyn Kops states that "Frederick Wolf" was an alias for the Sephardic Jewish merchant "Francisco de Medina", and identifies him moving between Bordeaux, Amsterdam and Middleburg in his lifetime.[1]

- HCA 13/71 f.58r Case: The claime of ffrederick Wolfe of Amsterdam in the Hare in the feild; Deposition: 2. Manoel Perera of London Merchant aged 21 (Signature of "Manuel Perreyra" at end of deposition); Date: 21/02/1655 ("same day")[2]

However, Frederick Wolf had spent his childhood in Lisbon, as Domingos vas da Britto himself testified:

  • "9. To the seaventh article of the said allegation hee saith and deposeth that hee

10. well knoweth the producent named ffrederick Wolfe and hath soe donne
11. from the infancie of the said producent and of this deponent, they goeing
12. to schoole together at Lisbone, and saith that for theise eight yeares last
13. or thereabouts the said producent hath lived and liveth in Amsterdam as a
14. Merchant, and was and is an inhabitant of that citie, and a subiect
15. of the Lords the States of the United Netherlands. and for such commonly
16. accompted...."

- HCA 13/71 f.58r Case: The claime of ffrederick Wolfe of Amsterdam in the Hare in the feild; Deposition: 1. Domingos vas da Britto of London Merchant aged 40 (Signature of "Domingo da Britto" at end of deposition) ; Date: 21/02/1655. Transcribed by Colin Greenstreet.[3]

Charles Gabrij, merchant of Amsterdam, aged 45

Charles Gabrij testified in the case of "The claime of Peter Reynolds Gilbert Van Sisteren and John Swaen in the hare in the feild". He confirmed the Amsterdam residence and statehood of John de Swaen, one of the three litigants, but was uncertain whether he knew Peter Reynolds in person.

  • "40. Charles Gabrij of Amsterdam Marchant aged 45

41. yeares or thereabouts sworne and examined.
42. To the said allegation hee saith that hee well knoweth the producent
43. John de Swaen and hath soe donne for theise seaven yeares last past
44. or thereabouts, during which space hee the said John hath bin an Inhabitant
45. of Amsterdam where hee is a marchant and keeps house and
46. familie there, and saith hee was and is a subiect of the Lords
47. the States of the United Netherlands and for such commonly accompted,
48. and which hee deposeth living alsoe and in Amsterdam (where hee
49. hath dwelt about thirtin yeares) and being well acquainted with
50. the said John de Swaen. And saith hee well knew the father
51. and knoweth the brother of the arlate Peter Reynaldo who is
52. commonly accompted a native of Amsterdam and a subiect of the
53. said States, but this deponent is not sure that hee knoweth
54. the person of the said Peter And otherwise hee cannot depose."

- HCA 13/71 f.64r Case: The claime of Peter Reynolds Gilbert Van Sisteren and John Swaen in the hare in the feild; Deposition: Charles Gabry of Amsterdam Merchant aged 45 yeares or thereabouts; Date: 01/03/1655 ("same day"). Transcribed by Colin Greenstreet and Jill Wilcox.[4]

Philip Copy, a flemmish merchant, living in London, aged 36

Philip Copy attested to the Amsterdam residence of Gilbert Van Sisteren, the third of the plaintiffs in the case of "The claime of Peter Reynolds Gilbert Van Sisteren and John Swaen in the hare in the feild", as well as the Amsterdam residence of John de Swaen, whose correspondence he had answered from a previous residence in Dunquirke. Copy himself was a native of Rosborough in fflanders, in the Dominion of the King of Spain.

  • "7. Philip Copy of London Merchant aged 36

8. yeares or thereabouts sworne and examined.
9. To the said allegation hee saith and deposeth that hee well knoweth
10. the producent Gilbert van Sisteren and hath soe done for the
11. X tenn monethes last past or thereabouts, and hath oftentimes seene
12. him in that space; and saith the said Gilbert is an Inhabitant of
13. Amsterdam, whence this deponent hath received lettres from him, dated
14. there, and saith hee that hee the said Gilbert is a native of the
15. Busse or S'Hertogen bosch in the Dominion of the Lords the States
16. of the United Netherlands, and a subiect of the said States and for
17. such commonly accompted and reputed. And otherwise hee cannot
18. depose, saving that within a yeere last this deponent living at
19. Dunquirke received lettres from the arlate John de Swaen dated at
20. Amsterdam (the Place of his residence; and directed to his brother correspon
21. =dent living in house with this deponent, and then absent, this deponent
22. having order to receive his lettres in his absence and answer them, which this
23. deponent did and wrote accordingly to the said John de Swaen to
24. Amsterdam./"

- HCA 13/71 f.64r Case: The claime of Peter Reynolds Gilbert Van Sisteren and John Swaen in the hare in the feild; Deposition: Philip Copy of London Merchant aged 36 yeares (Signature of "Phillipiis Coppey" at end of deposition) ; Date: 01/03/1655. Transcribed by Colin Greenstreet and Jill Wilcox.[5]


Dutch merchants in London


Abraham Bald, twenty-six year old Dutch merchant in London since 1655

Phillip van Hulten was an Amsterdam merchant, known to Abraham Bald, a young twenty-six year old Dutch merchant, who had been living in London since 1655, but who had been born in Amsterdam. Bald testified that he had known Phillip van Hulten, resident in the Lady Gracht in Amsterdam, for five years.

  • "11. To the tenth article of the said allegation hee saith and deposeth that

12. hee well knoweth the producent Phillip van Hulten and hee
13. hath donne for these five yeares last or thereabouts this deponent
14. for all that time and (untill about elevene moneths since hee
15. came to live in London) dwelling in Amsterdam where he was borne
16. and where he had acquaintance and dealing with the said Phillip
17. in the way of merchandize, and saith the said Phillip then
18. dwelt (and as hee believeth still dwelleth) on the Lady Gracht
19. in Amsterdam, in the house where his father (whom this deponent
20. alsoe well knowe dwelt before hin, and further that for said
21. producent was and is a merchant of good account and an
22. Inhabitant and free citizen of Amsterdam (where this deponent
23. beleeveth hee was borne) and a subject of the Lords the States
24. of the United Netherlands, and for such commonly accompted.
25. and further hee deposeth not."

- HCA 13/71 f.57r Case: The claime of Phillip Van ?Hulten of Amsterdam for his goods in the Hare in the ffeild; Deposition: Abraham Baldd of London Merchant aged 26 (Signature of "Abraham Baldd" at end of deposition); Date: 19/02/1655. Transcribed by Karen Gunnell.[6]

Charles Marescoe, twenty-five, merchant in London

In contrast, twenty-five year old Charles Marescoe had spent most of his life in England

  • "1. To the 3 Interrogatorie hee saith hee hath lived in England about sixteene yeares

2. continually and hath before that lived both in holland ˹and˺ in fflanders only
3. as a schoole boy for some short tyme as at Amsterdam in holland and
4. Lisle in fflanders and saith that hee hath seene printed Coppyes of
5. the last treaty betwixt Spaine and the United Provinces wherein to the best
6. of his remembrance there is an Article that noe shipp of warr belonging
7. to the King of Spaine or his subiects shall molest search or take
8. any shipps belonging to the sayd States or their subiects though bound
9. to or comming from an enymyes Port And further saving his
10. foregoeing deposition hee cannot depose/"

- HCA 13/71 f.536v Case: Goodwin and Company against the Saint John; Deposition: 3. Charles Marescoe of Saint Bottolph Billingsgate London Merchant aged twenty five yeares (Signature of "Charles Marescoe" at end of deposition) ; Date: 04/02/1656. Transcribed by Colin Greenstreet.[7]




Dutch merchants in the East Indies



Dutch merchants in the West Indies




Dutch merchants in Hamburg



Dutch merchants in Portugal




Dutch merchants in Spain



  1. Henriette de Bruyn Kops, A spirited exchange: the wine and brandy trade between France and the Dutch republic in its Atlantic framework, 1600-1650 (Leiden, Boston, 2007), p.250
  2. HCA 13/71 f.58r
  3. HCA 13/71 f.58r
  4. HCA 13/71 f.64r
  5. HCA 13/71 f.64r
  6. HCA 13/71 f.57r
  7. HCA 13/71 f.536v