The History of the Americans

This is the first of three episodes about a daring Dutch raid on the West Indies and the English colonies of North America during the Third Anglo-Dutch War. The extended raid, led by Commander Cornelis Evertsen the Youngest of the Admiralty of the Dutch province of Zeeland and a privateer named Jacob Benckes, was a sideshow in that war, yet its consequences were far-reaching.  Among other accomplishments, Evertsen, known to his fans as Kees the Devil, and Benckes, "subdued three English colonies, depopulated a fourth, captured or destroyed nearly 200 enemy vessels, inflicted a serious injury upon the Virginia tobacco trade, wiped out the English Newfoundland fisheries, and caused unending panic in the New England colonies.”  They recovered New York for the Dutch to the great if fleeting joy of much of its citizenry, and so demoralized the English that Parliament turned against the war and forced Charles II to sue for peace. The story is best understood in the context of the Anglo-Dutch Wars, which have been in the background of many of our episodes. This episode, therefore, is a primer on the first two Anglo-Dutch wars, and the run-up to the third, which will feature in the next episode. Map of the Low Countries at the relevant time (note the corrider denoted the "Bishopbric of Leige" connecting the Dutch Republic to France): X/Twitter – @TheHistoryOfTh2 – https://x.com/TheHistoryOfTh2 Facebook – The History of the Americans Podcast – https://www.facebook.com/HistoryOfTheAmericans Useful background episode: https://thehistoryoftheamericans.com/the-fall-of-new-amsterdam-and-the-founding-of-new-york/ Selected references for this episode (Commission earned for Amazon purchases through the episode notes on our website) Donald G. Shomette and Robert D. Haslach, Raid on America: The Dutch Naval Campaign of 1672-1674 C. R. Boxer, "Some Second Thoughts on the Third Anglo-Dutch War, 1672-1674," Transactions of the Royal Historical Society, 1969. Third Anglo-Dutch War (Wikipedia) Four Days Battle (Wikipedia) Raid on the Medway (Wikipedia)

In 1672, the settlers of the New Jersey proprietary colony arose in a bloodless rebellion against Philip Carteret, appointed by the proprietors as governor. The wannabe rebels formed an illegal legislature, and installed Captain James Carteret as "president," putting them in conflict with Lord John Berkeley and Sir George Carteret, James's father. The conflict had to do with taxes, quitrents, and title to land. John Ogden, ancestor of your podcaster, emerged as a key player in the "popular party." By the summer of 1673, the proprietors, with the help of the Duke of York and King Charles II, had put down the rebellion. James, now virtually disowned by his father, fled to Carolina, but along the way would be captured by the Dutch captain Cornelis Evertsen the Youngest, known to his many fans as "Kees the Devil." James, or one of his resentful allies, would describe the defenses of New York to Evertsen, setting up the Dutch reconquest of New York. X/Twitter – @TheHistoryOfTh2 – https://x.com/TheHistoryOfTh2 Facebook – The History of the Americans Podcast – https://www.facebook.com/HistoryOfTheAmericans Useful background: https://thehistoryoftheamericans.com/ohhhh-whaddabout-new-jersey/ Selected references for this episode (Commission earned for Amazon purchases through the episode notes on our website) John E. Pomfret, Province of East New Jersey, 1609-1702: The Rebellious Proprietary James Carteret: The Black Sheep (Interesting blog post on James Carteret)

The first English settlers in today's South Carolina departed England in August, 1669, but would not actually get to the coast of Carolina until April and May the next year. Along the way they would lose ships to hurricanes and incompetence, and get into a firefight with Spaniards and their Indian allies on an island off the coast of Georgia. An unknown number would die on an island in the Bahamas. And, yet, once on the banks of the Ashley River, the first English South Carolinians would lose only 12% of their population in their first 18 months, a record of survival in the first "seasoning" year matched only by Maryland in the 17th century. X/Twitter - @TheHistoryOfTh2 - https://x.com/TheHistoryOfTh2 Facebook - The History of the Americans Podcast - https://www.facebook.com/HistoryOfTheAmericans Selected references for this episode (Commission earned for Amazon purchases through the episode notes on our website - https://thehistoryoftheamericans.com/the-first-english-settlement-of-south-carolina/) Edward McCrady, The History of South Carolina Under the Proprietary Government 1670-1719 L. H. Roper, Conceiving Carolina: Proprietors, Planters, and Plots 1662-1729 George Bancroft, History of the United States of America: From the Discovery of the Continent Alexander S. Salley, Jr., Narratives of Early Carolina 1650-1708 (Includes narrative of Maurice Mathews) Letter from Henry Woodward to Sir John Yeamans, September 10, 1670 J. Leitch Wright, Jr., "Spanish Reaction to Carolina," The North Carolina Historical Review, October 1964.

Notwithstanding the promising expeditions of William Hilton and Robert Sandford, by the end of 1666, with the Carolina proprietors waging war with the Netherlands and contending with plague and fire in London, the Carolina project was on the brink of failure. Then the youngest proprietor stepped forward; the venture received new vigor under the leadership of Anthony Ashley Cooper, Lord Ashley. With his friend and confidant John Locke, Lord Ashley would develop a fantastically – some would say hilariously - detailed plan of government for Carolina that would never be put into effect, but which would inspire and confound historians and even be cited by courts into our own time, the Fundamental Constitutions of Carolina.  This episode is about Ashley, Locke, and those strange Fundamental Constitutions. X/Twitter: @TheHistoryOfTh2 Facebook: The History of the Americans Podcast Selected references for this episode (Commission earned for Amazon purchases through the website) George Bancroft, History of the United States of America: From the Discovery of the Continent Edward McCrady, The History of South Carolina Under the Proprietary Government 1670-1719 L. H. Roper, Conceiving Carolina: Proprietors, Planters, and Plots 1662-1729 Fundamental Constitutions of Carolina, March 1, 1669 Jennifer Welchman, "Locke on Slavery and Inalienable Rights," Canadian Journal of Philosophy, March 1995. John Locke