The most successful Dutch venture in North America

The Dutch West India Company (or GWC, from the Dutch name) provided a mechanism for the Netherlands to establish colonies in the New World and to profit from investment there, with certain exceptions. Although the opportunity was available to anyone who had the financial wherewithal, the reality was that pretty much only members of the company 

If you remember, investors could establish "patroonships," and a number of the GWC's member decided to try their hands, but only one really succeeded. Kiliaen van Rennsselaer, a diamond merchant and investing member of the GWC, took advantage of the offer and bought a significant interest in land along the modern-day Hudson River. 

Remember that his deal would include his bargaining with the indigenous tribes for purchase of the land. I haven't found a record yet of how much he paid, but apparently his agent negotiated the terms with the Mohicans, you know, the tribe in the famed James Fennimore Cooper book. 

The land involved comprises Albany and Rensselaer counties and parts of Columbia and Greene counties in New York. Not too shabby.

Van Rensselaer had already lined up more than 30 Netherlanders to populate the territory when he gained his patroonship, so he already had a leg up on the requirements. One other endeavor managed to land a group of about the same number of colonizers in the Delaware area, but they somehow antagonized the local tribe, who killed them all. Other would-be patroons either failed to come up with sufficient funds or sold their rights back to the company. 

Eventually, the Dutch would come into conflict with England, lose, and cede the territory to the Brits. That's how New Amsterdam wound up being called Manhattan (from the indigenous name for the island), and the New Netherlands became New York. The English granted the patroonship, now Rensselaerwyck, patents that allowed the property to be inherited, and the area stayed under the control of the van Rensselaer family until well into the 1800s.

The Dutch had already established a fort along the Hudson, Fort Orange, which served as both a military and trading outpost. It eventually became Albany, Van Rensselaer's patroonship lay nearby, giving him protection and a place to develop agriculture with a built-in market. He never saw any profit during his lifetime, and he also never came to America to view his holdings.

When he died, ownership of the patroonship passed to his son, Johannes, a minor at the time, who would need someone to go to America and be his administrator. I'm not real sure how the selection process went, Sharon's great-great-to-the-x grandfather, Brandt van Slichtenhorst was hired.. 

I'm speculating at this point, but the van Rensselaers and the van Slichtenhorts both came from Gelderland, and van Slichtenhorst worked briefly at the Amsterdam branch of the GWC. At one point Brandt was slated to go to America, but he took another position instead. Perhaps he came into contact with one of  the van Rennselaers and made an impression. Also, Brandt's wife was a distant relation of the Rennselaers, though I'm guessing his abilities outweighed his thin familial ties.

In addition to being the administrator, van Slichtenhorst would function as a judge and as member of the political council. He immediately began work on his arrival, carrying out what he believed were his boss's wishes, which would put him in conflict with one of the most notable of New York names, Peter Stuyvesant. 

We'll look at that conflict next time.

Image: Coat of Arms of Kiliaen van Rensselaer, By Glasshouse using elements by Heralder - New England Historic Genealogical Society, A Roll of Arms (Boston, 1928-1980), CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=40558323