1) New Holland, North America (a.k.a. New Netherlands)

(Dutch: Nieuw Nederland, "New Netherlands")

Dutch colony in North America in the region between the Delaware and Connecticut rivers, founded by the Dutch West India Company in 1614. From 1626, the colony's center administration was located at New Amsterdam on Manhattan Island.

During the tenure of governor Pieter Stuyvesant, the Swedish colony of New Sweden (Nya Sverige) was conquered in 1655.

New Holland was itself absorbed into the English colonial hegemony in North America, in 1664, and New Amsterdam was renamed New York.

2) New Holland, South America

(Dutch: Nieuw Holland, "New Holland")

Dutch colony by conquest in South America, in Brazil. New Holland was initially established with the conquest of the Portuguese colony of Pernambuco by Dutch forces under Hedrik Corneliszoon Loncq, in 1630. Portuguese resistance lasted until the end of the 1630s. By this time, the Dutch West India Company was the de facto government of Brazil.

From 1637 to 1644, the colony was governed by Johan Maurits of Nassau-Siegen, but after his return to the Netherlands in 1644, the Portuguese gentry rebelled, with aid from Portugal itself (now independent from Spain, and eager to reaffirm old claims).

By 1654, the Portuguese had seized the final Dutch foothold at Recife, and New Holland-in-Brazil was no more.

3) New Holland, Australia

The Western part of Australia was first discovered by the Dutch, and it was not initially clear that this land was contiguous with the British-discovered territory of New South Wales. Older maps (particularly those of non-British provenance) refer to all of modern-day Australia as "New Holland" - it was not until 1817 that Governor Macquarie recommended the adoption of the name Australia for the entire continent, replacing New Holland.

Log in or register to write something here or to contact authors.