Recife is the state capital of Pernambuco, Brazil, on the northeastern Atlantic coast of South America. It is the largest urban area within both the North and the Northeast Region of Brazil. It is the largest city in Pernambuco state, and the fourth-largest urban area in all of Brazil; the metro population of the city of Recife was 3,726,974 in 2022. Recife was founded by the colonial Portuguese Empire in 1537, serving as the main harbor of the Captaincy of Pernambuco—known for its large-scale production of sugar cane. At one point, it was known as Mauritsstad, when it served as the capital city of the 17th century colony of New Holland of Dutch Brazil. Situated at the confluence of the Rivers Beberibe and Capibaribe, before they drain into the South Atlantic Ocean, Recife is a major seaport along the Brazilian Atlantic coast. Its name is an allusion to the stone reefs that are present offshore. Together with the urban presence of the Beberibe and Capibaribe Rivers and their tributaries, the many additional unique, small islands—and more than 50 bridges linking them throughout the city—create a distinct maritime or "riviera" atmosphere, leading to Recife being known as the "Venice of Brazil".
Pernambuco is a state of Brazil, located in the Northeast region of the country. With an estimated population of 9 million people as of 2022, it is the seventh-most populous state of Brazil and with around 98,067.877 km2, it is the 19th-largest in area among federative units of the country. It is also the sixth-most densely populated with around 89 people per km2. Its capital and largest city, Recife, is one of the most important economic and urban hubs in the country. Based on 2019 estimates, the Recife Metropolitan Region is seventh-most populous in the country, and the second-largest in northeastern Brazil. In 2015, the state had 4.4% of the national population and produced 2.8% of the national gross domestic product (GDP).
Ilha de Itamaracá is a tropical island and municipality in Pernambuco, Brazil on the Atlantic Ocean. Itamaracá means "stone shaker" in Tupi, from the words itá ("stone") and mbara'ká ("shaker"). It is separated from the mainland by the Canal de Santa Cruz, a salt water channel both mouths of which are on the Atlantic Ocean, and is connected to the mainland by a long road bridge.
Recife Antigo is the historical section of central Recife, Brazil. It is located on the Island of Recife, near the Recife harbor. This historic area has been recently recovered and now holds several clubs, bars and a high-tech center called Porto Digital.
The Second Battle of Guararapes was the second and decisive battle in the Insurrection of Pernambuco between Dutch and Portuguese forces in February 1649 at Jaboatão dos Guararapes in Pernambuco. The defeat convinced the Dutch "that the Portuguese were formidable opponents, something which they had hitherto refused to concede." The Dutch still retained a presence in Brazil until 1654 and a treaty was signed in 1661.
Dutch Brazil, also known as New Holland, was a colony of the Dutch Republic in the northeastern portion of modern-day Brazil, controlled from 1630 to 1654 during Dutch colonization of the Americas. The main cities of the colony were the capital Mauritsstad, Frederikstadt, Nieuw Amsterdam (Natal), Saint Louis, São Cristóvão, Fort Schoonenborch (Fortaleza), Sirinhaém, and Olinda.
Dutch Brazilians refers to Brazilians of full or partial Dutch ancestry. Dutch Brazilians are mainly descendants of immigrants from the Netherlands.
Matias de Albuquerque, Count of Alegrete was a Portuguese colonial administrator and soldier. He was nicknamed "Hero of Two Continents" for his performance, beginning in 1624, against the Dutch invaders of colonial Brazil and for his role, beginning in 1641, as a general in Portugal, fighting for king John IV during the Portuguese Restoration War, where he won the battle of Montijo over the Spaniards in 1644. For this victory he was rewarded the title of Count of Alegrete by the king.
Mauritsstad was the capital of Dutch Brazil, and is now a part of the Brazilian city of Recife.
The naval Battle of the Abrolhos took place on 12 September 1631 off the coast of Pernambuco, Brazil, during the Eighty Years' War. A joint Spanish-Portuguese fleet under admiral Antonio de Oquendo defeated the Dutch after a six-hour naval battle.
The action of 12–17 January 1640 was a naval battle between a Dutch fleet and a combined Spanish-Portuguese fleet during the Eighty Years' War. The battle took place on the Brazilian coast off Pernambuco and was an attempt by a fleet consisting of approximately eighty vessels transporting about 5,000 soldiers under the command of Portuguese Admiral Fernando de Mascarenhas to land reinforcements to bolster the Portuguese militia besieging the city of Recife. On 12 January this fleet was intercepted by a Dutch task force of about forty ships commanded by Willem Loos. The ensuing battle lasted with occasional breaks until the evening of 17 January, when the Spanish and Portuguese fleet retreated and sailed away to the north.
The history of Pernambuco can be roughly divided into two periods: first, when the region was a colony of Portugal and, second, when it was a component of the nation of Brazil. Not to be overlooked, however, are the established indigenous peoples of the region, numerous revolts and short-lived independence movements, French incursions, and a Dutch occupation.
Anna Gonsalves Paes de Azevedo, or Anna Paes, was a Brazilian plantation owner.
The Captaincy of Pernambuco or New Lusitania was a hereditary land grant and administrative subdivision of northern Portuguese Brazil during the colonial period from 1534 to 1821, with a brief interruption from 1630 to 1654 when it was part of Dutch Brazil. At the time of the Independence of Brazil, it became a province of United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves. Captaincies were originally horizontal tracts of land (generally) 50 leagues wide extending from the Atlantic Ocean to the Tordesillas meridian.
The Capture of Recife also known as James Lancaster's 1595 Expedition or Lancaster's Pernambucan expedition was an English military expedition during the Anglo–Spanish War in which the primary objective was the capture of the town and port of Recife in the Captaincy of Pernambuco in the Portuguese colony of Brazil in April 1595. An English expedition of ships led by James Lancaster sailed via the Atlantic capturing numerous prizes before he captured Recife. He held the place for nearly a month and then proceeded to defeat a number of Portuguese counterattacks before leaving. The booty captured was substantial, Lancaster chartered Dutch and French ships that were also present there thus making the expedition a military and financial success.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Recife, Pernambuco state, Brazil.
Forte de São Tiago das Cinco Pontas is a fort located in Recife, Pernambuco in Brazil.
The Recapture of Recife was a military engagement between the Portuguese forces under Francisco Barreto de Meneses and the Dutch forces of Captain Walter Van Loo. After the Dutch defeats at Guararapes, their surviving men, as well as other garrisons of New Holland, joined in the area of Mauritsstad in order to make a last stand. However, after fierce fighting, the Portuguese victoriously entered the city and the remaining Dutch were ousted from Brazil.
The Dutch invasions in Brazil, ordered by the Dutch West India Company (WIC), occurred during the 17th century.
The Insurrection of Pernambuco, also known as the War of the Divine Light, was a movement against Dutch rule in the Captaincy of Pernambuco. The revolution occurred in the course of the second Dutch invasion during the Dutch–Portuguese War and resulted in the expulsion of the Dutch from the northeast region of Brazil, followed by the reclamation of the territory by the Kingdom of Portugal.
Dutch Republic 
Portugal