A privateer is a private person who or a vessel that engages in maritime warfare under a commission of war. Since robbery under arms was a common aspect of seaborne trade, until the early 19th century all merchant ships carried arms. A sovereign or delegated authority issued commissions, also referred to as letters of marque, during wartime. The commission empowered the holder to carry on all forms of hostility permissible at sea by the usages of war. This included attacking foreign vessels and taking them as prizes and taking crews prisoner for exchange. Captured ships were subject to condemnation and sale under prize law, with the proceeds divided by percentage between the privateer's sponsors, shipowners, captains and crew. A percentage share usually went to the issuer of the commission.
The Anglo–Dutch Wars were a series of conflicts mainly fought between the Dutch Republic and England in the mid-17th and late 18th century. The first three wars occurred in the second half of the 17th century over trade and overseas colonies, while the fourth was fought a century later. Almost all the battles were naval engagements.
The Second Anglo-Dutch War, or Second Dutch War, began on 4 March 1665, and concluded with the signing of the Treaty of Breda on 31 July 1667. One in a series of naval conflicts between England and the Dutch Republic, its causes were a combination of political differences and commercial disputes.
The Four Days' Battle was a naval engagement fought from 11 to 14 June 1666 during the Second Anglo-Dutch War. It began off the Flemish coast and ended near the English coast, and remains one of the longest naval battles in history.
Michiel Adriaenszoon de Ruyter was a Dutch admiral. His achievements with the Dutch Navy during the Anglo-Dutch Wars earned him the reputation as one of the most skilled naval commanders in history.
Peter Easton was a Scottish privateer and later pirate in the early 17th century. Conflicting accounts exist regarding his early life. By 1602, Easton had become a highly successful privateer, commissioned to protect English interests in Newfoundland. The 'most famous English pirate of the day', his piracies ranged from Ireland and Guinea to Newfoundland. He is best known today for his involvement in the early English settlement of Newfoundland, including the settlements at Harbour Grace and Ferryland from 1611 to 1614. One of the most successful of all pirates, he controlled such seapower that no sovereign or state could afford to ignore him, and he was never overtaken or captured by any fleet commissioned to hunt him down. However, he is not as well known as some of the pirates from the late 17th and early 18th centuries.
The Battle of Vågen was a naval battle between a Dutch merchant and treasure fleet; and an English flotilla of warships in August 1665 as part of the Second Anglo-Dutch War. The battle took place in Vågen, the main port area of neutral Bergen, Norway. Due to a delay in orders, the Norwegian commanders took the side of the Dutch, contrary to the secret intentions of the King of Norway and Denmark. The battle ended with the retreat of the English fleet, which was much damaged but had lost no ships. The treasure fleet was relieved by the Dutch home fleet 17 days later.
Cornelis Evertsen the Youngest was a Dutch naval officer from Vlissingen who served as Lieutenant Admiral of Zeeland and Supreme Commander of the Confederated Dutch Navy. Of a family that included several other naval admirals, including his father, Evertsen is noted for his distinguished service during the Second Anglo-Dutch War, Third Anglo-Dutch War, the Franco-Dutch War, the Glorious Revolution invasion, and the Battle of Beachy Head during the Nine Years' War.
Willem Joseph baron van Ghent tot Drakenburgh was a 17th-century Dutch admiral. His surname is also sometimes rendered Gendt or Gent; he was the first commander of the Dutch marines.
The timeline of St. John's history shows the significant events in the history of St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador.
The maritime history of England involves events including shipping, ports, navigation, and seamen, as well as marine sciences, exploration, trade, and maritime themes in the arts of England. Until the advent of air transport and the creation of the Channel Tunnel, marine transport was the only way of reaching the rest of Europe from England and for this reason, maritime trade and naval power have always had great importance. Prior to the Acts of Union in 1707, the maritime history of the British Isles was largely dominated by England.
The Sea Dogs were a group of English privateers and explorers authorised by Queen Elizabeth I to raid England's enemies, whether they were formally at war with them or not. Active from 1560 until Elizabeth's death in 1603, the Sea Dogs primarily attacked Spanish targets both on land and at sea, particularly during the Anglo-Spanish War. Members of the Sea Dogs, including Sir John Hawkins and Sir Francis Drake, also engaged in illicit slave trading with Spanish colonies in the Americas.
Enno Doedes Star was a Dutch admiral.
The English overseas possessions, also known as the English colonial empire, comprised a variety of overseas territories that were settled, conquered, or otherwise acquired by the former Kingdom of England during the centuries before the Acts of Union of 1707 between the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland created the Kingdom of Great Britain. The many English possessions then became the foundation of the British Empire and its fast-growing naval and mercantile power, which until then had yet to overtake those of the Dutch Republic, the Kingdom of Portugal, and the Crown of Castile.
The Newfoundland Expedition also known as Bernard Drake's Newfoundland Expedition was an English naval expedition that took place during the beginning of the declared Anglo-Spanish War in the North Atlantic during summer and autumn of 1585. The area of conflict was situated mainly in an area known as the Grand Banks off present day Newfoundland. The aim of the expedition was to capture the Spanish and Portuguese fishing fleets. The expedition was a huge military and financial success and virtually removed the Spanish and Portuguese from these waters. In addition the raid had large consequences in terms of English colonial expansion and settlement.
Admiral Sir John Harman was an English officer of the Royal Navy, who served first under the Commonwealth, then Charles II following the 1660 Stuart Restoration.
The Battle of Barbados also known as the Action of Carlisle Bay was a military action that took place off the Caribbean island of Barbados on 29 April 1665 just before the outbreak of the Second Anglo-Dutch War. It was fought between an English force defending against an attacking Dutch force led by Michiel de Ruyter. Although De Ruyter destroyed much of an English convoy at Carlisle Bay his fleet was severely damaged and was unable to launch an invasion of the island.
The Dutch Raid on North America, took place from December 1672 to February 1674 during the Third Anglo-Dutch War, a related conflict of the Franco-Dutch War. A naval expedition led by Cornelis Evertsen the Youngest and Jacob Binckes attacked English and French possessions in North America.
The Battle of The James River took place in June 1667 during the Second Anglo-Dutch War. A Dutch force of five ships led by Abraham Crijnssen sailed through the James River in Virginia searching for English ships. They eventually found them - where they burned and captured them.
After England launched an expedition to conquer Dutch forts in Africa Michiel de Ruyter was sent to recapture them all, he succeeded and even captured extra English forts.
Dutch Republic 
Christopher Martin