Peter Stuyvesant

Peter Stuyvesant served as the Dutch Director General of New Netherlands from 1647 to 1664, and presided over the early settlement and establishment of Manhattan and other present-day New York City and New Jersey municipalities.

1. Born: ca. 1612
2. Married: Judith Bayard
3. Died: August, 1672
4. Built the protective wall on Wall Street
5. Born in Peperga, The Netherlands
6. Nickname: Old Silver Nails, Peg Leg Pete
7. Had a wooden leg
8. Credited with introducing tea to the American colonies
9. Housing complex Stuyvesant Town on East Side of Manhattan, Stuyvesant High School named after him

Peter Stuyvesant led the Dutch colony of New Netherlands (name changed in 1653 to New Amsterdam) on present-day Manhattan Island. Stuyvesant's rule was marked by frequent attacks by hostile Native Americans and boundary disputes with the New England colonies to the north. Stuyvesant forbade religious freedom in his colony, and ruled with an autocratic style that angered many. Some historians have suggested that his ill-temper was the result of a poorly fitting leg prothesis, which was thought to have been attached to his leg with nails. In 1664, Stuyvesant surrendered New Amsterdam to the British, whereupon the colony was renamed New York.

• 1612: Born

• 1625: Entered military service, first serving in the West Indies

• 1634-44: Director of the Dutch West India Company colony of Curacao

• 1644: Is wounded in attack on Saint Martin, losing a leg and requiring a prosthesis

• 1645: Replaces Willem Kieft as Director-General of New Netherland

• 1645: Marries Judith Bayard of Holland

• 1648: Begins conflict with Brant Arent Van Slechtenhorst, commissary of Rensselaerwyck fort, over its jurisdiction

• 1650: Attends council meeting in Hartford, Connecticut to discuss borders

• 1653: Municipal government established for New Amsterdam

• 1655: Sails into the Delaware River with 700 troops and 7 vessels, taking possession of New Sweden

• 1664: Signs treaty ceding New Amsterdam to the English; it is renamed New York City

• 1665: Retires to 62-acre farm outside of Haarlem

• 1672: Dies in August and interred at St. Mark's Church in the Bowery