Dirck Dircksz. Wilre (born 1636 – 27 September 1674) was a Dutch smuggler and slave trader who joined the

Dutch West India Company The Dutch West India Company ( nl, Geoctrooieerde Westindische Compagnie, ''WIC'' or ''GWC''; ; en, Chartered West India Company) was a chartered company of Dutch merchants as well as foreign investors. Among its founders was Willem Usselincx ( ...

in 1662, and who quickly climbed the ranks to become acting Director-General of the

Dutch Gold Coast The Dutch Gold Coast or Dutch Guinea, officially Dutch possessions on the Coast of Guinea (Dutch: ''Nederlandse Bezittingen ter Kuste van Guinea'') was a portion of contemporary Ghana that was gradually colonized by the Dutch, beginning in 1612. ...

in 1662. He eventually was installed as full Director-General in 1668.

Biography

Dirck Wilre was the youngest of three children born to Dirck Dircksz van Wilre, who was a sailor and captain, and Trijntjen Hendrix. Like many people from Graft, including some of Dirck's relatives, Dirck started his career as a smuggler or ''lorrendraaier'', sailing on the Coast of Guinea to trade gold, Guinea pepper, ivory and slaves. During one of his trips he had to abandon his ship in the

Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...

as it was in disrepair. He boarded a ship of the Dutch West India Company headed for Elmina. Arriving in the latter place in December 1658, Dirck Wilre decided to join the Dutch West India Company. By 1660, Wilre had climbed the ranks to become head merchant or ''oppercommies'' at Fort Nassau near Moree. After Director-General Van Heussen died in 1662 of a tropical fever, Wilre was installed as acting Governor-General. He served until the former Director-General

Jan Valckenburgh Jan Valckenburgh (born 1623 – 8 July 1667) was a civil servant of the Dutch West India Company. Valckenburgh began as a simple assistant-trader, but managed to make career up to one of the highest ranks, that of Director-General of the Dutc ...

arrived in Elmina in January 1663 to take over command. In

Elmina Elmina, also known as Edina by the local Fante people, Fante, is a town and the capital of the Komenda/Edina/Eguafo/Abirem Municipal District, Komenda/Edina/Eguafo/Abirem District on the south coast of Ghana in the Central Region, Ghana, Centra ...

, Wilre fathered three children with Helena Correa, a Euro-African daughter of a former governor of

Fort Santo Antonio Fort Saint Anthony (Portuguese: ''Forte de Santo António''; Dutch: ''Fort Sint Anthony'') was a fort built by the Portuguese in 1515 near the town of Axim, in what is now Ghana. In 1642, the Dutch captured the fort and subsequently made it part ...

Axim Axim is a coastal town and the capital of Nzema East Municipal district, a district in Western Region of South Ghana. Axim lies 64 kilometers west of the port city of Sekondi-Takoradi in the Western Region, west of Cape Three Points. Axim has ...

who was previously married to Jan Valckenburgh. In 1665, Wilre was finally granted permission to return to

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

. After his return, he married Maria de Perel in Amsterdam on 3 September 1666. In late 1667, Wilre was installed Director-General of the Gold Coast once again. He arrived in Elmina on 20 January 1668 to assume his second term as Director-General. In May 1674, Wilre was relieved of his duties once more. His return to the Dutch Republic proved a disaster though. After a long journey home, plagued by disease and misfortune, the ship on which Wilre was transported sank near the island of

Schiermonnikoog Schiermonnikoog (; fry, ) is an island, a municipality and national park in the Northern Netherlands. Schiermonnikoog is one of the West Frisian Islands, and is part of the province of Friesland. It is situated between the islands of Ameland a ...

on 27 September 1674, drowning Dirck Wilre, merchant Joannes Stockram, and doctor Jacob Aven, among many others.

Painting by Pieter de Wit

In 1669, during his term as Director-General, Dirck Wilre was painted by Pieter de Wit, probably together with Willem Godschalck van Focquenbroch, who served in Elmina as fiscal. It is likely that the painting was ordered by Wilre himself as a present for his wife Maria de Perel in Amsterdam.

Notes

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wilre, Dirck 1636 births 1667 deaths Dutch slave traders Colonial governors of the Dutch Gold Coast