Fort Kyk-Over-Al was a Dutch fort in the colony of Essequibo, in what is now

Guyana Guyana ( or ), officially the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. Guyana is an indigenous word which means "Land of Many Waters". The capital city is Georgetown. Guyana is bordered by the ...

. It was constructed in 1616 at the intersection of the Essequibo, Cuyuni and Mazaruni rivers. It once served as the centre for the Dutch administration of the county, but now only ruins are left. The name Kyk-Over-Al derives from the Dutch for "See over all", a reference to the commanding view of the river from the fort.

History

The Dutch faced their first serious attacks in 1665 when Major John Scott was sent by the Governor of

Lord Willoughby Baron Willoughby of Parham was a title in the Peerage of England with two creations. The first creation was for Sir William Willoughby who was raised to the peerage under letters patent in 1547, with the remainder to his heirs male of body. A ...

, to invade the settlements in the Pomeroon. By that time, prosperous sugar plantations were already established in that area. Scott, in alliance with

Caribs “Carib” may refer to: People and languages *Kalina people, or Caribs, an indigenous people of South America **Carib language, also known as Kalina, the language of the South American Caribs *Kalinago people, or Island Caribs, an indigenous pe ...

, seized Nova Zeelandia, and after leaving 50 men to hold it, he proceeded up the Essequibo and occupied Kyk-Over-Al with 20 men. By 1672, Fort Kyk Over Al was described as a "two-storeyed brick structure approximately 20m x 20m, complete with a powder magazine inside the wall". The occupation of Kyk-Over-Al by the English did not last long, for the Dutch Commandeur of

Berbice Berbice is a region along the Berbice River in Guyana, which was between 1627 and 1792 a colony of the Dutch West India Company and between 1792 to 1815 a colony of the Dutch state. After having been ceded to the United Kingdom of Great Britain ...

, Matthys Bergenaar, was able to march overland with a group of soldiers and recapture it. At the same time, a French expedition arrived in the Pomeroon area to help the

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

who were their allies. They besieged the English at the fort at Nova Zeelandia and starved the men into surrendering. The prisoners were shortly after massacred by the Arawaks who were allies of the French. Thus, Essequibo reverted to the Dutch,

Abraham Crijnssen Abraham Crijnssen (died 1 February 1669) was a Dutch naval commander, notable for capturing the English colony in Suriname in 1667 during the Second Anglo-Dutch War, resulting in the establishment of a long-term colony under Dutch control. The ...

, who had earlier captured

Suriname Suriname (; srn, Sranankondre or ), officially the Republic of Suriname ( nl, Republiek Suriname , srn, Ripolik fu Sranan), is a country on the northeastern Atlantic coast of South America. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north ...

from the English, arrived as Commandeur. He concentrated his attention on redeveloping Kyk-Over-Al and the surrounding areas. Pomeroon was not regarded as a priority. One year later, another group of French privateers again attacked Essequibo. Pomeroon was also attacked the same year by the French and their Carib allies. However, Commander Blake, the Post-holder, and the few soldiers under his command were able to defend the settlement after killing many of the invaders. In December 1712, Pomeroon was attacked again by a combined force of French and Spanish buccaneers, but Blake and his men were able to drive them away. In 1716, the building became overcrowded and new buildings were constructed nearby. By 1748, the fort was completely abandoned, and the building was scavenged for new constructions. The site became of interest in 1897 as a part of the

Venezuelan crisis of 1895 The Venezuelan crisis of 1895 occurred over Venezuela's longstanding dispute with the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland about the territory of Essequibo and Guayana Esequiba, which Britain claimed as part of British Guiana and Venezu ...

, when the remnants of the fort were claimed to be built by the Spanish. An archaeologist identified the brickwork to be Dutch. On 20 July 1999, the building was designated a National Monument.

References

{{Buildings in Guyana 1616 establishments in the Dutch Empire Buildings and structures completed in 1616 Essequibo Forts in Guyana History of Guyana National Monuments in Guyana