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The Dutch raid on Castro was a military action that took place between 19 April and 20 May 1600, during the Eighty Years' War. The town of Castro, located in the Chiloé Archipelago, on the southern coast of Chile, was occupied by Dutch privateers led by Baltazar de Cordes. The Dutch used the support of the Huilliche natives and deceitful agreements with the Spanish inhabitants to occupy the town, after which they committed brutal acts and built a fort to remain in place. But the resistance of the locals and a Spanish offensive from the town of Osorno, led by Colonel Francisco del Campo, ended up expelling the Dutch from the area and repressing the Huilliche rebels.

Dutch expedition of 1598
On June 27, 1598, a fleet of five ships (naos ) departed from Goedereede, in the Netherlands, under the command of Jacques Mahu, with the purpose of reaching the East Indies through the Strait of Magellan. The motivation was commercial, although the ships also had military elements to harass the Spaniards, either attacking their ships or overseas territories.

On April 6, 1599, they arrived in Magallanes, after about ten months of navigation, with all the inconveniences and losses of this type of expeditions. During the trip, the commander of the Dutch fleet died, and his second, Simon de Cordes, succeeded him. Due to the winter season that took place in the strait, they delayed the crossing, suffering the difficulties of the climate and the hostility of the Patagonian natives.

At the beginning of September they managed to enter the Pacific Ocean with favorable winds, but then there were strong storms that dispersed the fleet. As of that moment, each ship continued the trip alone, suffering disastrous accidents during the navigation that ended up causing later the failure of the expedition.

Some of these ships approached the coasts of the Captaincy of Chile, provoking in November the alarm of the authorities, in difficult circumstances for the region due to the long war between the Spaniards and the Mapuche natives.

Situation of Chile
At the time when the Dutch appeared in the South Sea, Chile was convulsed. In the south of the territory, a great uprising was taking place between the Mapuche and Huilliche peoples against the Spaniards, after the so-called disaster of Curalaba in December 1598. Spanish domination began to decline between the Bío Bío River and the Chacao Channel, due to the continuous attacks on the cities and forts of the area.

Only the Chiloé Archipelago, the most extreme territory of the Chilean captaincy in the south, escaped this uprising. The insular condition and the less bellicose nature of the natives (Huilliche) of the island helped that, so the peace continued unchanged since the conquest. But the territory was exposed to several contingencies due to its isolation.

The Dutch knew the situation of the war and tried to get in touch with the natives, presenting themselves as enemies of the Spaniards to be favorably received. However, they got disastrous experiences when trying. Cordes and several of his men ended up murdered when they approached Arauco.

Cordes in Chiloé and alliance with the Huilliches
When previously the Dutch fleet dispersed upon entering the Pacific, a ship called Trouwe (Fidelity), after facing several problems, began sailing in that sea in mid-December and then headed towards the Chilean coast. He was under the command of captain Baltazar de Cordes, brother of the second chief who had the expedition. The experienced captain Antonio Antoine, known by his people with the name of Antonio "the Black", seconded him.

In the first days of March of 1600, they approached the north coast of Chiloé and entered the Chacao channel. When passing through Lacuy and Carelmapu, they were lucky to be received by the Huilliche natives in friendship, especially for being enemies of the Spaniards. The natives provided fresh food such as corn, fish and others in exchange for axes, knives and some European products of little value. Three Spanish settlers who lived in these places, who, «left behind by the hand of God to flee from the calamities and works of this kingdom», joined the Dutch and gave them accurate news of the population and resources of Chiloé.

Deception of Cordes and occupation of Castro
With this, he proceeded to occupy the defenseless town of Castro in April, through a deception strategy, immediately committing all kinds of excesses against the settlers of the place.

Some settlers who withdrew from the city to the surrounding forests, led by captain Luis Pérez de Vargas, organized to harass the Dutch. During these activities of the settlers, a woman named Inés de Bazán stood out, since being in the occupied town, she carried out acts of sabotage against the Dutch defense system and sent ammunition to the precarious forces of Vargas.