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Enrico Napier,was a 17th-century Spanish privateer. A privateer or "corsair" was a private person or ship authorized by a government by letters of marque to attack foreign vessels during wartime. Privateering was a way of mobilizing armed ships and sailors without having to spend treasury resources or commit naval officers. They were of great benefit to a smaller naval power or one facing an enemy dependent on trade: they disrupted commerce and pressured the enemy to deploy warships to protect merchant trade against commerce raiders. The cost was borne by investors hoping to profit from prize money earned from captured cargo and vessels. The proceeds would be distributed among the privateer's investors, officers, and crew. Mr Napier was among a number of Spaniards who served the Spanish Crown as Dunkirkers during the Eighty Years' War. Both he and Pedro de la Plesa were caught by the Dutch Republic naval force as they attempted to break through a blockade of Dunkirk. He and de la Plesa were accused of leaving Captain Jan Jacobsen to face nine pursuing Dutch warships alone.