Cornelis de Houtman and Frederik de Houtman

Quick Facts Cornelis de Houtman and Frederik de Houtman were brothers who navigated and led the first Dutch trading expedition to the East Indies, an area whose trade previously had been a Portuguese monopoly. Cornelis de Houtman and Frederik de Houtman were sent to Lisbon in 1592 as commercial representatives of nine Dutch merchants. The brothers were imprisoned by the Portuguese for attempting to steal secret charts of East Indian sailing routes. After their release...