How did the Dutch West India Company gain control of Pernambuco?

The Dutch West India Company gained control of Pernambuco in 1630 by dispatching a fleet to capture the region from the Portuguese. This military action was part of a broader strategy of economic warfare against Spain and Portugal, which were united at the time.12

The company was able to fund this challenge to Portuguese authority in Brazil using wealth acquired from the capture of a Spanish treasure fleet off the coast of Cuba in 1628 by the Dutch seaman Piet Heyn. Following the capture of Pernambuco, the region remained under Dutch control for 25 years, during which time it prospered as a sugar-producing center under the administration of John Maurice, count of Nassau-Siegen. The Dutch eventually capitulated to the Portuguese in 1654 following a rebellion led by local plantation owners.213