page_title: Matias de Albuquerque, Count of Alegrete
section_title: The second Dutch invasion
hierarchical_section_title: Matias de Albuquerque, Count of Alegrete / Career / The second Dutch invasion
context_page_description: Matias de Albuquerque, the first and only Count of Alegrete, was a Brazilian colonial administrator and soldier. He was nicknamed "Hero of Two Continents" for his performance, beginning in 1624, against the Dutch invaders of colonial Brazil and for his role, beginning in 1641, as a general in Portugal, fighting for João IV during the Portuguese Restoration War, where he won the battle of Montijo over the Spaniards. For this victory he was rewarded by the King with the title of Count of Alegrete.
  The youngest son of Jorge de Albuquerque Coelho, Matias was baptized as Paulo de Albuquerque, but he changed his name to Matias to honor his relative and godfather, Matias de Albuquerque, who was the Viceroy of India.
context_section_description: In February 1630, the long-anticipated Dutch invasion finally arrived, and it immediately overwhelmed Olinda and its port, Recife. Albuquerque and his smaller force was compelled to retreat, but, before doing so, they managed to burn the sugar warehouses at the port of Recife, preventing the Dutch West India Company from using them and denying them the profit of their contents. He re-organized the Portuguese-Spanish defense on high ground at a place called Arraial Velho do Bom Jesus, about halfway between Olinda and Recife, and, in doing so, he established a fortified position that was quite easily defended, and its well-chosen location, for the most part, confined the Dutch within the towns. Albuquerque maintained this cordon until 1635, even though his position at Arraial came under repeated Dutch attacks.
caption: View of the city of Maurícia (Recife) Engraved in água forte, 38 x 50 cm, by Pieter Schenck, based on a drawing from Frans Post, 1645
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