Dutch colonisation of the Guianas Dutch colonisation of the Guianas Dutch colonisation of the Guianas the coastal region between the Orinoco and Amazon rivers in South America began in the early 16th century. The Dutch originally claimed all of Guiana (also called "De wilde kust", the "Wild Coast") but following attempts to sell it first to Bavaria and then to Hanau and the loss of sections to Portugal, Britain, and France the section actually settled and controlled by the Netherlands became known as Dutch Guiana (Dutch: "Nederlands-Guiana"). The colonies of Essequibo and Demerara were controlled by the Dutch West India Company, while Berbice and Surinam
History of French Guiana Amerindian attacks. In 1658 the Dutch West Indies Company seized French territory to establish the Dutch colony of Cayenne. The French returned once more in 1664, and founded a second settlement at Sinnamary (this was attacked by the Dutch in 1665). In 1667 the English seized the area. Following the Treaty of Breda on 31 July 1667 the area was given back to France. The Dutch briefly occupied it for a period in 1676. After the Treaty of Paris in 1763, which deprived France of almost all her possessions in the Americas other than Guiana and a few islands, Louis