The Conflict between William Leyel and Bernt Pessart (
Tranquebar and the Danish East India Company. The conflict led to the escape of Bernt Pessart, and the command at Tranquebar accepted Willem Leyel as governor of Danish India
Senerat did no longer desire the Danish monopol when Gjedde arrived.[4] Instead Gjedde succeeded in signing a treaty with the nayak of the Thanjavurian kingdom, which by an annual tribute gave the Danes the right to the small fishing village of Tharangambadi.[5]
View of Masulipatam (Bandar), 1676. Roland Crappé made Bandar the centre for the company's trade, and Bernt Pessart further made it the official headquarters.
During the 1620s and 30's trade flourished, and a far-flung string of Danish factories and outposts were established in
Because of the situation in India, Christian IV sent captain Willem Leyel to
Dansborg to investigate the company's affairs.[11][12][13] Leyel arrived on 5 September 1643 in Dansborg.[6][11][13] Here he fulfilled his royal orders and investigated Tranquebar; He noticed heavy damage to Fort Dansborg and found the warehouse empty.[6] Pessart explained that Danborg was no longer of much use, and that the warehouse was emptied to load off two ships that were sent to the Sunda Islands.[6]
When Pessart informed Leyel that he was going to Bandar, Leyel opted to join because he distrusted Pessart's intentions.[6][10] When leaving tranquebar, distrusted Leyel put a couple of men loyal to him on each of Pessart's ships and left others at Dansborg.[6][11]
Joint voyage to Bandar
When at sea Pessart insisted to visit the English station at
ran aground and was badly damaged.[6][11] Pessart carelessly put up a tent and began to drink
Sea campaigns
September–October, 1643
April–June, 1644
Routes of Willem Leyel
Routes of Bernt Pessart
Joint routes
Conflict
One night several men secretly came to Leyel and told him that Pessart was planning to take Valby and sail off with his men.[6] In response on 28 October Leyel sent Jørgen Hansen with eight unarmed men over to Valby where they went on board and cut the cable.[6][11] This move was a minor risk; If Pessart had found out what was happening, he might have came out of his tent with his 20 armed men and a fight might have occurred, which Leyel wished to avoid.[6][11]
With the intent to arrest Pessart, Leyel went ashore and advanced on Pessart's tent with a party of armed men.[11][10] Yet when they entered the tent, they found out that Pessart had already fled with 16 men.[10] Leyel found out, that Pessart not only had intentions to seize Valby but also to set Leyel's ship, Christianshavn, on fire.[6][11]
Chase of Pessart
Leyel immediately sent off Jørgen Hansen with a longboat and a strongly armed crew to try overtake Pessart's barge.[11] Hansen did overtake Pessart during the night and shouted to Pessart that he must return and declare his arrest, to which Pessart shouted that he would rather die.[6][11] Hansen now gave orders to fire on Pessart's barge, yet the heavy sea made it hard to aim properly.[6] Hansen pursued Pessart all the way to the Pedapulivarrureef, where he would give up because of Pessart's readiness to fight.[11] Pessart would continue down to Dansborg.[6][10][13]
Madras
, by William Orme
Leyel and his men would stay at Emeldy during monsoon, while Pessart would reach the Santhome and later Dansborg.[6][11] Leyel reached Fort St. George in early April and received a warm reception by Francis Day.Fort St. George.[11] On June 11, 1644, Leyel, with Christianshavn and Valby, reached Dansborg,[13] yet the city showed no sign of life.[6][10] Unsure of the situation, Leyel sent letters to the commander at Dansborg, Jacob von Stackenborg, and chaplain, Niels Andersen with no response.[11] Leyel suspected that Pessart had odered to close to fort to Leyel and his men, and therefore Leyel wrote in one of his letters:
You may be sure that i will use even the most extreme measures, as is meet and proper, and to perform which i shall not lack the means ... To punish rebels and perjurers, as both the
English have promised me every assistance; still, i hope that it will not prove necessary to resort to such extreme measures.[6]
— Willem Leyel
After some time Leyel was still denied access to Tranquebar, and was therefore in need of fresh provisions, so he left for Karaikal,[13] where he would sent Portuguese Antonio Pacheco to Dansborg for negotiations.[11][10] Pacheco was not well received in Dansborg, and when Leyel again anchored near Dansborg, Pacheco would successfully try to sail out to him, though under fire from Dansborg.[6][11]
View of Tranquebar and its fortifications, 1790, by Peter Anker
Since Dansborg was still seald off, Leyel went ashore on June 22 with 70 armed men and two guns.[6][11] He was received well by the local inhabitants and the Thanjavur Nayak kingdom, who feed his soldiers and offered to help.[6] The siege lasted for some time. Finally the commander, Frantz Erkmand came out and admitted that there now was a shortage of almost everything in Dansborg.[10] Erkmand would surrender on the terms that he would be pardoned, which Leyel accepted.[6][10]
Leyel now inspected the town and fort to which he concluded that it had been left by Pessart in poor conditions.[6] As response to the poor conditions and
Danish India 1643-1669
Danish settlements, factories and trading routes in India during Wilem Leyel's regime.
conflict with Pessart, he summoned a coincil meeting which ended in the recognition of Leyel as the new governor.[11][10]
Pessart loyalist
Leyel loyalist
Dutch Coromandel
English Madras
Portuguese Carical
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_-_Kulturhistorisk_museum,_UiO_-_UEM4452.jpg)
