Mansvelt and his crew leave Jamaica in…

Mansvelt and his crew leave Jamaica in January 1666.

According to writer and historian Alexandre Exquemelin, Mansvelt led the fleet which captured and looted Granada and the Isle of St. Catherine, although this is disputed.

He was, however, elected admiral of the fleet consisting between ten to fifteen ships and an estimated five hundred men.

Sailing for Costa Rica in April, he intended to attack Cartago several miles inland but was turned back by heavy resistance from Spanish defenders near Turrialba.

Several members chose to leave the expedition to return to Jamaica or Tortuga after this setback.

Mansvelt, however, takes what remains of the fleet, successfully raiding the Isle of St. Catherine and capturing the island of Santa Catalina (later renamed Providence Island by the English who will later establish a successful colony there.)

After occupying St. Catherine, Mansvelt sends word to Port Royal for reinforcements in order to use the island as a base to attack the Spanish.

The island may have been what is today called San Andres, located one hundred miles off Nicaragua.

He fails to persuade the governor in his request, as well as his attempts to use the island as a pirate haven, and dies of a sudden illness.

Another version, again according to Exquemelin, claims he sailed from the island to Tortuga where he was captured by the Spanish in Cuba and executed for piracy.

Regardless, his authority is assumed by another rising buccaneering captain, Henry Morgan, following news of his death.

Morgan is perhaps the most famous member of the Brethren and the one usually noted with codifying its organization.