<p>The Dutch are coming back to the Brazilian city of Fortaleza this weekend, 360 years after they abandoned it at the end of a daring but short-lived attempt to colonise the Atlantic coast of South America.<br /><br /></p>.<p>Thousands of Dutch soccer fans are expected in the city for their side's World Cup second round clash against Mexico on Sunday.<br /><br />Two Dutch beachfront bars, “Satehut” and “O Holandes Voador” (The Flying Dutchman), are already doing brisk business.<br /><br />Like many cities in northeast Brazil, Fortaleza has a Dutch heritage. Fortaleza means “fortress” in Portuguese and the city owes its name to Fort Schoonenburgh, built by the Dutch in 1649 during their 30-year occupation of this part of Brazil.<br /><br />That occupation began in spectacular fashion in 1624 when a Dutch fleet seized the city of Salvador from the Spanish.<br /><br />“It was hailed at the time as the greatest victory over Spain of the Dutch Golden Age,” said Michiel van Groesen, a lecturer in early modern history at Amsterdam University and editor of “The Legacy of Dutch Brazil”, a book about the period.<br /><br />“That's why it was so symbolic that the Dutch played Spain in Salvador at this World Cup,” he said, referring to The Netherlands' 5-1 drubbing of the world champions two weeks ago.<br /><br />“The result was effectively the same now as in 1624. We thrashed them on both occasions.”<br /><br />The Dutch fleet lost Salvador a year later but moved north, establishing colonies in Recife, Natal, Fortaleza and Sao Luis da Maranhao, leaving their mark wherever they went.<br /><br />“If you look at the houses in the old town of Recife many of them look like Amsterdam town houses,” Van Groesen told Reuters in a telephone interview.<br /><br />Close to Recife stands Fort Orange, the best preserved of the old Dutch fortresses. In Fortaleza, the remains of Fort Schoonenburgh can still be seen under a later Portuguese construction.<br /><br />The Dutch influenced the Portuguese language too. Former Brazil coach Vanderlei Luxemburgo is one of many Brazilians who owes his name to the country's Dutch heritage.<br /><br />Vanderlei, Vanderley and Wanderley are all corruptions of Van der Ley, the surname of a well-known 17th century officer from the Dutch West India Company. This history is not lost on the Dutch fans in Fortaleza.<br /><br />“We kicked the Portuguese out of here and we owned the place for a while,” said Ruud Maasland, a Dutchman who is married to a Brazilian and who knows Fortaleza well.<br /><br />“That kind of gives you an extra good feeling when the Dutch team play here.” The Dutch were finally driven out of Brazil by the Portuguese in 1654.</p>
<p>The Dutch are coming back to the Brazilian city of Fortaleza this weekend, 360 years after they abandoned it at the end of a daring but short-lived attempt to colonise the Atlantic coast of South America.<br /><br /></p>.<p>Thousands of Dutch soccer fans are expected in the city for their side's World Cup second round clash against Mexico on Sunday.<br /><br />Two Dutch beachfront bars, “Satehut” and “O Holandes Voador” (The Flying Dutchman), are already doing brisk business.<br /><br />Like many cities in northeast Brazil, Fortaleza has a Dutch heritage. Fortaleza means “fortress” in Portuguese and the city owes its name to Fort Schoonenburgh, built by the Dutch in 1649 during their 30-year occupation of this part of Brazil.<br /><br />That occupation began in spectacular fashion in 1624 when a Dutch fleet seized the city of Salvador from the Spanish.<br /><br />“It was hailed at the time as the greatest victory over Spain of the Dutch Golden Age,” said Michiel van Groesen, a lecturer in early modern history at Amsterdam University and editor of “The Legacy of Dutch Brazil”, a book about the period.<br /><br />“That's why it was so symbolic that the Dutch played Spain in Salvador at this World Cup,” he said, referring to The Netherlands' 5-1 drubbing of the world champions two weeks ago.<br /><br />“The result was effectively the same now as in 1624. We thrashed them on both occasions.”<br /><br />The Dutch fleet lost Salvador a year later but moved north, establishing colonies in Recife, Natal, Fortaleza and Sao Luis da Maranhao, leaving their mark wherever they went.<br /><br />“If you look at the houses in the old town of Recife many of them look like Amsterdam town houses,” Van Groesen told Reuters in a telephone interview.<br /><br />Close to Recife stands Fort Orange, the best preserved of the old Dutch fortresses. In Fortaleza, the remains of Fort Schoonenburgh can still be seen under a later Portuguese construction.<br /><br />The Dutch influenced the Portuguese language too. Former Brazil coach Vanderlei Luxemburgo is one of many Brazilians who owes his name to the country's Dutch heritage.<br /><br />Vanderlei, Vanderley and Wanderley are all corruptions of Van der Ley, the surname of a well-known 17th century officer from the Dutch West India Company. This history is not lost on the Dutch fans in Fortaleza.<br /><br />“We kicked the Portuguese out of here and we owned the place for a while,” said Ruud Maasland, a Dutchman who is married to a Brazilian and who knows Fortaleza well.<br /><br />“That kind of gives you an extra good feeling when the Dutch team play here.” The Dutch were finally driven out of Brazil by the Portuguese in 1654.</p>