The Duchy of Courland, a vassal of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the Eastern Baltic, became a brief but unexpected colonial power in the mid-seventeenth century. The dukes of Courland attempted to engage in oceanic trade to improve their fortunes, establishing fortresses in the Caribbean and Western Africa. Histories of the Couronian colonial venture often focus on the figure of Duke Jakob Kettler as an inspired or overambitious innovator. Yet, embarking on such an enterprise required the utilisation of intricate networks stretching across oceans in a range of different contexts and locations. The study investigates the connections, entanglements and ruptures present in this remarkable example of early modern colonisation.

John Freeman researches the early modern Baltic and its Atlantic connections. He most recently worked as assistant professor for global history at the University of Warsaw, also holding positions at the University of Greifswald and Centre for Geopolitics, Cambridge. He completed his doctorate in 2022 at the University of Cambridge.