Siege of Curacao, 1800. Historical illustration of ships of varying nationalities (mostly French, Dutch and Danish) present during the siege of the harbour of Willemstad, capital of the Caribbean island of Curacao. This island was at the time part of the Batavian Republic, a short-lived Dutch client state of the French Republic. This conflict was part of the French Revolutionary Wars. US and British forces successfully defeated the French and gained control of the island. Here, French flags are seen flying over buildings on the island. Ships, buildings and geographical features are named at bottom. The Dutch governor of the island was Johann Rudolf Lauffer (1753-1833).