Like
Brandenburg, which had far larger German colonising power before the formation of the
German Empire, the Duchy of Courland had a European crusading past. The colonies were established under
Jacob, Duke of Courland and Semigallia, and were one of the two Curonian colonies. The second colony was
Gambia River in Africa. During his reign (1642–1682), the Duchy established trading relations with all of the major European powers. Jacob established one of the largest merchant fleets in Europe, with its main harbours in
Windau (today Ventspils), and
Libau (today Liepāja). His fleet made voyages to the
West Indies as early as 1637 when the settlers
established the first colony on
Tobago. The first colony was a failure, but it was refounded in 1639. In 1651, Courland and Semigallia leased a colony in Africa on
St. Andrew's Island in the
Gambia River from the
Kingdom of Niumi and went on to build Fort Jakob on the island. The Duchy also leased St. Mary Island (modern-day
Banjul) from
Kombo and
Fort Jillifree from Niumi. The Courland and Semigallia's colonies exported
sugar,
tobacco,
coffee,
cotton,
ginger,
indigo,
rum,
cocoa,
tortoise shells, as well as tropical birds and their much sought after feathers. In the end, the Duchy would manage to retain control of these lands for less than a decade and the colonies were formally ceded to
England in 1664. The colonies were lost when Courland and Semigallia's neighbours took advantage of its weakened defences during the
Northern Wars, when Jakob was held captive by the
Swedish Army from 1658 to 1660. After the end of the war, the island of Tobago was returned to Courland. However, the Duchy ended up abandoning the island in 1666. In 1668, a Curonian ship attempted to reoccupy Fort Jacob but was driven off by the Dutch garrison stationed on the island. The
Courland Monument near
Great Courland Bay commemorates the Duchy's settlements. ==Former colonies==