In 1606, l'Hermite set sail to the
Dutch East Indies as a secretary on the fleet commanded by Admiral
Cornelis Matelief Jr. where in 1607 he was appointed chief merchant on
Black Lion (). From 1607 to 1611, l'Hermite was chief merchant () for the Dutch East India Company in Bantam, Dutch East Indies. After six years working abroad he returned to Amsterdam in the Dutch Republic. There he married Theodora van Wely in March 1613. In April 1623, l'Hermite was commissioned by Prince
Maurice of Nassau and the Dutch State General to lead a fleet of eleven ships known as the
Nassau Fleet () with its flagship
Amsterdam. The fleet set sail on a circumnavigational voyage westwards from Amsterdam to the western coast of
South America with the objective to hunt down Spanish silver ships leaving
Peru and to establish a Dutch colony in either Peru or Chile, at that time known as the
Viceroyalty of Peru. Although commanded by Admiral l'Hermite, the fleet was
de facto led by his Vice-Admiral Gheen Huygen Schapenham and Rear-Admiral
Julius Wilhelm Van Verschoor after l'Hermite like most of its crew suffered from
dysentery during the journey. In early 1624, the fleet passed Cape Horn through
Lemaire Channel and explored and charted the Hermite Islands. In May 1624, the fleet blocked the port of Callao and raided the cities of
Pisco and
Guayaquil, but they were unsuccessful in establishing a colony and the fleet was forced to continue its voyage westwards towards the Dutch East Indies. ==Death==