Page "Danish West India Company" Paragraph 2

The Danish West Indies first settled St. Thomas in 1668 and St. John in 1718 and purchased St. Croix from the French in 1733.

The West India Company was organized on November 20, 1670, and formally chartered by King Christian V on March 11, 1671.

The first successful colonization of Sankt Thomas employed ships of the Royal Dano-Norwegian Navy, the yacht Den forgyldte Krone and the frigate Færøe ( referring to the islands, but often erroneously translated as Pharaoh ), but the company quickly began employing ships of their own, while occasionally relying on the royal navy for escorts and protection.

From August 30, 1680, it became known as the West IndiaGuinea Company.

At first, the company had difficulties being profitable, but eventually it began to increase revenue by raising taxes and bringing all colonial exports into Copenhagen directly.