Lauerstad was a Dutch colony in present-day Maranhao state, Brazil which was founded in 1642 by the Dutch explorer Jan Tasman. The town was named for Captain Ad Lauers, one of the original settlers of the town, and it became a large and prosperous colony due to the construction of farms and banks. Located across the Pindaré River from the Portuguese colony of Baraceira, the Dutch colony went to war with the Portuguese amid the Dutch-Portuguese War, and their rivalry included many naval clashes, abortive Dutch raids on Porto Pindaré, and, eventually, the Battle of Bacuri and the Battle of Lauerstad, during which the Dutch colony was destroyed.
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