Abraham Duquesne, marquis du Bouchet (2 February 1688) was a French naval officer, who also saw service as an admiral in the Swedish navy. He was born in Dieppe, a seaport, in 1610, and was a Huguenot. He was the son of a naval officer and therefore became a sailor himself, spending his early years in merchant service. Service in the French navy In 1635, he became a capitaine de vaisseau (captain) in the French navy. He was appointed to the "Neptune" squadron in 1636. In May 1637, he gained some fame for capturing the island of Lerins from Spain. Around this time, his father died in a conflict with the Spanish, which permanently increased his animosity towards them and he sought revenge. He fought them viciously at the Battle of Guetaria in 1638, during the expedition to Corunna in 1639, and in the battles at Tarragona in 1641, Barcelona and the Cabo de Gata. Service in the Swedish navy Duquesne then left to join the Royal Swedish navy in 1643. He fought the Danish fleet personally commanded by King Christian IV at the Battle of Colberger Heide in the frigate Regina 34. Later, in the Battle of Fehmarn Belt, the Danes were decisively defeated, their admiral Pros Mund killed and his ship taken. After a peace had been reached between the Danes and the Swedes in 1645, he returned to France. Return to French service He suppressed a revolt at Bordeaux (which was materially supported by his most hated foe, the Spanish) in 1650, during the Fronde outbreaks. During that same year, he created at his own expense a squadron with which he blockaded the Gironde, forcing that city to surrender. This earned him a promotion in rank to chef d'escadre (Rear-Admiral), a castle, and a gift of the entire isle of Indre, Loire-Atlantique. The French and the Spanish made peace in 1659, which left him to fight pirates in the Mediterranean Sea. In 1667 he was promoted 'Lieutenant-Général (Vice-Admiral). He distinguished himself in the Third Dutch War, fighting as second in command of the French squadron at the Battle of Solebay and later supporting the insurgents in the revolt of Messina from Spain, fighting Admiral Michel Adriaanzoon de Ruyter, who had the united fleets of Spain and the United Provinces under his command. He fought the combined Dutch-Spanish fleet at the Battle of Stromboli and the Battle of