He was sent by the Chamber of Amsterdam to found a refreshment station at Cape Town for Netherlands vessels sailing to the East Indies and arrived there on 6 April 1652 with 125 men. As commander he organized a simple government and ruled for ten years. He followed Dutch East India Company policy in regarding the station as an opportunity for profit rather than for colonization. Growing corn and vines and rearing cattle were permitted, but he discouraged trade with Africans. In 1662 he was transferred to Malacca.