Sometime between 1380 and 1386 William Buckels of "Beer Creek" (Biervlet) in Zeeland discovered that "salt fish will keep, and that fish that can be kept can be packed and can be exported".
This discovery created an export industry for salt herring that was monopolized by the Dutch. They began to build ships and eventually moved from trading in herring to colonizing and the Dutch Empire.
The Emporer Charles V erected a statue to Buckels honouring him as the benefactor of his country, and Queen Mary of Hungary after finding his tomb sat upon it and ate a herring.
