Anthonie Heinsius
Encyclopedia
Delft
Delft is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland , the Netherlands. It is located between Rotterdam and The Hague....
- August 3, 1720, The Hague
The Hague
The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
) was a Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
statesman who served as Grand Pensionary
Grand Pensionary
The Grand Pensionary was the most important Dutch official during the time of the United Provinces. In theory he was only a civil servant of the Estates of the dominant province among the Seven United Provinces: the county of Holland...
of Holland from 1689 to his death in 1720.
Life
Heinsius was born at DelftDelft
Delft is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland , the Netherlands. It is located between Rotterdam and The Hague....
on 23 November 1641, son of a wealthy merchant and patrician.
In 1679 he became pensionary
Pensionary
A pensionary was a name given to the leading functionary and legal adviser of the principal town corporations in the Netherlands because they received a salary, or pension.-Historical development:...
for Delft
Delft
Delft is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland , the Netherlands. It is located between Rotterdam and The Hague....
in the States of Holland
States of Holland
The States of Holland and West Frisia were the representation of the two Estates to the court of the Count of Holland...
and in 1687 he became a member of the board of the Delft chamber of the Dutch East India Company
Dutch East India Company
The Dutch East India Company was a chartered company established in 1602, when the States-General of the Netherlands granted it a 21-year monopoly to carry out colonial activities in Asia...
(VOC).
In 1682 he was appointed special negotiator to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
by stadholder William III of Orange
William III of England
William III & II was a sovereign Prince of Orange of the House of Orange-Nassau by birth. From 1672 he governed as Stadtholder William III of Orange over Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Guelders, and Overijssel of the Dutch Republic. From 1689 he reigned as William III over England and Ireland...
. His mission was to see if anything could be done about the occupation of the Principality of Orange
Principality of Orange
The Principality of Orange was a feudal state in Provence, in the south of modern-day France, on the left bank of the River Rhone north of the city of Avignon....
by Louis XIV
Louis XIV of France
Louis XIV , known as Louis the Great or the Sun King , was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and Navarre. His reign, from 1643 to his death in 1715, began at the age of four and lasted seventy-two years, three months, and eighteen days...
. The mission was a failure but he made a favourable impression on William III.
Grand Pensionary
He became Grand Pensionary of the States of Holland, and thereby the most powerful man in the Estates-General of the Netherlands, on 27 May 1689, when William IIIWilliam III of England
William III & II was a sovereign Prince of Orange of the House of Orange-Nassau by birth. From 1672 he governed as Stadtholder William III of Orange over Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Guelders, and Overijssel of the Dutch Republic. From 1689 he reigned as William III over England and Ireland...
became king of England and had to move to London. He was the confidant and correspondent of William, who left the guidance of Dutch affairs largely in his hands.
Heinsius was a tough negotiator and one of the greatest and most obstinate opponents of the expansionist policies of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
He was one of the driving forces behind the anti-France coalitions of the Nine Years' War (1688–97) and the War of the Spanish Succession
War of the Spanish Succession
The War of the Spanish Succession was fought among several European powers, including a divided Spain, over the possible unification of the Kingdoms of Spain and France under one Bourbon monarch. As France and Spain were among the most powerful states of Europe, such a unification would have...
(1701–14). After the death of William III in 1702, Heinsius' hold on the States General diminished, but he remained Grand Pensionary of Holland until his own death in 1720.
Sources
- The Correspondence of Anthonie Heinsius, 1702-1720, edited by A. J. Veenendaal, Jr.
- Antonie Heinsius and the Dutch Republic, edited by J. A. F. de Jongste and A. J. Veenendaal, Jr.
- Heinsius' Correspondence in the Nationaal ArchiefNationaal ArchiefThe Nationaal Archief is the national archive of the Netherlands, located in The Hague. It houses collections for the central government, the province of Zuid-Holland, and the former County of Holland. There is also material from private institutions and individuals with an association to the Dutch...
, The Hague, 36.3 metres.