Gerard van Velsen
Encyclopedia
Gerard van Velsen (died 1296, at Leiden) was lord of Beverwijk
, Noordwijk
and Velsen
.
He was the son of Albrecht van Velsen and Hildegonde.
Gerard was married to Machteld van Woerden, a sister of Herman VI van Woerden
. In 1275 Gerard was named schout
of Wijk aan Zee
.
In 1296 Gerard conspired together with Herman van Woerden
, Gijsbrecht IV of Amstel
, Jan van Kuyk and Arnold van Benschop to kidnap Floris V, Count of Holland
. Eventually, together with van Woerden and van Amstel, they imprisoned the count in the Muiderslot
. After Floris V attempted to escape, Gerard personally killed the count by stabbing him 20 times. Afterwards he fled to castle Kronenburg
near Loenen aan de Vecht
. A few days later he was arrested and brought to Leiden to stand trial. There he was tortured for three days long before being Quartered.
Gerard's motive for the murder of Floris V was his wife's supposed rape by Floris, after which she committed suicide
.
Beverwijk
Beverwijk is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. The town is located about northwest of Amsterdam in the Randstad metropolitan area, north of the North Sea Canal very close to the North Sea coast...
, Noordwijk
Noordwijk
Noordwijk is a town and municipality in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. The municipality covers an area of 51.53 km² and had a population of 24,707 in May 2006....
and Velsen
Velsen
Velsen is a municipality in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It is located on both sides of the North Sea Canal.On the north side of the North Sea Canal, in IJmuiden, there is a major steel plant, Corus Strip Products IJmuiden, formerly known as Koninklijke Hoogovens...
.
He was the son of Albrecht van Velsen and Hildegonde.
Gerard was married to Machteld van Woerden, a sister of Herman VI van Woerden
Herman VI van Woerden
Herman or Hermanus VI van Woerden was a lord of Woerden.He was the son of Herman V van Woerden and Badeloch Clemeta van Amstel, daughter of Gijsbrecht III van Amstel. It is assumed he became ruler of Woerden after 1252, the last year that his father was mentioned...
. In 1275 Gerard was named schout
Schout
In Dutch-speaking areas, a schout was a local official appointed to carry out administrative, law enforcement and prosecutorial tasks. The office was abolished with the introduction of administrative reforms during the Napoleonic period.- Functions:...
of Wijk aan Zee
Wijk aan Zee
Wijk aan Zee is a small town on the coast of the North Sea in the municipality of Beverwijk in the province of North Holland of the Netherlands. The prestigious Tata Steel chess tournament formerly Corus chess tournament and before that called Hoogovens tournament takes place there every year.Due...
.
In 1296 Gerard conspired together with Herman van Woerden
Herman VI van Woerden
Herman or Hermanus VI van Woerden was a lord of Woerden.He was the son of Herman V van Woerden and Badeloch Clemeta van Amstel, daughter of Gijsbrecht III van Amstel. It is assumed he became ruler of Woerden after 1252, the last year that his father was mentioned...
, Gijsbrecht IV of Amstel
Gijsbrecht IV of Amstel
Gijsbrecht IV of Amstel or Gijsbrecht IV van Amstel was a powerful lord in medieval Holland. His territory was the Heren van Amstel, and his son was Jan I.-Life:...
, Jan van Kuyk and Arnold van Benschop to kidnap Floris V, Count of Holland
Floris V, Count of Holland
Count Floris V of Holland and Zeeland , "der Keerlen God" , is one of the most important figures of the first, native dynasty of Holland . His life was documented in detail in the Rijmkroniek by Melis Stoke, his chronicler...
. Eventually, together with van Woerden and van Amstel, they imprisoned the count in the Muiderslot
Muiderslot
The Muiderslot is a castle in the Netherlands, located at the mouth of the river Vecht, some 15 kilometers southeast of Amsterdam, in Muiden, where it flows into what used to be the Zuiderzee...
. After Floris V attempted to escape, Gerard personally killed the count by stabbing him 20 times. Afterwards he fled to castle Kronenburg
Kronenburg
Kronenburg or Kronenbourg may refer to:In places:* Kronenburg, Germany, town subsumed into Dahlem, North Rhine-Westphalia* Kronenburg , village in Suriname* Loenen-Kronenburg, former Dutch municipalityIn others:...
near Loenen aan de Vecht
Loenen aan de Vecht
Loenen is a town in the Dutch province of Utrecht. It was the main town in the former municipality of Loenen. Since 2011 it has made part of the new formed municipality of Stichtse Vecht. It lies about 10 km west of Hilversum....
. A few days later he was arrested and brought to Leiden to stand trial. There he was tortured for three days long before being Quartered.
Gerard's motive for the murder of Floris V was his wife's supposed rape by Floris, after which she committed suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
.