Life

He was baptised on 19 March 1720 in Rotterdam

Rotterdam

Rotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and one of the largest ports in the world. Starting as a dam on the Rotte river, Rotterdam has grown into a major international commercial centre...

, son of Johannes Wilhelmius, a minister, and grandson of the philosopher Wilhelmus Wilhelmius the Elder. He matriculated at the University of Leiden in 1735, and graduated at the University of Utrecht in 1739. His dissertation, under Joseph Serrurier, was on the mind-body problem.

He travelled in 1742 to England, and became a Fellow of the Royal Society, with an introduction from Petrus van Musschenbroek. On his return in 1743 he became a minister in Lekkerkerk

Lekkerkerk

Lekkerkerk is a town and former municipality on the Lek River, now part of the municipality Nederlek, South Holland province, the Netherlands. Since 1 January 1985 Lekkerkerk is no longer is an independent municipality....

. After some other positions he settled in Middleburg

Middleburg

Middleburg may mean the following places in the United States of America:*Middleburg, Florida*Middleburg, Iowa*Middleburg, Kentucky*Middleburg, Maryland*Middleburgh , New York**Middleburgh , New York*Middleburg, Logan County, Ohio...

 in 1749.
He married Aletta Maria van den Brande in 1751, and she brought him a large fortune. They bought an estate at Brakel.

External links

• CERL page