Andries de Witt

Andries de Witt (born June 16, 1573 in Dordrecht ; † November 26, 1637 (?)) Was the acting state advocate / council pensioner of Holland . He belonged to the old Dordrecht patrician family De Witt .

Private

Andries de Witt was the eldest son of Cornelis Fransz. de Witt (1545–1622), one of the most powerful regents in Dordrecht's history, from his marriage to Johanna Heymans. Among other things, he was the ruling mayor of his hometown many times . His younger brother Jacob de Witt , his sons Cornelis de Witt and above all Johan de Witt are among the most important people in Dutch history in the Golden Age ( Dutch: de gouden eeuw ).

In 1604 he married Elisabeth van den Honert, both had ten children, and according to other sources two children together.

Career

De Witt studied law at the Universiteit Leiden , traveled for several years in Germany, Switzerland, France and England, and then held various offices in Dordrecht, finally that of pensioner .

In the dispute between governor Moritz von Oranien and state advocate Johan van Oldenbarnevelt , he was on Moritz's side. After the arrest of Oldenbarnevelt (who was executed one year later) in 1618, he ran the affairs of this de facto highest office of the Republic of the Seven United Provinces (after the governor) until 1621 Anthonie Duyck was elected Oldenbarnevelt's successor, albeit with limited rights and the new title of Council Pensioner of Holland .

In this position, De Witt acted without initiative, without influencing either internal or external business. He limited himself to the execution of orders given to him.

From 1620 until his death, De Witt was a councilor in the Dutch court.

literature

• PL Müller :  Witt, Andries de . In: Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB). Volume 43, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1898, p. 570 f.

Web links

• Biography (dutch)

predecessor	Office	successor
Johan van Oldenbarnevelt	Council pensioner of Holland 1619 - 1621	Anthonie Duyck