Frederik Pithan

Frederik Pithan (* around 1550; † December 20, 1632 in Utrecht ), also known as Frederick van Pithan , was a soldier in the United Netherlands , an officer and mercenary leader in the 16th and 17th centuries. He went down in history thanks to his role as the fortress commander of Jülich on behalf of the Dutch States General and the party of possessors from 1614 until the end of the siege of Jülich 1621-22 .

Life

Little is known about his early life, and there are even contradicting information about his origins. Some sources claim that he was English, others show him to be German or Dutch.

Frederik Pithan was born around 1550 or 1552, the exact date is not known. For the first time he appeared as a major in the Nassau regiment of Count Ernst Casimir von Nassau , his appointment dated August 2, 1601. On September 16, 1614 he was appointed serjeant major (corresponds approximately to a lieutenant colonel ), at the same time he was with the Office of the commandant of the Jülich Fortress , which he led both in the interests of the States General and the now divided party of possessors in the Jülich-Klevian succession dispute. He was still in command in 1621 when the Spaniards under General Ambrosio Spinola appeared in front of Jülich and began to besiege the fortress held by the Dutch. Although his 2,500-man fortress garrison was hopelessly inferior to the besiegers, the allegedly 72-year-old Pithan carried out numerous attacks against the rather passive Spaniards at least in the first months of the siege and held out despite constant fire, scarce supplies and harsh winter weather (it should often frozen to death on guard duty) stubbornly, although there was little prospect of relief. After turning down several requests for surrender, Pithan decided on January 17, 1622, in the event that after twelve days no reinforcements or at least supplies of food would arrive, to hand over the fortress. On February 3, 1622 he and the remaining 2,000 men of the crew left Jülich with their weapons and military honors and were given safe conduct to Nijmegen . The military leadership of the States General was evidently not of the opinion that Pithan had performed his office to their satisfaction, so that he was released from the regiment on June 21, 1623 because of the handover of Jülich.

It is heard that Pithan died in prison or was even beheaded. His last trace can be found almost ten years later in the death and burial register of the city of Utrecht, which records the burial of 'Frederik van Pithan', who died two days earlier at the age of 80, on December 22, 1632. In the manuscript Monumenta passim in templis ac monasteriis Trajectinae urbis atque agri inventa by Arnoldus Buchelius in the Rijksarchiv Utrecht there is a description of a tomb on p. 226 (122r) that was probably in the Regulierenkerk (Weeskerk). It has two identical coats of arms with the heading Pithan and a Latin inscription:

Pernobili valido ac strenguo viro Frederico a Pithan, quondam provinciae Juliacensis et Insulae Comitis praefecto, illustris Ernesti Casimiri, comitis a Nassou legionis vicario, qui Praepotentium ordinum Foederationis Belgicae, maximam aetatis partem militavit, et in domino obdormit, a.XX. 80, monumentum positum

“For Frederik van Pithan, former governor of the province of Jülich and Graves Weert and lieutenant colonel of the regiment of the famous Ernst Casimir, Count of Nassau, who served in the armed forces of the United Netherlands for most of his life, passed away in the Lord on January 20, 1632 in old age of 80 years. This memorial was set for him ”.

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• Regimental data of the Nassau regiment ( Memento from December 24, 2011 in the Internet Archive )
• Facsimile from the Monumenta passim in templis ac monasteriis Trajectinae urbis atque agri inventa with Pithan's tomb
• Utrecht funeral register

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