John Abraham Slezer (before 1650 – 1717) was a Dutch-born

military engineer Military engineering is loosely defined as the art, science, and practice of designing and building military works and maintaining lines of military transport and military communications. Military engineers are also responsible for logistics ...

and artist.

Life

He was born in

Holland Holland is a geographical regionG. Geerts & H. Heestermans, 1981, ''Groot Woordenboek der Nederlandse Taal. Deel I'', Van Dale Lexicografie, Utrecht, p 1105 and former Provinces of the Netherlands, province on the western coast of the Netherland ...

and began a military career in service to the

House of Orange The House of Orange-Nassau (Dutch: ''Huis van Oranje-Nassau'', ) is the current reigning house of the Netherlands. A branch of the European House of Nassau, the house has played a central role in the politics and government of the Netherlands ...

. He arrived in the

Kingdom of Scotland The Kingdom of Scotland (; , ) was a sovereign state in northwest Europe traditionally said to have been founded in 843. Its territories expanded and shrank, but it came to occupy the northern third of the island of Great Britain, sharing a l ...

in 1669, and was appointed Surveyor of his Majesties Stores and Magazines, which involved compiling detailed surveys of the country's fortifications. He is best known for his '' Theatrum Scotiae'', a series of

engraving Engraving is the practice of incising a design onto a hard, usually flat surface by cutting grooves into it with a burin. The result may be a decorated object in itself, as when silver, gold, steel, or glass are engraved, or may provide an in ...

s of views of castles, abbeys, towns, and seats of the nobility he encountered whilst travelling throughout Scotland in his capacity as Captain of the Artillery Company. He was raised to the rank of Captain in 1688 and imprisoned later that year as a supporter of

King James VII James VII and II (14 October 1633 16 September 1701) was King of England and King of Ireland as James II, and King of Scotland as James VII from the death of his elder brother, Charles II, on 6 February 1685. He was deposed in the Glorious Re ...

, following the latter's deposition in favour of William III and

Mary II Mary II (30 April 166228 December 1694) was Queen of England, Scotland, and Ireland, co-reigning with her husband, William III & II, from 1689 until her death in 1694. Mary was the eldest daughter of James, Duke of York, and his first wife A ...

, but was released the following year. He published the first volume of ''Theatrum Scotiae'' in 1693, but sales were poor and he applied to the Government for a grant to proceed with a continuation of the work that was to be called ''Scotia Ilustrata''. This never materialised, however, and increasing financial difficulties forced Slezer to spend the last years of his life in the

Holyrood Abbey Holyrood Abbey is a ruined abbey of the Canons Regular in Edinburgh, Scotland. The abbey was founded in 1128 by David I of Scotland. During the 15th century, the abbey guesthouse was developed into a royal residence, and after the Scottish Ref ...

sanctuary to avoid

debtors' prison A debtors' prison is a prison for people who are unable to pay debt. Until the mid-19th century, debtors' prisons (usually similar in form to locked workhouses) were a common way to deal with unpaid debt in Western Europe.Cory, Lucinda"A Histori ...

. He died on 24 June 1714.

Family

He married Jean Straiton, a native of

Dundee Dundee (; sco, Dundee; gd, Dùn Dè or ) is Scotland's fourth-largest city and the 51st-most-populous built-up area in the United Kingdom. The mid-year population estimate for 2016 was , giving Dundee a population density of 2,478/km2 or ...

.ODNB: John Slezer

References

* *

Notes

External links

Slezer's Scotland
on-line edition of ''Theatrum Scotiae''

page on

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 1 ...

Library web site 1717 deaths Year of birth uncertain {{scotland-engineer-stub