Haarlem Schutterij
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The Haarlem schutterij refers to a collective name for the voluntary civic guard of
Haarlem Haarlem (; predecessor of ''Harlem'' in English language, English) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the Provinces of the Nether ...
, from medieval times up to the
Batavian Revolution The Batavian Revolution () was a time of political, social and cultural turmoil at the end of the 18th century that marked the end of the Dutch Republic and saw the proclamation of the Batavian Republic. The initial period, from about 1780 to ...
in 1794, when the guilds of Haarlem were disbanded.


History

During the
Hook and Cod wars The Hook and Cod wars (; sometimes semi-anglicised as the wars of the Hoecks and the Cabbeljaws) comprise a series of wars and battles in the County of Holland between 1350 and 1490. Most of these wars were fought over who should hold the title ...
in 1402, Haarlem formed a hand bow schutterij under the patronage of St. George of 120 citizen volunteers to support the local court of Justice. The guild-like group had its own altar in the St. Bavochurch and they even had processions through town on the name day of their saint. The town suffered from uprisings in 1417 and 1422. After another uprising in 1425, a "New" schutterij was formed to educate young men in the use of the
crossbow A crossbow is a ranged weapon using an Elasticity (physics), elastic launching device consisting of a Bow and arrow, bow-like assembly called a ''prod'', mounted horizontally on a main frame called a ''tiller'', which is hand-held in a similar f ...
and they defended the city in 1426 against Jacoba of Beieren. The "New" crossbow schutterij had a new meeting hall built for them near the Spaarne river, and in 1468 a separate schutterij was formed under the patronage of St. Sebastian for hand bowmen. Around 1500 Haarlem had three schutterij groups, two (old and new) under the patronage of
St. George Saint George (;Geʽez: ጊዮርጊስ, , ka, გიორგი, , , died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was an early Christian martyr who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to holy tradition, he was a soldier in the ...
(St. Joris), and one under the patronage of St. Sebastian, all with their own altars in church. In 1520 the Haarlem schutterij was reorganized; the two groups under St. Joris were merged into one group for crossbowmen and a new group was formed under the patron saint St. Hadrian (St. Adrian), called ''Cloveniers''. Though the St. Sebastian group was also still active, by 1560 all were using muskets, and the town even owned some cannons, for which special "kannoniers" were trained. They still kept up their social activities in church, though the
Protestant reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the papacy and ...
began to cause various problems with their political support for the court of Justice. The most heroic deeds of the Haarlem schutterij occurred during the Spanish
siege of Haarlem The siege of Haarlem was an episode of the Eighty Years' War. From 11 December 1572 to 13 July 1573 an army of Philip II of Spain laid bloody siege to the city of Haarlem in the Netherlands, whose loyalties had begun wavering during the previou ...
, which ended in victory for the Spanish. After the changeover to the Dutch Republic in 1581, the Haarlem schutters, or shooters, were reorganized into two groups, one keeping the name St. Joris and also called the "Oude schuts", and the other keeping the name Cloveniers, and receiving a new building in their old location in the Gasthuisstraat in 1612, leading them to earn the nickname "Nieuwe schuts". The activities of both groups around their church altars, including the yearly processions, were discontinued. Today many of the shooters have been immortalized in the group portraits by
Frans Hals Frans Hals the Elder (, ; ; – 26 August 1666) was a Dutch Golden Age painter. He lived and worked in Haarlem, a city in which the local authority of the day frowned on religious painting in places of worship but citizens liked to decorate thei ...
and other portrait painters on show at the
Frans Hals museum The Frans Hals Museum (formerly ''Stedelijk Museum van Haarlem'') is a museum in the North Holland city of Haarlem, the Netherlands, founded in 1862, known as the Art Museum of Haarlem. Its collection is based on the city's own rich collection, b ...
. The split into two groups was more for convenience sake than for tradition, as the two groups were split geographically into a group north of the Bavochurch (officially renamed Grote Kerk) and a group south of the Bavochurch.


Cloveniers

The term "Cloveniers", or ''Cluveniers'', just means "musket bearers". The group name changed over time according to the fashions and locations of the guild. Until the siege of Haarlem they were under the patronage of the Saint Adrian, but were most often referred to as the "Jonge schuts", or "New shoots", since they were formed in 1520. After the siege, since all "Catholic" saints were banned, and they had a new meeting hall built in 1612, they became known as the "Nieuwe schuts", or "New shoots". That meeting hall in the Gasthuisstraat is still called the "Doelen" building after them. Today it is a study hall and part of the
Haarlem Public Library The Stadsbibliotheek Haarlem (Haarlem Public Library) is a collective name for all public libraries in the Haarlem area of the Netherlands. The first ''public'' library of Haarlem opened in 1921 at the cloisters of the Haarlem City Hall where t ...
. The paintings by Hals and others hung in the main hall of the building in the Gasthuisstraat. Today almost all of the schutterstukken that once hung here have been transferred to the
Frans Hals Museum The Frans Hals Museum (formerly ''Stedelijk Museum van Haarlem'') is a museum in the North Holland city of Haarlem, the Netherlands, founded in 1862, known as the Art Museum of Haarlem. Its collection is based on the city's own rich collection, b ...
; the 1612 painting by
Cornelis Engelsz Cornelis Engelsz (1575–1650) was a Dutch Golden Age painter and the father of Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck. Biography Engelsz was born in Gouda. According to Houbraken, he was a pupil of Karel van Mander and a colleague of Frans Hals ...
is in the
Musée des Beaux-Arts de Strasbourg The Musée des Beaux-Arts de Strasbourg (Museum of Fine Arts of Strasbourg) is the old masters paintings collection of the city of Strasbourg, located in the Alsace region of France. The museum is housed in the first and second floors of the ...
, France.


Group portraits of the ''Cloveniers''

File:Cornelis Cornelisz van Haarlem - Banket van korporaalschap van Jonge Jan Adriaensz van Veen - Haarlem Cloveniers schutterij 1583.jpg, 1583, by
Cornelis van Haarlem Cornelis Corneliszoon van Haarlem (1562 – 11 November 1638) was a Dutch Golden Age painter and draughtsman, one of the leading Northern Mannerist artists in the Netherlands, and an important forerunner of Frans Hals as a portraitist. Biograph ...
File:Schutters van de Haarlemse schutterij 1594.jpg, 1594, unknown artist File:Frans Pietersz de Grebber - Maaltijd van het korporalschap van de St. Jorisdoelen 1600.jpg, 1600, by
Frans Pietersz de Grebber Frans Pietersz de Grebber (1573 – c. 1649) was a Dutch Golden Age painter. Life and career Frans Pietersz de Grebber was born and died in Haarlem. He belonged to the ancient De Grebber family originally from Waterland, and was the son of P ...
File:Frans Pietersz de Grebber - Maaltijd van een korporaalschap van de Cluveniersdoelen 1610.jpg, 1610, by Frans Pietersz de Grebber La Garde civique de Saint-Adrien Cornelis Engelsz 1612-1.jpg, ''
The St Adrian Civic Guard ''The St Adrian Civic Guard'' is a 1612 militia group portrait painting by the Dutch artist Cornelis Engelsz. It is now in the Musée des Beaux-Arts of Strasbourg, France. Its inventory number is 364.The painting was bought from Charles Sedel ...
'', 1612, by Cornelis Engelsz. File:Cornelis Engelsz - Cloveniers 1615-1618.jpg, 1618, by Cornelis Engelsz. File:Frans Pietersz de Grebber- Cloveniers schutterij Haarlem 1619.jpg, 1619, by Frans Pietersz de Grebber File:WLANL - legalizefreedom - Banket van de officieren van de Cluveniersdoelen, 1627.jpg, The Banquet of the Officers of the St Adrian Militia Company in 1627, by
Frans Hals Frans Hals the Elder (, ; ; – 26 August 1666) was a Dutch Golden Age painter. He lived and worked in Haarlem, a city in which the local authority of the day frowned on religious painting in places of worship but citizens liked to decorate thei ...
File:Hendrik Gerritsz Pot 1630 cluveniersdoelen haarlem.jpg,
The Officers of the St Adrian Militia Company in 1630 ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...
, by
Hendrik Gerritsz Pot Hendrik Gerritsz Pot (c. 1580 – 15 October 1657 (buried)) was a Dutch Golden Age painter, who lived and painted in Haarlem, where he was an officer of the militia, or '' schutterij''. Dutch artist Frans Hals painted Pot in militia sash in ...
File:Frans Hals - De officieren van de Sint-Adriaansdoelen.jpg,
The Officers of the St Adrian Militia Company in 1633 ''The Officers of the St Adrian Militia Company in 1633'' refers to the second schutterstuk painted by Frans Hals for the Cluveniers, St. Adrian, or St. Hadrian civic guard of Haarlem, in 1633, and today considered one of the main attractions of ...
, by Frans Hals File:Frans Hals 020.jpg,
The Officers of the St George Militia Company in 1639 ''The Officers of the St George Militia Company in 1639'' refers to the last and largest '' schuttersstuk'' painted by Frans Hals for the St. George (or St. Joris) civic guard of Haarlem, and today is considered one of the main attractions of t ...
, by Frans Hals File:Andries Stilte as a Standard Bearer.jpg, Ensign Andries Stilte, 1640, by
Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck (between 1600 and 1603 – buried 30 June 1662) was a Dutch Golden Age portrait painter from Haarlem. Life Johannes Cornelisz Verspronck was born between 1600 and 1603 in Haarlem as the son of the painter Corneli ...
File:Pieter Soutman - Cloveniers Haarlem 1642.jpg, 1642, by Pieter Soutman File:Wybrand Hendriks - Beëdiging Genootschap Pro Aris et Focis - 1787.jpg, 1787, by
Wybrand Hendriks Wybrand Hendriks (June 24, 1744, Amsterdam – January 28, 1831, Haarlem) was a Dutch painter, primarily known for his portraits, and the concierge of the Teylers Museum. Biography Wybrand Hendriks was born in a sculptor family, as the son of t ...


St. Jorisdoelen

In 1577, the city council refurbished the main buildings of the old St. Michiels cloister to house the
schutterij Schutterij () refers to a voluntary city guard or citizen militia in the medieval and early modern Netherlands, intended to protect the town or city from attack and act in case of revolt or fire. Their training grounds were often on open spaces w ...
called the "Oude schuts", whose hall had been burned in the fire of 1572. Though they officially no longer had a patron saint, they were still referred to as the ''St. Jorisdoelen'', or ''St. George militia target field''. The former garden was converted to include two shooting lanes, and a new meeting hall was built in 1592.report
on
Rijksmonument A (, ) is a national heritage site of the Netherlands, listed by the agency Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed (RCE) acting for the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science. At the end of February 2015, the Netherlands had 61,822 l ...
number 19243 Today the location houses a shop, restaurant, and a surrounds the garden called the Proveniershuis.


Group portraits of the ''St. Jorisdoelen''

File:Cornelis van Haarlem - Banket van de officieren van de St. Jorisdoelen.jpg, 1599, by Cornelis van Haarlem File:Frans Hals - Banket van de officieren van de Sint-Joris-Doelen.jpg,
The Banquet of the Officers of the St George Militia Company in 1616 ''The Banquet of the Officers of the St George Militia Company in 1616'' refers to the first of several large Schutterij#Group_portraits, schutterstukken painted by the Dutch painter Frans Hals for the St. George (or St. Joris) Haarlem schutteri ...
, by
Frans Hals Frans Hals the Elder (, ; ; – 26 August 1666) was a Dutch Golden Age painter. He lived and worked in Haarlem, a city in which the local authority of the day frowned on religious painting in places of worship but citizens liked to decorate thei ...
File:Frans Pietersz de Grebber - Maaltijd van officieren van de St. Jorisdoelen 1618.jpg, 1618, by
Frans Pietersz de Grebber Frans Pietersz de Grebber (1573 – c. 1649) was a Dutch Golden Age painter. Life and career Frans Pietersz de Grebber was born and died in Haarlem. He belonged to the ancient De Grebber family originally from Waterland, and was the son of P ...
File:Frans Pietersz de Grebber - Maaltijd van officieren van de St. Jorisdoelen 1621-1624.jpg, 1624, by Frans Pietersz de Grebber File:Frans Hals 013.jpg,
The Banquet of the Officers of the St George Militia Company in 1627 ''The Banquet of the Officers of the St George Militia Company'' is an oil-on-canvas painting by the Dutch artist Frans Hals, painted from 1626 - 1627, during the Dutch Golden Age. Today, the piece is considered one of the main attractions of th ...
, by Frans Hals File:Frans Hals 020.jpg,
The Officers of the St George Militia Company in 1639 ''The Officers of the St George Militia Company in 1639'' refers to the last and largest '' schuttersstuk'' painted by Frans Hals for the St. George (or St. Joris) civic guard of Haarlem, and today is considered one of the main attractions of t ...
, by Frans Hals File:Pieter Claesz. Soutman - Maaltijd van het korporalschap van de St. Jorisdoelen 1644.jpg, 1644, by
Pieter Soutman Pieter Claesz Soutman (1593-1601 – 16 August 1657)


References

{{reflist * ''De Stadsdoelen'',publication by the Vereniging Haarlem in 1974 on the opening of the new wing of the
central library, edited by C. van der Haar and with a preface by J.J. Temminck, city archivist History of Haarlem Militia group portraits Frans Hals Museum