Hendrick Peter Godfried Quack
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Hendrick Peter Godfried Quack (2 July 1834 – 6 January 1917) was a Dutch
legal scholar Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the a ...
,
economist An economist is a professional and practitioner in the social sciences, social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy. Within this ...
and
historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human species; as well as the ...
, who is best known for his work '' De socialisten: Personen en stelsels'' ("The socialists: persons and systems").


Biography

Quack, born in
Zetten Zetten is a village in the Overbetuwe municipality, Gelderland, Netherlands. The village is located in the Betuwe. This is also the base of the (forensic) youth-clinic Ottho Gerhard Heldringstichting, founded as the "Steenbeek" asylum for reformi ...
to a beer brewer and his wife, commenced studies at
Utrecht Utrecht ( ; ; ) is the List of cities in the Netherlands by province, fourth-largest city of the Netherlands, as well as the capital and the most populous city of the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of Utrecht (province), Utrecht. The ...
in 1853, followed by law studies at the Amsterdam Athenaeum Illustre. In Amsterdam, he attended lectures by Jeronimo de Bosch Kemper and Martinus des Amorie van der Hoeven, both Christian critics of
liberalism Liberalism is a Political philosophy, political and moral philosophy based on the Individual rights, rights of the individual, liberty, consent of the governed, political equality, the right to private property, and equality before the law. ...
. Following the example of his professors, Quack became convinced that liberalism could not address the social problems of his day. He submitted a thesis about fourteenth-century statehood and earned a doctorate degree in July 1860 (from Utrecht University, because the Athenaeum Illustre lacked the right to confer such degrees). In the following year, Quack worked as a clerk at the provincial government of
North Holland North Holland (, ) is a Provinces of the Netherlands, province of the Netherlands in the northwestern part of the country. It is located on the North Sea, north of South Holland and Utrecht (province), Utrecht, and west of Friesland and Flevola ...
, then became a journalist, and also worked for some time at the Amsterdam
Chamber of Commerce A chamber of commerce, or board of trade, is a form of business network. For example, a local organization of businesses whose goal is to further the interests of businesses. Business owners in towns and cities form these local societies to a ...
. From 1860 onward, he wrote for the literary journal ''
De Gids (from Dutch: ''The Guide'') is the oldest Dutch literary periodical still published today. It was founded in 1837 by Everhardus Johannes Potgieter and Christianus Robidé van der Aa. Long regarded as the most prestigious literary periodical ...
'', of which he became an editor in 1863. In September 1863, he secured a position as a secretary of the state railway company. Having been appointed professor of
political economy Political or comparative economy is a branch of political science and economics studying economic systems (e.g. Marketplace, markets and national economies) and their governance by political systems (e.g. law, institutions, and government). Wi ...
at
Utrecht University Utrecht University (UU; , formerly ''Rijksuniversiteit Utrecht'') is a public university, public research university in Utrecht, Netherlands. Established , it is one of the oldest universities in the Netherlands. In 2023, it had an enrollment of ...
in 1868, Quack presented his students with
socialist Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...
theories of economics besides teaching the common curriculum of the time. In 1875, he started writing his ''
magnum opus A masterpiece, , or ; ; ) is a creation that has been given much critical praise, especially one that is considered the greatest work of a person's career or a work of outstanding creativity, skill, profundity, or workmanship. Historically, ...
'' on the history of the socialist movement, ''De socialisten: Personen en stelsels''. The first volume of this book would appear in 1877; the last, twenty years later. Quack was elected a member of the
Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (, KNAW) is an organization dedicated to the advancement of science and literature in the Netherlands. The academy is housed in the Trippenhuis in Amsterdam. In addition to various advisory a ...
in 1877. Also in 1877, Quack left his academic position, to be succeeded by Johan d'Aulnis de Bourouill, and took a job at
De Nederlandsche Bank De Nederlandsche Bank (, , abbr. DNB) is the national central bank for the Netherlands within the Eurosystem. It was the Dutch central bank from 1814 to 1998, issuing the guilder. Since 2014, it has also been the country's national competent au ...
. He proceeded with his historical work, and in fact one of the reasons for switching jobs was the increase in salary, which he needed to buy more books for his studies.
Arthur Lehning Paul Arthur Müller-Lehning (23 October 1899 – 1 January 2000) was a Dutch author, historian and anarchist. Biography Arthur Lehning was born in the Dutch city of Utrecht on 23 October 1899. He studied in Berlin, where he was first introduc ...
's introduction to the centenary edition of
Quack was to join the board of directors of De Nederlandsche Bank in 1885, also becoming professor ''extraordinaire'' of the history of political economy at the
University of Amsterdam The University of Amsterdam (abbreviated as UvA, ) is a public university, public research university located in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Established in 1632 by municipal authorities, it is the fourth-oldest academic institution in the Netherlan ...
, which he remained until 1894. Although a critic of economic liberalism, Quack never joined any of the socialist currents, although he did attend the 1872 Congress of the International. Nor did he join any other political current: he felt related to liberals, in particular Cort van der Linden, but disliked their individualism of the classical liberals; he admired socialists' ideals, but not what he considered their "breeding of mistrust and hate" as a means to realize them; he considered himself a democrat and the politician whom he considered closest to his own ideal was a progressive liberal such as Johannes Tak van Poortvliet. He has been described as a "
cathedra A ''cathedra'' is the throne of a bishop in the early Christian  basilica. When used with this meaning, it may also be called the bishop's throne. With time, the related term ''cathedral'' became synonymous with the "seat", or principa ...
l socialist" with Saint-Simonist ideas. According to
Ferdinand Domela Nieuwenhuis Ferdinand Jacobus Domela Nieuwenhuis (31 December 1846 – 18 November 1919) was a Dutch socialist politician and later a social anarchist and anti-militarist. He was a Lutheran preacher who, after he lost his faith, started a political figh ...
, with whom Quack exchanged some letters, Quack lacked either courage or drive, and with these qualities, he might have become "our Lassalle". Theory and practice were in a state of tension in Quack's life: during the 1903 railroad strikes, he was president of the board of the state railroad company and supported the firing of 11% of the company's personnel. In his memoir, he recalled this episode as "the most cruel page of the book of my life", but still defended the decision.


Works

''De socialisten. Personen en stelsels'' (three volumes, 1877–1897, Amsterdam; reprinted 1977) is considered Quack's main work. It is a compendium of biographies of early socialists, including many forgotten thinkers, based on Quack's study of
primary source In the study of history as an academic discipline, a primary source (also called an original source) is an Artifact (archaeology), artifact, document, diary, manuscript, autobiography, recording, or any other source of information that was cre ...
s. Other works include: * ''Martinus des Amorie van der Hoeven'' (1864, Amsterdam) * ''Traditie en Ideaal in het volksleven'' (1872, Utrecht) * ''Studiën en schetsen'' (1886, Amsterdam) * ''Uit de kring der gemeenschap'' (1899) * ''Herinneringen'' (1913)


Notes


References

:''Part of this article is based on a lemma in the 1888–91
Biographisch woordenboek der Noord- en Zuidnederlandsche letterkunde
' by F. Jos. van den Branden and J.G. Frederiks, which is in the
public domain The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work to which no Exclusive exclusive intellectual property rights apply. Those rights may have expired, been forfeited, expressly Waiver, waived, or may be inapplicable. Because no one holds ...
.'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Quack, Hendrick Peter Godfried 1834 births 1917 deaths 19th-century Dutch historians History of socialism Members of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences People from Overbetuwe 19th-century Dutch economists 20th-century Dutch economists