Jacob Derk Burchard Anne, Baron van Heeckeren tot Enghuizen, also known as Baron van Heeckeren van Beverweerd (28 November 1792 – 28 September 1884), was a Dutch

diplomat A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...

. He received the title

baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often Hereditary title, hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than ...

of the

First French Empire The First French Empire or French Empire (; ), also known as Napoleonic France, was the empire ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, who established French hegemony over much of continental Europe at the beginning of the 19th century. It lasted from ...

in 1813. Van Heeckeren was born in

Zutphen Zutphen () is a city and municipality located in the province of Gelderland, Netherlands. It lies some northeast of Arnhem, on the eastern bank of the river IJssel at the point where it is joined by the Berkel. First mentioned in the 11th centur ...

in the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

, the son of Evert Frederik baron van Heeckeren van Enghuizen, a Dutch

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

and

courtier A courtier () is a person who attends the royal court of a monarch or other royalty. The earliest historical examples of courtiers were part of the retinues of rulers. Historically the court was the centre of government as well as the officia ...

, and Henriette Johanna Susanna Maria des H.R.R. Countess of Nassau-la Lecq,Molhuysen, Philip Christiaan ''et al.'' (editors) (1911-1937) "Heeckeren tot Enghuizen, Jacob Derk Burchard Anne baron van" ''Nieuw Nederlandsch biografisch woordenboek onder redactie'' A. W. Sijthoff's uitgevers-maatschappij, Leiden, Volume 8
page 725OCLC 2230501
/ref> one of nine children.Molhuysen, Philip Christiaan ''et al.'' (editors) (1911-1937) Heeckeren van Enghuizen, Evert Frederik baron van" ''Nieuw Nederlandsch biografisch woordenboek onder redactie'' A. W. Sijthoff's uitgevers-maatschappij, Leiden, Volume 8
OCLC 2230501
/ref> Van Heeckeren’s first post was as an officer in the Dutch Navy, stationed in

Toulon Toulon (, , ; , , ) is a city in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of southeastern France. Located on the French Riviera and the historical Provence, it is the prefecture of the Var (department), Var department. The Commune of Toulon h ...

. Later he was employed by Napoleon, who awarded him the title ''Baron de l'Empire''. It was about this time that van Heeckeren converted to

Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

. For the Dutch government, Van Heeckeren was successively secretary of the legation at

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(1814),

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(1815–1817) and

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(1817 - 1822)."J.D.B.A. baron van Heeckeren tot Enghuizen"
Parlement & Politiek In 1822 Van Heeckeren was the acting agent for the Dutch in

St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea. The city had a population of 5,601, ...

. From 1823 to May 1837 he was ambassador extraordinary and

minister plenipotentiary An envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary, usually known as a minister, was a diplomatic head of mission who was ranked below ambassador. A diplomatic mission headed by an envoy was known as a legation rather than an embassy. Under the ...

to the court in St. Petersburg. From June 1842 to October 1875 he was ambassador extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary to the court in

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. Van Heeckeren was unmarried, but did not want his name to die with him. In St. Petersburg he came to know

Georges d'Anthès Georges may refer to: Places *Georges River, New South Wales, Australia * Georges Quay (Dublin) *Georges Township, Fayette County, Pennsylvania Other uses * Georges (name) * ''Georges'' (novel), a novel by Alexandre Dumas * "Georges" (song), a 19 ...

, an officer in the Russian army and the son of a noble landowner in the

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. After several letters and a visit to Georges’s father, Joseph Conrad d'Anthès, Jacob van Heeckeren requested that he be allowed to adopt Georges, giving him his name and the right to inherit his property. The old Baron d'Anthès accepted the offer, and, after the agreement of the King of the Netherlands by letters patent dated May 5, 1836, Georges-Charles d'Anthès took the name of Georges-Charles de Heeckeren d'Anthès. Writers have suggested that the relationship between Jacob and Georges was more than that of adoptive father-son.''Add to that brew the suspicions, current then and now, that d'Anthes and his adoptive father were lovers ...'' Eaton, Katherine Bliss (July 1999
"Review of Serena Vitale's ''Pushkin’s Button''"
''H-Net Reviews in the Humanities & Social Sciences'' After Georges d'Anthès’s duel with the poet

Alexander Pushkin Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin () was a Russian poet, playwright, and novelist of the Romantic era.Basker, Michael. Pushkin and Romanticism. In Ferber, Michael, ed., ''A Companion to European Romanticism''. Oxford: Blackwell, 2005. He is consid ...

(who died from injuries), Jacob was recalled from St. Petersburg. Van Heeckeren tot Enghuizen was a

Knight Grand Cross A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

of the

Order of the Netherlands Lion The Order of the Netherlands Lion, also known as the Order of the Lion of the Netherlands (, ) is a Dutch honours system, Dutch order of chivalry founded by William I of the Netherlands on 29 September 1815. The Order of the Netherlands Lion wa ...

, and was a bearer of the

Grand Cross Grand Cross is the highest class in many orders, and manifested in its insignia. Exceptionally, the highest class may be referred to as Grand Cordon or equivalent. In other cases, there may exist a rank even higher than Grand Cross, e.g. Gran ...

of the

Order of the Oak Crown The Order of the Oak Crown (, , ) is an order (honour), order of the Luxembourg, Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. History The Order of the Oak Crown was established in 1841 by William II of the Netherlands, Grand Duke William II, who was also King o ...

, awarded 25 August 1863. From 14 July 1872 until his death he was Minister of State for the Netherlands, an honorary title given to the country's most prominent retired politicians or civil servants. Van Heeckeren died in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Heeckeren Tot Enghuizen, Jacob Derk Burchard Anne Baron Van 1792 births 1884 deaths Converts to Roman Catholicism People from Zutphen Dutch barons