Justinus van Nassau (1559–1631) was the only extramarital child of

William the Silent William the Silent or William the Taciturn (; 24 April 153310 July 1584), more commonly known in the Netherlands as William of Orange (), was the leader of the Dutch revolt against the Spanish Habsburg Netherlands, Habsburgs that set off the ...

. He was a Dutch army commander known for his role in the defeat of the

Spanish Armada The Spanish Armada (often known as Invincible Armada, or the Enterprise of England, ) was a Spanish fleet that sailed from Lisbon in late May 1588, commanded by Alonso de Guzmán, Duke of Medina Sidonia, an aristocrat without previous naval ...

, his leadership of the forces in Breda during the siege of 1624, and the depiction of his surrender in the painting by

Diego Velázquez Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez (baptised 6 June 15996 August 1660) was a Spanish painter, the leading artist in the Noble court, court of King Philip IV of Spain, Philip IV of Spain and Portugal, and of the Spanish Golden Age. He i ...

, ''

The Surrender of Breda (English: ''The Surrender of Breda'', also known as – ''The Lances'') is a painting by the Spanish Golden Age painter Diego Velázquez. He painted it during the years 1634 and 1635, inspired by his visit to Italy with Ambrogio Spinola, the G ...

''. His mother was Eva Elincx, William's mistress between his first and second marriages. William of Orange recognized Justinus and raised him with his other children. Justinus studied in Leiden and became Lieutenant-Colonel on 17 May 1583. On 28 February 1585 he became lieutenant-admiral of

Zeeland Zeeland (; ), historically known in English by the Endonym and exonym, exonym Zealand, is the westernmost and least populous province of the Netherlands. The province, located in the southwest of the country, borders North Brabant to the east ...

, and fought in 1588 against the

, capturing two galleons. From 1601 until 1625 he was governor of

Breda Breda ( , , , ) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the southern part of the Netherlands, located in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of North Brabant. ...

. In 1625 he had to surrender Breda to the Spanish general

Ambrogio Spinola Ambrogio Spinola Doria, 1st Marquess of Los Balbases and 1st Duke of Sesto (1569 – 25 September 1630) was an Italian military leader and nobleman of the Republic of Genoa, who served as a Spanish general and won a number of important battles. ...

after a siege of 11 months. Justinus was allowed to leave for

Leiden Leiden ( ; ; in English language, English and Archaism, archaic Dutch language, Dutch also Leyden) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Provinces of the Nethe ...

Issue

On 4 December 1597 he married Anne, Baronesse de Mérode (9 January 1567 – Leiden, 8 October 1634) and had three children. * Willem Maurits van Nassau (June 1603 – d. 1638 in Leiden), married Maria van Aerssen van Sommelsdijk and had issue: ** Justinus, no issue. ** Justina van Nassau (March 1635 – c. 1676), married George van Cats ter Coulster (1632–1676) and had issue: *** Willem Maurits van Cats, (c. 1670 – December 1743). ** Anna van Nassau (c. 1638 – The Hague, 1721), married Willem Adriaan Count van Horn Batenburg and had issue. * Louise Henriëtte van Nassau (1604 – between 1637 and 1645), no issue. * Philips van Nassau (1605 – somewhere between 1672 and 1676), married and had issue. He and his wife were buried in the Hooglandse Kerk in Leiden. The following arms are recorded for Justinus, based on those of his father

. File:Justinus van Nassau wapen.svg, Arms of Justinus van Nassau.

Family tree

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nassau, Justinus Van 1559 births 1631 deaths Justinus Justinus People of the Anglo-Spanish War (1625–1630) Sons of princes regnant