Pieter Dircksz. Hasselaar (

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 ...

, 1554–

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

, August 1616) was an Amsterdam brewer and

schepen A schepen (Dutch, ; . ') or échevin (French, , ) or Schöffe (German, ) is a municipal officer in Belgium and formerly the Netherlands, where it has been replaced by the (a municipal executive). In modern Belgium, the ''schepen'' or ''échevin'' ...

(alderman), and one of the founders of the

Dutch East India Company The United East India Company ( ; VOC ), commonly known as the Dutch East India Company, was a chartered company, chartered trading company and one of the first joint-stock companies in the world. Established on 20 March 1602 by the States Ge ...

. He is famous, along with his aunt

Kenau Simonsdochter Hasselaer Kenau Simonsdochter Hasselaer (1526–1588) was a wood merchant of Haarlem, who became a legendary folk hero for her fearless defense of the city against the Spanish invaders during the siege of Haarlem in 1573. Biography She was the daughter ...

, for courageous actions during the

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 ...

in 1573. In 1578, after the

Alteratie The Alteratie (Eng: Alteration) is the name given to the change of power in Amsterdam on May 26, 1578, when the Catholic city government was deposed in favor of a Protestant one. The coup should be seen in the context of the greater Dutch Revolt th ...

, he moved to Amsterdam and by 1583 was manager of the brewery of Andries Boelens. In 1587 he bought a brewery, the ''Eagle'', between

Nieuwendijk Nieuwendijk is a village in the Dutch province of North Brabant. It is a part of the municipality of Altena, and lies about 8 km south of Gorinchem. History The village was first mentioned in 1468 as Nyewendijck, and means "new dike". Nie ...

and

Prins Hendrikkade Prins Hendrikkade (Dutch for "Prince Henry's Quay") is a major street in the centre of Amsterdam. It passes Amsterdam Central Station, intersects the Damrak at the mouth of the Amstel river, and forms the southern end of the IJtunnel across the I ...

. He also acted as a merchant in Portugal and Spain. In 1594 he joined the Amsterdam

city council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, borough counc ...

and was one of the governors of the Compagnie van Verre. In 1597, he started the

Company of Guinea A company, abbreviated as co., is a legal entity representing an association of legal people, whether natural, juridical or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common purpose and unite to achieve specific ...

. He bought maps, books and stationery for

Willem Barents Willem Barentsz (; – 20 June 1597), anglicized as William Barents or Barentz, was a Dutch navigator, cartographer, and Arctic explorer. Barentsz went on three expeditions to the far north in search for a Northeast passage. He reached as far ...

, who would sail to Nova Zembla. In 1602 he was one of the investors in the

. In 1608 he traded on the

White Sea The White Sea (; Karelian language, Karelian and ; ) is a southern inlet of the Barents Sea located on the northwest coast of Russia. It is surrounded by Karelia to the west, the Kola Peninsula to the north, and the Kanin Peninsula to the nort ...

and

Archangel Archangels () are the second lowest rank of angel in the Catholic hierarchy of angels, based on and put forward by Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite in the 5th or 6th century in his book ''De Coelesti Hierarchia'' (''On the Celestial Hierarchy'') ...

. He owned land in

Heerhugowaard Heerhugowaard (; West Frisian Dutch: ''Heerhugoweard'', ''Heregeweard'' or ''De Weard'') is a city in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland and the region of West Friesland. Heerhugowaard was previously a separate municipality, whic ...

and Texel. In 1611 he started a brewery ''Witte Arent'' on the

Lastage Lastage is a neighborhood in the Centrum borough of Amsterdam, Netherlands. It is located between the Geldersekade and Oudeschans canals, and north of Sint Antoniesbreestraat, just east of old medieval city, and developed as the city's first ma ...

. The brewery went over to his son Nicolaes, and after he died, to his daughter Balichgen and son-in-law Peter Everstz Hulst, known for his portrait in 1639 by

Bartholomeus van der Helst Bartholomeus van der Helst (1613 – buried 16 December 1670) was a Dutch painter. Considered to be one of the leading portrait painters of the Dutch Golden Age, his elegant portraits gained him the patronage of Amsterdam's elite as well as th ...

. His son Pieter Pietersz Hasselaer (1582–1651) was mayor eight times between 1635 and 1649, son Dirck succeeded him at the East India Company, and his son Nicolaes was captain-major of the civic guard. Together with

Albert Burgh Albert Coenraadsz Burgh (1593 – 24 December 1647) was a Dutch physician who was mayor of Amsterdam and a councillor in the Admiralty of Amsterdam. Biography Burgh was born into a rich brewer's family. He studied medicine in Leiden in 161 ...

Andries Bicker Andries Bicker (14 September 1586 – 24 June 1652) was a prominent burgomaster (mayor) of Amsterdam, politician and diplomat in the Dutch Republic. He was a member of the Bicker family, who governed the city of Amsterdam and with it the provinc ...

and Abraham Boom, Hasselaer received

Marie de Medici Marie de' Medici (; ; 26 April 1575 – 3 July 1642) was Queen of France and Navarre as the second wife of King Henry IV. Marie served as regent of France between 1610 and 1617 during the minority of her son Louis XIII. Her mandate as regent ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hasselaer, Pieter Founders of the Dutch East India Company Businesspeople in brewing People from Haarlem Dutch people of the Eighty Years' War (United Provinces) 1554 births 1616 deaths