Willem Schrijver (

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 ...

, 1608 –

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 ...

, October 17, 1661) was a

Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...

patrician and politician of the

Dutch Golden Age The Dutch Golden Age ( ) was a period in the history of the Netherlands which roughly lasted from 1588, when the Dutch Republic was established, to 1672, when the '' Rampjaar'' occurred. During this period, Dutch trade, scientific development ...

Biography

Willem was born in the city of Leiden, the son of the important philologist Pieter Hendricksz Schrijver, aka Petrus Scriverius, and his wife Anna van der Aar.De Nederlandsche leeuw: Maandblad van het Genealogisch-Heraldiek Genootschap, "Geslacht Schrijver", volume 1883-1888, p 61
/ref> Willem grew up in Amsterdam and held various positions in the city, becoming a lieutenant in the citizen guard in 1651 and a captain in 1653. In 1655, he became

commissioner A commissioner (commonly abbreviated as Comm'r) is, in principle, a member of a commission or an individual who has been given a commission (official charge or authority to do something). In practice, the title of commissioner has evolved to incl ...

of the city of Amsterdam, and between 1656 and the year of his death in 1661 he was part of the

Vroedschap The ''vroedschap'' () was the name for the (all male) city council in the early modern Netherlands; the member of such a council was called a ''vroedman'', literally a "wise man". An honorific title of the ''vroedschap'' was the ''vroede vadere ...

. Between 1658 and also 1661, he was a councilor to the '' Admiraliteit van West-Friesland en het Noorderkwartier''. In 1645, Willem married the extremely wealthy patrician daughter Wendela de Graeff, daughter of

burgomaster Burgomaster (alternatively spelled burgermeister, ) is the English form of various terms in or derived from Germanic languages for the chief magistrate or executive of a city or town. The name in English was derived from the Dutch . In so ...

Jacob Dircksz de Graeff Jacob Dircksz de Graeff, ''Free and high fief of Zuid-Polsbroek, free lord of Zuid-Polsbroek'' (Emden 1571 – Amsterdam, 6 October 1638) was an illustrious member of the Dutch Republic, Dutch Patrician (post-Roman Europe), patrician De Graeff fam ...

and Aaltje Boelens Loen and widow of Pieter van Papenbroek. Due to this marriage he became a brother-in-law to statesman and Amsterdam burgomaster

Cornelis de Graeff Cornelis de Graeff (15 October 1599 – 4 May 1664), often named ''Polsbroek'' or ''de heer van (lord) Polsbroek'' during his lifetime, was an influential regenten, regent and burgomaster (mayor) of Amsterdam, statesman and diplomat of Holland an ...

and uncle by marriage of Grand pensionary

Johan de Witt Johan de Witt (24 September 1625 – 20 August 1672) was a Dutch statesman and mathematician who was a major political figure during the First Stadtholderless Period, when flourishing global trade in a period of rapid European colonial exp ...

. The couple had the son Willem Schrijver II (1651–1673), who married Margaretha

Six 6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number. In mathematics A six-sided polygon is a hexagon, one of the three regular polygons capable of tiling the plane. A hexagon a ...

(1653–1704). He was ranked 57 among the richest people of the Golden Age with a sum of 580,000 guilders. The family of Willem and Wendela lived in a town house on the

Herengracht The Herengracht () is the second of four Amsterdam canals belonging to the canal belt and lies between the Singel and the Keizersgracht. The Gouden Bocht (Golden Bend) in particular is known for its large and beautiful canal houses. History Th ...

. In 1655/56, Willem commissioned

Rembrandt Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (; ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), mononymously known as Rembrandt was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker, and Drawing, draughtsman. He is generally considered one of the greatest visual artists in ...

the painting Jacob Blessing the Sons of Joseph, which depicts his father Petrus, himself (as Joseph) with his wife Wendela and their two sons from her first and second marriage as biblical characters.Pieter C. Vies: (PDF) Around 1660, Willem was also painted at The Arrival of Cornelis de Graeff and Members of His Family at Soestdijk, His Country Estate by

Thomas de Keyser Thomas de Keyser (c. 1596–1667) was a Dutch portrait painter and a dealer in Belgium bluestone and stone mason. He was the most in-demand portrait painter in the Netherlands until the 1630s, when Rembrandt eclipsed him in popularity. Rembra ...

and

Jacob van Ruisdael Jacob Isaackszoon van Ruisdael (; 1629 – 10 March 1682) was a Dutch painter, draughtsman, and etcher. He is generally considered the pre-eminent landscape painter of the Dutch Golden Age, a period of great wealth and cultural achie ...

. Alongside his brothers-in-law Pieter Trip and

Andries de Graeff Andries de Graeff (19 February 1611 – 30 November 1678) was a regent and burgomaster (mayor) of Amsterdam and leading Dutch statesman during the Golden Age. He came from the De Graeff family, which, together with the Bicker family by marria ...

, he is the first of the three figures standing on the roadside to the right of center.rkd.nl Cornelis de Graeff and his wife and sons arrive at their country house Soestdijk, ca. 1660
/ref>

Notes

Source

* Johan Engelbert Elias
De Vroedschap van Amsterdam, 1578–1795, Deel 1, p 498
{{DEFAULTSORT:Schrijver, Willem 1608 births 1661 deaths Nobility from Amsterdam Dutch States Party politicians 17th-century Dutch politicians