Joan Geelvinck (1644-1707)

Joan Geelvinck (7 July 1644, Amsterdam - 21 May 1707, The Hague) was a Dutch merchant and politician who followed his father Cornelis and younger brother Albert into the city council of Amsterdam. In 1663 he became an ensign, in 1666 lieutenant, in 1676 captain and in 1688 colonel in the civic guard. In 1674 he married his full cousin Anna van Loon and became the father of Lieve Geelvinck, later a mayor, and his twin sister Catharina Clara who married Willem Boreel, becoming ambassador in Paris.

Joan Geelvinck lived at Singel 460, designed by Philip Vingboons, also his warehouse. The building is nowadays better known as "Odeon", in the 19th century a music hall where Brahms and Chopin played, now a discotheque, with an interesting interior.

In 1688 Joan Geelvinck became one of the 17 administrators of the Dutch East India Company. He served for more than one term. In 1696 "An expedition of three ships, the Geelvink, Nijptangh and Weseltje, under the command of Willem de Vlamingh and Captains Gerrit Collaert and Cornelis de Vlamingh was dispatched to look for the Ridderschap van Holland and explore New Holland. The fleet explored Rottnest Island, the mainland around the Swan River (present site of Perth) and several points along the coast going north. They land on Dirk Hartog Island, where de Vlamingh retrieved Hartoghs pewter plate and left his own behind, before heading for Batavia."

The "Geelvink" had on its return to Holland a cargo of textile, salpeter, opium, silk from Bengal and Persia, indigo, cloves and pepper.

ource

Generale missiven van Gouveneurs-Generaals en raden aan Heren XVII der VOC, deel V (1686 - 1697): 834, 845, 861, 864.

External links

* [http://www.bmz.amsterdam.nl/adam/nl/huizen/sing460.html Website of the Amsterdam Heritage on Singel 460. (N.b. some pages have a translation in English]
* [http://www.gutenberg.org/files/17450/17450-h/17450-h.htm Website on the journey of the Geelvink and the discovery of the Western coast of Australia]