- Anthonie Heinsius
Anthonie (or Antonius) Heinsius (
November 22 1641 ,Delft -August 3 1720 ,The Hague ) was a Dutch statesman who served asGrand Pensionary ofHolland from 1689 to 1720.Heinsius was born at
Delft on22 November 1641 , son of a wealthy merchant and patrician.In 1679 he became
pensionary forDelft in theStates of Holland and in 1687 he became a member of the board of the Delft chamber of theDutch East India Company (VOC).In 1682 he was appointed special negotiator to
France bystadholder William III of Orange . His mission was to see if anything could be done about the occupation of thePrincipality of Orange by Louis XIV. The mission was a failure but he made a favourable impression on William III. He became Grand Pensionary of the States of Holland (and thereby the most powerful man in the States General ofthe Netherlands ) onMay 27 ,1689 [http://home.zonnet.nl/d.van.duijvenbode/geschmin.htm] when William III became king of England and had to move to London. He was the confidante and correspondent of William, who left the guidance of Dutch affairs largely in his hands.Heinsius was a tough negotiator and one of the greatest and most obstinate opponents of the expansionist policies of
France .He was one of the driving forces behind the anti-France coalitions of the
War of the Grand Alliance (1687–97) and theWar of the Spanish Succession (1701–14). After the death of William III in 1702 his hold on the States General diminished but he remained Grand Pensionary of Holland until his own death in 1720.ources
* [http://www.inghist.nl/Instituut/Publicatie/310 |"The Correspondence of Anthonie Heinsius, 1702-1720"] , edited by A. J. Veenendaal, Jr.
* [http://www.inghist.nl/Instituut/Publicatie/696 |"Antonie Heinsius and the Dutch Republic] ", edited by J. A. F. de Jongste and A. J. Veenendaal, Jr.
* Heinsius Correspondence in the Nationaal Archief, The Hague, in 36.3 metres.
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