Hans van Mierlo
This article's lead section contains information that is not included elsewhere in the article. (August 2022) |
Minister of Defence | |
---|---|
In office 11 September 1981 – 4 November 1982 | |
Prime Minister | Dries van Agt |
Preceded by | Pieter de Geus |
Succeeded by | Job de Ruiter |
Leader of the Democrats 66 in the House of Representatives | |
In office 3 June 1986 – 22 August 1994 | |
Preceded by | Maarten Engwirda |
Succeeded by | Gerrit-Jan Wolffensperger |
In office 23 February 1967 – 1 September 1973 | |
Preceded by | Office established |
Succeeded by | Jan Terlouw |
Member of the House of Representatives | |
In office 19 May 1998 – 18 August 1998 | |
In office 3 June 1986 – 22 August 1994 | |
In office 23 February 1967 – 8 June 1977 | |
Parliamentary group | Democrats 66 |
Leader of the Democrats 66 | |
In office 25 January 1986 – 15 February 1998 | |
Preceded by | Maarten Engwirda |
Succeeded by | Els Borst |
In office 14 October 1966 – 1 September 1973 | |
Preceded by | Office established |
Succeeded by | Jan Terlouw |
Chairman of the Democrats 66 | |
In office 14 October 1966 – 16 February 1967 | |
Preceded by | Office established |
Succeeded by | Gerben Ringnalda |
Personal details | |
Born | Henricus Antonius Franciscus Maria Oliva van Mierlo 18 August 1931 Breda, Netherlands |
Died | 11 March 2010 Amsterdam, Netherlands | (aged 78)
Cause of death | Hepatitis C |
Political party | Democrats 66 (from 1966) |
Spouses | Anna Los
(m. 1961; div. 1963)Olla van Maasdijk
(m. 1964; div. 1984) |
Domestic partner(s) | Gretta Nieuwenhuizen (1985–1986) Aafke van der Made (1987–1997) Connie Palmen (1999–2009) |
Children | 2 daughters and 1 son |
Alma mater | Radboud University Nijmegen (LL.B., LL.M.) |
Occupation | Politician · Journalist · Editor · Author · Political pundit · Nonprofit director · Television producer |
Signature | |
Military service | |
Allegiance | Netherlands |
Branch/service | Royal Netherlands Army |
Years of service | 1952–1954 (Conscription) 1954–1961 (Reserve) |
Rank | Sergeant |
Unit | Regiment van Heutsz |
Battles/wars | Cold War |
Henricus Antonius Franciscus Maria Oliva "Hans" van Mierlo (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈɦɑns fɑˈmiːrloː];[1] 18 August 1931 – 11 March 2010) was a Dutch politician and journalist who co-founded Democrats 66 (D66).
Van Mierlo studied
Van Mierlo semi-retired from active politics and became active in the
Van Mierlo retired from active politics at 67 and again became active in the public sector as a non-profit director and served as a diplomat for several economic and diplomatic delegations on behalf of the government, and continued to be active as a advocate and lobbyist for more European integration, republican issues and government reforms. Van Mierlo was known for his abilities as a skillful debater and effective negotiator. Van Mierlo was granted the honorary title of Minister of State on 24 October 1998 and continued to comment on political affairs as a statesman until his death in March 2010 from the complications of a Hepatitis C infection at the age of 78.
Early life
Henricus Antonius Franciscus Maria Oliva van Mierlo was born on 18 August 1931 in Breda in the province of North Brabant in a Roman Catholic family as the second child of eight children of Anthonius Alphonsus Marie van Mierlo (born 9 May 1902) and Adriana Maria Francisca van der Schrieck (born 3 April 1905). After receiving his diploma Gymnasium-A at the Canisius College in Nijmegen he studied at the Radboud University Nijmegen, where he received a Bachelor of Laws and Master of Laws degree in 1960. After graduating, he became a journalist for the NRC Handelsblad and worked as a managing editor from 1960 until 1967, first as an editor Home Affairs, later as the opinion page's chief editor.
Politics
Party foundation
In 1966 Van Mierlo together with
Van Mierlo was elected as a member of the
Hans Gruijters became Minister of Housing and Spatial Planning. Because of the disappointing election results Van Mierlo resigned as parliamentary leader of the Democrats 66 in the House of Representatives and Leader of the Democrats 66 on 1 September 1973. Van Mierlo remained a member of the House until after the Dutch general election of 1977 on 8 June 1977.
Cabinet of Dries van Agt
After the Dutch general election of 1981 Van Mierlo was asked by Jan Terlouw to become Minister of Defence in the Second Van Agt cabinet under Prime Minister Dries van Agt of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) and served from 11 September 1981 until 4 November 1982. After the Dutch Senate election of 1983 Van Mierlo was elected as a Senator serving from 13 September 1983 until 4 June 1986.
In 1986 Van Mierlo staged a political comeback and was reelected as
Cabinet of Wim Kok
After an arduous cabinet formation with the Labour Party and the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) a deal was struck that resulted in the First Kok cabinet with Van Mierlo becoming Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs serving from 22 August 1994 until 3 August 1998.
The First Kok cabinet was considered groundbreaking in Dutch politics because it was the first Cabinet of the Netherlands since 1908 without a Christian democratic party. On 7 March 1997 Van Mierlo announced his retirement as Leader of the Democrats 66. Van Mierlo remained Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs until the Second Kok cabinet was installed on 3 August 1998. For the Dutch general election of 1998 Van Mierlo was reelected to the House of Representatives on 19 May 1998 but resigned on 18 August 1998.
Convention on the Future of Europe
Van Mierlo semi-retired from active politics on his sixty-seventh birthday. He served as the first Dutch representative to the Convention on the Future of Europe from 1 March 2002 until 26 September 2002. Following the end of his active political career, Van Mierlo occupied numerous seats on supervisory boards on cultural organizations.
Personal
He was appointed Minister of State on 24 October 1998, a mainly honorary title for politicians with an extensive history of government service. Hans van Mierlo has been married three times. He has a son from his first marriage and two daughters from the second. Since 1999 Van Mierlo had a relationship with the Dutch writer Connie Palmen; they got married on 11 November 2009, in Amsterdam.[2]
Death
Hans van Mierlo died on 11 March 2010 at the age of 78;[3][4] he had been living with a transplanted liver since 2000[5] which was required after liver failure as a consequence of a hepatitis C contamination contracted from a blood transfusion in 1982.[6]
Decorations
Honours | ||||
Ribbon bar | Honour | Country | Date | Comment |
---|---|---|---|---|
Commander of the Order of Orange-Nassau | Netherlands | 10 December 1982 | ||
Commander of the Order of the Netherlands Lion | Netherlands | 30 December 1982 | ||
Commander of the Legion of Honour | France | 12 February 1999 | ||
Grand Cross of the Order of Merit | Germany | 30 May 2003 | ||
Honorific Titles | ||||
Ribbon bar | Honour | Country | Date | Comment |
Minister of State | Netherlands | 24 October 1998 | Style of Excellency
|
References
- ^ Van in isolation: [vɑn].
- ^ (in Dutch) Connie Palmen en Hans van Mierlo getrouwd
- ^ "Hans van Mierlo, changer of Dutch politics, dies at 78". nrc.nl. Archived from the original on 2010-03-14. Retrieved 2010-03-13.
- ^ (in Dutch) "'Van Mierlo tot laatst betrokken bij D66'" Archived 2010-03-13 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Hans van Mierlo is overleden". nrcnext.nl.
- ^ Voor Mr D66 was politic een passie (in Dutch), de Stentor.
External links
- Official
- (in Dutch) Mr. H.A.F.M.O. (Hans) van Mierlo Parlement & Politiek
- (in Dutch) Mr. H.A.F.M.O. van Mierlo (D66) Eerste Kamer der Staten-Generaal