Pieter de Groot
Pieter de Groot | |
---|---|
Born | |
Died | 2 June 1678 Boekenrode, Dutch Republic | (aged 63)
Nationality | Dutch |
Occupation(s) | Regent, diplomat |
Pieter de Groot (28 March 1615 – 2 June 1678) was a Dutch
Family life
Pieter de Groot was born in
He was twice married, first on 6 October 1652 at The Hague to Agatha van Rijn, and after her death in 1673, on 11 July 1675 at Rijswijk to his cousin Alida de Groot.
Career
After having spent a year assisting his father at the Swedish legation in Paris in 1637 he returned to the Netherlands and practiced law till
In that year he was appointed
Capitulation negotiations
De Groot had been appointed Pensionary of his native city of
The news of these negotiations caused a public outcry. The citizenry of the major Dutch cities now revolted against the De Witt regime (De Witt himself was severely wounded in an assassination attempt around this time, and could no longer take part in the government). One of the cities where the government was overthrown was Rotterdam. The Rotterdam vroedschap was forced at gunpoint by the city militia to swear that they would not give up the city to the French (as their Utrecht colleagues had done a few days before), without the consent of the citizenry. After the abortive negotiations De Groot and five of his colleagues in the city government were denounced as traitors by the Mob. The city militia closed the gates to a force of cavalry, sent by the States of Holland to restore order. The house of two burgomasters were sacked by the Mob. De Groot was personally threatened and had to move about under militia escort. He fled to Antwerp later in July. His post as Pensionary was taken over by the Orangist Johan Kievit who would shortly play a leading role in the lynching of the De Witt brothers.[4]
Exile and trial
Though in exile and disgrace with the new regime of Stadtholder William III De Groot could not resist interfering with diplomatic developments. He traveled to Cologne (by way of Liège and Aachen) where he offered his valuable services to the Dutch diplomats negotiating peace with the Elector in 1673.[2]
In 1674 he was allowed to return to the republic, only to be drawn into the scandal around Abraham de Wicquefort. That diplomat of Dutch descent, but with French connections, was accused and convicted of high treason in 1675. Unfortunately, De Groot had extensively corresponded with him, and his letters were considered highly compromising. De Groot, too, was therefore accused of high treason and court-martialed in 1674. He was acquitted on 7 December 1676 thanks to the able defense provided by his attorney Simon van Poelgeest.[5]
The trial undermined his already weak health. He retired to his estate of Boekenrode, near Haarlem, where he spent his last years writing poetry. He died there, worn out, in June 1678.
Works
- Overgebleven rymstukken van en op J.H.W. en P. de Groot (Delft 1722)
References
Sources
- Edmundson, G. "Review of Lettres de Pierre de Groot, Ambassadeur des Provinces-Unies a Abraham de Wicquefort, Résident des Ducs de Brunswick" in: Gardiner, S.R. and Poole, R.L. (eds.) (1897) The English Historical Review. Vol. XII, pp. 174–176