Hugo de Groot
Who was he?
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Hugo de Groot 1583 - 1645
A child prodigy and remarkable international law theorist.
At age 8 he composed Latin verses.
At age 11 he entered unniversity.
At age 14 he published his first book.
At age 15 he accompanied the leading Dutch politician of the day, Johan van
Oldenbarnevelt, on a diplomatic mission to the royal court of France. There
King Henry IV, impressed by his exceptional intelligence, hailed him as
"the miracle of Holland."
Hugo helped form a concept of international society, and his view that
no one country can monopolize control over the seas, but must be open to all.
Eventually this became international law. He was often proclaimed as being
"The Father of International Law."
In 1608 he married Maria van Reigersbergen, with whom he would have eight
children, only four survived beyond youth. She would become invaluable in helping
him and the family to weather the storm to come.
In these years a great theological controversy broke out between the followers
of Jacobus Arminius, chair of theology at Leiden, and the strongly Calvinist
theologian, Franciscus Gomarus.
Even though the stadtholder of the republic, Maurice of Nassau, Prince of
Orange, had often proclaimed Freedom of Religeon, he only
allowed his own supporters such freedom.
Led by Oldenbarnevelt, the States of Holland took an official position of
religious toleration towards the disputants, and Hugo was eventually asked
to draft an edict to express this policy. The edict of 1613 put into practice
a view that Hugo had been developing in his writings on church and state.
Unfortunately the efforts of Oldenbarnaveld did not produce the results he had
hoped for and hostilities flared throughout the republic. To maintain civil order,
Oldenbarnevelt eventually proposed that local authorities be given the power to
raise troops.
Hugo and Oldenbarnaveld were already at odds with Prince Maurice, as they had
negotiated a 12 year truce with Spain. Maurice did not like that either as he
wanted to keep on fighting.
The policies of these two influential and super intelligent persons undermined of Prince Maurice. He seized the opportunity to solidify his position and on August 29,1618, Maurice and his allies staged a coup, overthrowing the States General of which Hugo was a member by virtue of his position as Pensionary of Rotterdam.
Hugo, van Oldenbarnevelt, and Rombout Hoogerbeets (Pensionary of Leyden)
were arrested. A special Tribunal of 24 judges met to try the three political
prisoners. How legal this was is anybody's guess. Van Oldenbarnevelt was
sentenced to death and Hugo and Hoogerbeets are sentenced to life in prison in the castle of Loevestein. This seems to be the way how people in powerful positions
acquire a country and Royal status. Sadam Hussein of Iraq is another good example.
1621 MARCH 22, THE FAMOUS ESCAPE
Hugo in Loevenstein Castle was later accompanied by his wife Maria van Reigersberch and house servant Elselina van Houweningen. Hugo was allowed to keep studying and while in prison he wrote his book on Introduction to Dutch Law.
He received a case with books that his prison warders collected from a familie
in Gorinchem. This was to be returned later on.
This gave Maria his wife a fabulous idea. She told Hugo:"Get into this box and
make sure you can stay in there for two hours without making a sound." Every
evening she made him practice.
There was some urgency in her plan as the truce with Spain was about
to end. This meant that the escape routes going South would be less safe.
Hugo's escaped out of Loevenstein was to take place on 22 March 1622. On this day it was market day in Gorinchem, a village nearby, and the chief warden was away.
Maria and Elselina put all the books on the bed and covered them with blankets
and Hugo's clothes, creating the impression that Hugo was sick in bed.
Wearing only his underwear and silk stockings, Hugo got into the box.
Elselina accompanied the box to Gorinchem to keep an eye on things. When they
arrived at the family, Hugo got out, got dressed like a bricklayer, and rushed to
Antwerp. From there he went to Paris.
This famous escape is so exiting that on several places they have a book case,
claiming it to be THE box in which Hogo escaped, places like the Rijks Museum in
Amsterdam, the Castle Loevenstein itself, the Prinsenhof in Delft, and even in
New York.
During the time in Paris, Hugo returned to the theological issues which had
earlier caused him much grief. The project of Christian unity, harmonizing
both the various Protestant factions and the Protestants with the Catholics,
became increasingly important to him. Of course, the cause was doomed to
failure, it was well beyond Hugo's abilities.
During this time in exile, there was a lot of correspondence with Joost Brasser,
who kept him informed of the political situation in Holland. These letters (in old
Dutch) are well documented. Copies are available from the Contact of this website,
or go to http://grotius.huygens.knaw.nl/?wicket:interface=:4
In 1625 'De Jure Belli Ac Pacis' (On the Law of War and Peace) was published in Paris.
This later distinguished him as the "Father of International Law".
After Prince Maurice died in 1631, things seemed to have mellowed in Holland
and Hugo returned to Holland in defiance of his status. He practiced law in
Amsterdam and was offered the Governor Generalship of the Dutch East Indies
Company in Asia.
The following year however a 2000 guilder price was put on the head of Hugo,
so he fled Holland to Hamburg, Germany. He spent three years in Germany,
until he was appointed Ambassador of Sweden to France.
In March 1645 he moved with his family to Stockholm, Sweden to take on another
position. On 13th of August, his last visit to Sweden, Hugo got shipwrecked
while sailing across the Baltic Sea.
He washed up on the shore of Rostock, ill and weather-beaten, and on
August 28 he died. His body was at last returned to the country of its
youth, and laid to rest in the Nieuwe Kerk (New Church) in Delft, not far from Prince Maurits, the person who wanted him 'out of the way', and his friend and cousin, Joost
Brasser.
A most remarkable man who led a most remarkable life.
You find his statue on the square in front of the Niewe kerk in Delft.
A drawing of the escape, made around 1622
then please send it to Harry Brasser at
brasser@ihug.co.nz.
Thank you.
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