Catharina de Grebber (1496 – after 1515) was a

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

woman A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female humans regardl ...

. She is known as the victim of a famous case of kidnapping and rape in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

in 1515. The case was widely famed in the contemporary Netherlands, where it was published and popular within literature: it was also the subject of a song, where Catharina de Grebber was described as a

rabbit Rabbits, also known as bunnies or bunny rabbits, are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also contains the hares) of the order Lagomorpha (which also contains the pikas). ''Oryctolagus cuniculus'' includes the European rabbit speci ...

persecuted by a

hunter Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...

Biography

Catharina de Grebber was the daughter of the wealthy shipper and patrician Pieter Claeszoon

de Grebber The De Grebber are considered to be one of the oldest noble families in Waterland and the city of Amsterdam. History The origin of the family, called ''De Grebber'' from the later 13th century, is said to be in Edam and Monnickendam, where th ...

and Alyt van Tetrode in

Leiden Leiden (; in English and archaic Dutch also Leyden) is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland, Netherlands. The municipality of Leiden has a population of 119,713, but the city forms one densely connected agglomeration wit ...

. In 1509, at the age of thirteen, she was abducted by the nobleman Gerrit van Raaphorst and four accomplices on her way to church with her father in

Wassenaar Wassenaar (; population: in ) is a municipality and town located in the province of South Holland, on the western coast of the Netherlands. An affluent suburb of The Hague, Wassenaar lies north of that city on the N44/A44 highway near the Nort ...

. Raaphorst took her to

Sassenheim Sassenheim () is a town and former municipality in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. The former municipality covered an area of 6.62 km² (of which 0.23 km² water) and had a population of 14,906 in 2005. Since ...

, where he married her. During this period, she was reportedly raped and locked up. Four months later, she returned to her parents. When Raaphorst wished to have her returned, her parents sued him for forcing her to marry him. Raaphorst claimed that both the marriage and intercourse were voluntary. The court case continued for years, until 1515, when Raaphorst was judged guilty for rape and sentenced to a public walk of repentance and to pay for a painted window in the church. Raaphorst was executed for the murder of a man in 1524. The life of Catharina de Grebber after 1515 is not known.

References

External Links

* Marja Volbeda, Grebber, Catharina de, in: Digitaal Vrouwenlexicon van Nederland. URL
Grebber, Catharina de (1495/1496-na 1515)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grebber, Catharina de 1496 births 1500s missing person cases 16th-century Dutch women Formerly missing people History of women in the Netherlands Kidnapped children Missing person cases in Europe People of the Habsburg Netherlands

Biography

See also

References

External Links