Franciscus Maelson (1538–1601), originally from

Enkhuizen Enkhuizen () is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland and the region of West-Frisia. History Enkhuizen, like Hoorn and Amsterdam, was one of the harbor-towns of the VOC, from where overseas trade wi ...

in what was then West Friesland, was a Dutch

physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

, statesman and member of the States of Holland (representative assembly). Some sources identify him as François Maelson. His father's name was Pieter Maekschoon, which under the naming conventions of the time and place would have made his own name Frans Pieterszoon Maekschoon, but he shortened the family name to Maelson (variously spelled in sources).

Life

Maelson studied medicine and in 1563 was appointed Enkhuizen's first city medical officer, for an annual salary of 42

Gulden ''Gulden'' is the historical German and Dutch term for gold coin (from Middle High German "golden penny" and Middle Dutch " golden florin"), equivalent to the English term guilder. Gulden, Gülden, Guldens or Gulden's may also refer to: Coins o ...

. He entered into the service of the state in 1572. He was appointed city doctor in

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital of ...

in 1579. However, his notability derives more from his political activity than from his work as a physician: he played a leading role in the independence struggle of West Friesland, following the outbreak of the Dutch resurgence in 1572. He was a strong partisan of the Orange cause. Since the opening up of the

Zuiderzee The Zuiderzee or Zuider Zee (; old spelling ''Zuyderzee'' or ''Zuyder Zee'') was a shallow bay of the North Sea in the northwest of the Netherlands, extending about 100 km (60 miles) inland and at most 50 km (30 miles) wide, with an o ...

in the eleventh city, the area West Friesland (roughly the northern part of modern day North Holland) had become isolated from the rest of the Netherlands economically and politically, and its political isolation was increased after

Haarlem Haarlem (; predecessor of ''Harlem'' in English) is a city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Holland. Haarlem is situated at the northern edge of the Randstad, one of the most populated metropoli ...

fell to the Spanish in 1573. Interested outsiders, notably the English, saw political opportunities to weaken the authority north of Haarlem of the

States General The word States-General, or Estates-General, may refer to: Currently in use * Estates-General on the Situation and Future of the French Language in Quebec, the name of a commission set up by the government of Quebec on June 29, 2000 * States Genera ...

in The Hague, by encouraging separatism in West Friesland, especially following the assassination of William of Orange in 1583. Maelson's unwavering support for the Orange cause was an important element in keeping the fighters for Dutch independence united. As the 1570s progressed Maelson became a "

Pensionary A pensionary was a name given to the leading functionary and legal adviser of the principal town corporations in the Low Countries because they received a salary or pension. History The office originated in Flanders. Initially, the role was refe ...

" representing

at the Provincial States (assembly), a member of the Delegated Council of West Friesland and of the Council of the

Prince of Orange Prince of Orange (or Princess of Orange if the holder is female) is a title originally associated with the sovereign Principality of Orange, in what is now southern France and subsequently held by sovereigns in the Netherlands. The title ...

. He was sent on a diplomatic mission to

Queen Elizabeth of England Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen". Eli ...

in 1575 and again in 1585. In 1596 he was sent on a diplomatic mission to the nineteen year old King Christian of Denmark. Maelson became very knowledgeable on sea-transport and navigation, and provided financial support to the Enkhuizen cartographer Lucas Janszoon Waghenaer (1533 - ca.1606), which enabled the latter to produce two ground breaking books of descriptively annotated sea charts. In 1594 Maelson was an important co-funder of the first expedition to try to find a "northern" sea-route to the East Indies. English attempts to find such a route earlier in the sixteenth century had already led to the discovery, in 1553, of

Novaya Zemlya Novaya Zemlya (, also , ; rus, Но́вая Земля́, p=ˈnovəjə zʲɪmˈlʲa, ) is an archipelago in northern Russia. It is situated in the Arctic Ocean, in the extreme northeast of Europe, with Cape Flissingsky, on the northern island, ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maelson, Franciscus 16th-century Dutch physicians 1538 births People from Enkhuizen 1601 deaths