Jan Helenus Ferguson (born 19 May 1826 – 13 April 1908) was a Dutch colonial government official and diplomat, who made a career in the administration of the Dutch West Indies and the

Dutch Gold Coast The Dutch Gold Coast or Dutch Guinea, officially Dutch possessions on the Coast of Guinea (Dutch: ''Nederlandse Bezittingen ter Kuste van Guinea'') was a portion of contemporary Ghana that was gradually colonized by the Dutch, beginning in 1612. ...

before becoming consul general of the Netherlands to

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

. Ferguson also authored several works on international law, sociology and philosophy.

Biography

Jan Helenus Ferguson was born on the

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

island of

Curaçao Curaçao ( ; ; pap, Kòrsou, ), officially the Country of Curaçao ( nl, Land Curaçao; pap, Pais Kòrsou), is a Lesser Antilles island country in the southern Caribbean Sea and the Dutch Caribbean region, about north of the Venezuela coast ...

to Jonathan Ferguson from Amsterdam and Helena Elizabeth Martijn from Curaçao. He initially made a career in the colonial administration of the Dutch Caribbean islands, becoming lieutenant governor of

Aruba Aruba ( , , ), officially the Country of Aruba ( nl, Land Aruba; pap, Pais Aruba) is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands physically located in the mid-south of the Caribbean Sea, about north of the Venezuela peninsula of ...

in 1866. He was appointed lieutenant governor of

Bonaire Bonaire (; , ; pap, Boneiru, , almost pronounced ) is a Dutch island in the Leeward Antilles in the Caribbean Sea. Its capital is the port of Kralendijk, on the west ( leeward) coast of the island. Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao form the ABC i ...

in June 1871, but never took office as the Dutch government needed someone to hand over the Dutch Gold Coast to the British in 1872 after governor

Cornelis Nagtglas Cornelis Johannes Marius Nagtglas (born 16 May 1814 – 19 January 1897) was a Dutch politician and civil servant, who made a career in the administration on the Dutch Gold Coast. After originally beginning his career at the advanced age of 3 ...

had left the colony. After the Dutch flag was lowered for the last time in Elmina on 6 April 1872, Ferguson was appointed consul general of the Netherlands in China. He lived and worked in Chefoo, Hong Kong and Beijing, before retiring to the Netherlands in 1895. He then lived in Wageningen and Amsterdam. He died in Padang,

Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies ( nl, Nederlands(ch)-Indië; ), was a Dutch colony consisting of what is now Indonesia. It was formed from the nationalised trading posts of the Dutch East India Company, which ...

in 1908. Ferguson was a member of the Institut de Droit International. His main publication as an international lawyer was his 'Manual of international law for the use of navies, colonies and consulates' (1884), which was even translated into Chinese. He was awarded recognition by the Chinese emperor in the same year as an officer in the Order of the Double Dragon.

Personal life

Ferguson married Maria Eleanor Waymouth (1844–1891) from

Antigua Antigua ( ), also known as Waladli or Wadadli by the native population, is an island in the Lesser Antilles. It is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region and the main island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua and Bar ...

on 22 December 1859 in Philipsburg, Sint Maarten. They had thirteen children. After his wife died at the age of 46, he married Maria Margaretha de Jong on 15 September 1899.

Publications

* ''The Red Cross alliance at sea'' (1871); * ''Manual of international law for the use of navies, colonies and consulates'' (1884); * ''De zeden wet der natuur en haar invloed op de ontwikkeling der staatsvormen'' (1886); * ''The philosophy of civilization, a sociological study'' (1889) (translated into Dutch as ''De wetten der maatschappelijke ontwikkeling, met een voorrede van W.H. de Beaufort'' (1893)); * ''Jurisdiction et exterritorialité en Chine'' (1890); * ''Het bimetallisme en de jongste muntverordening van Britsch Indië, eene schets op het gebied der staathuishoudkunde'' (1894); * ''The international conference of the Hague, a plea for peace in social evolution'' (1899); * ''Het kenvermogen van het medegevoel, het instinct van den mensch, verklarende het verband der natuurkrachten met de in den mensch gestelde geestesverwerking, voor de wetenschappelijke beschouwing van het idealisme, het spiritisme en aanverwante voorstellingen in verband met galvanisme, magnetisme, electriciteit en andere etheresche stroomen, tusschen persoonlijke menschelijke geesten met lichamen daarbuiten, onderling'' (1908).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ferguson, Jan Helenus 1826 births 1908 deaths Colonial governors of the Dutch Gold Coast 19th-century Dutch diplomats Dutch expatriates in China Dutch jurists People from Willemstad