Jan Verveer (27 August 1775 – 22 August 1838) was a

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

of the

Royal Netherlands Army The Royal Netherlands Army ( nl, Koninklijke Landmacht) is the land branch of the Netherlands Armed Forces. Though the Royal Netherlands Army was raised on 9 January 1814, its origins date back to 1572, when the was raised – making the Dutc ...

Biography

Jan Verveer was born in Rotterdam to Johannes Verveer and Anna Maria van Alphen. Verveer joined the army in 1797. In 1803, he was sent to the

Dutch West Indies The Dutch Caribbean (historically known as the Dutch West Indies) are the territories, colonies, and countries, former and current, of the Dutch Empire and the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Caribbean Sea. They are in the north and south-wes ...

where he remained until 1815. From 1807, Verveer served as Commander of

Sint Maarten Sint Maarten () is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Caribbean. With a population of 41,486 as of January 2019 on an area of , it encompasses the southern 44% of the divided island of Saint Martin, while the north ...

, until the island was taken by

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

forces in 1810. He then returned to 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 ...

where he served in the military administration. In 1826, Verveer was an observer to the

Congress of Panama The Congress of Panama (also referred to as the Amphictyonic Congress, in homage to the Amphictyonic League of Ancient Greece) was a congress organized by Simón Bolívar in 1826 with the goal of bringing together the new republics of Latin Americ ...

. As a consequence of this mission, he became the principal adviser of

King William I of the Netherlands William I (Willem Frederik, Prince of Orange-Nassau; 24 August 1772 – 12 December 1843) was a Prince of Orange, the King of the Netherlands and Grand Duke of Luxembourg. He was the son of the last Stadtholder of the Dutch Republic, who went ...

on the

Nicaragua Canal The Nicaraguan Canal ( es, Canal de Nicaragua), formally the Nicaraguan Canal and Development Project (also referred to as the Nicaragua Grand Canal, or the Grand Interoceanic Canal) was a proposed shipping route through Nicaragua to connect th ...

. In the autumn of 1836, Verveer was appointed a Royal Commissioner by King

William I of the Netherlands William I (Willem Frederik, Prince of Orange-Nassau; 24 August 1772 – 12 December 1843) was a Prince of Orange, the King of the Netherlands and Grand Duke of Luxembourg. He was the son of the last Stadtholder of the Dutch Republic, who we ...

and charged with concluding a treaty with the King of Ashanti Kwaku Dua I Panyin to facilitate the recruitment of soldiers to the

Royal Netherlands Indies Army The Royal Netherlands East Indies Army ( nl, Koninklijk Nederlands Indisch Leger; KNIL, ) was the military force maintained by the Kingdom of the Netherlands in its colony of the Dutch East Indies, in areas that are now part of Indonesia. Th ...

. Verveer arrived in

Elmina Elmina, also known as Edina by the local Fante people, Fante, is a town and the capital of the Komenda/Edina/Eguafo/Abirem Municipal District, Komenda/Edina/Eguafo/Abirem District on the south coast of Ghana in the Central Region, Ghana, Centra ...

, the capital of 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. ...

, on 1 November 1836, and departed for the Ashanti capital of

Kumasi Kumasi (historically spelled Comassie or Coomassie, usually spelled Kumase in Twi) is a city in the Ashanti Region, and is among the largest metropolitan areas in Ghana. Kumasi is located in a rain forest region near Lake Bosomtwe, and is the ...

with a retinue of about 900 people, the majority of whom were porters carrying provisions and gifts. After lengthy negotiations, an agreement was reached in Kumasi, resulting in the establishment of a recruiting office in Kumasi headed by

Jacob Huydecoper Jacob Peter Huydecoper (11 November 1811 – 12 February 1845) was an early 19th-century Elmina Euro-African civil servant and diplomat on the Dutch Gold Coast. Early life Jacob Huydecoper was born in Elmina to Willem Huydecoper and a ...

. After having concluded the treaty, Verveer returned to the Netherlands together with

Kwasi Boakye Kwasi Boakye or Kwasi Boachi (24 April 1827 – 9 June 1904) was a Prince of the Ashanti Empire who was sent to the Netherlands together with his cousin, Kwame Poku, in 1837, by his father, King Kwaku Dua I, Kwaku Dua Panin, to receive educa ...

and Kwame Poku, two young Ashanti princes who were to receive education in the Netherlands. A year later, however, Verveer was sent back to the Gold Coast to quell the rebellion of Ahanta. Verveer became ill during this campaign and died on the ship that was to take him home to the Netherlands.

In the arts

Jan Verveer is portrayed in the 1997 novel ''

The Two Hearts of Kwasi Boachi ''The Two Hearts of Kwasi Boachi'' () is the 1997 debut novel by Dutch author Arthur Japin. The novel tells the story of two Ashanti princes, Kwame Poku and Kwasi Boachi, who were taken from what is today Ghana and given to the Dutch king Will ...

'' by

Arthur Japin Arthur Valentijn Japin (born 26 July 1956 in Haarlem) is a Dutch novelist. Biography His parents were Bert Japin, a teacher and writer of detective novels, and Annie Japin-van Arnhem. After a difficult childhood—his father killed himself when ...

Notes

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Verveer, Jan 1775 births 1838 deaths Dutch Gold Coast people Royal Netherlands Army officers Military personnel from Rotterdam