Frans Hals - Banquet of the Officers of the St Hadrian Civic Guard Company - WGA11092 detail 01

Johan Damius (1570 – 15 December 1648), was a

Dutch Golden Age The Dutch Golden Age ( nl, Gouden Eeuw ) was a period in the history of the Netherlands, roughly spanning the era from 1588 (the birth of the Dutch Republic) to 1672 (the Rampjaar, "Disaster Year"), in which Dutch trade, science, and Dutch art, ...

member of the

Haarlem schutterij The Haarlem schutterij refers to a collective name for the voluntary civic guard of Haarlem, from medieval times up to the Batavian Revolution in 1794, when the guilds of Haarlem were disbanded. History During the Hook and Cod wars in 1402, Ha ...

Biography

He was born in

Ladenburg Ladenburg is a town in northwestern Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It lies on the right bank of the river Neckar, northwest of Heidelberg and east of Mannheim. The town's history goes back to the Celtic and Roman Ages, when it was called Lopo ...

a/d Neckar as the son of Johannes Dammius who moved to Haarlem before 1578 where he gave the first Protestant sermon in the

Grote Kerk, Haarlem The Grote Kerk or St.-Bavokerk is a Reformed Protestant church and former Catholic cathedral located on the central market square ( Grote Markt) in the Dutch city of Haarlem. Another Haarlem church called the Cathedral of Saint Bavo now serves as ...

after Haarlem was freed from Spanish (Catholic) occupation. The young Damius was educated along with his brother Mathias to become a doctor, but both brothers later became political rebels after their father died in 1612, acting against the

remonstrant The Remonstrants (or the Remonstrant Brotherhood) is a Protestant movement that had split from the Dutch Reformed Church in the early 17th century. The early Remonstrants supported Jacobus Arminius, and after his death, continued to maintain his ...

council of Haarlem in 1618. Mathias was banned from the city for supporting Adriaen Jacobsz Tetrode and Daniel de Souter when he published 3 contra-remonstrant pamphlets in 1617 starting with ''Requeste der dolerende Kercke te Haerlem''.Mathias Damius in Abraham van der Aa He and his brother were reinstated after the political changeover in 1618. Johan became a judge and later mayor. He also became captain of the St Adrian militia in 1619-1621 and 1624-1625, becoming fiscaal/provost in 1625-1627. He was married twice; to Catharina van Deutekom on 6 February 1596 and to Anna van Offenberg 29 October 1620.Johan Damius
in the

RKD The Netherlands Institute for Art History or RKD (Dutch: RKD-Nederlands Instituut voor Kunstgeschiedenis), previously Rijksbureau voor Kunsthistorische Documentatie (RKD), is located in The Hague and is home to the largest art history center i ...

record for this group portrait He was portrayed by

Frans Hals Frans Hals the Elder (, , ; – 26 August 1666) was a Dutch Golden Age painter, chiefly of individual and group portraits and of genre works, who lived and worked in Haarlem. Hals played an important role in the evolution of 17th-century group ...

in his

militia group portrait Schutterij () refers to a voluntary city guard or citizen militia in the medieval and early modern Netherlands, intended to protect the town or city from attack and act in case of revolt or fire. Their training grounds were often on open spaces w ...

or ''schutterstuk'', ''

The Banquet of the Officers of the St Adrian Militia Company in 1627 ''Banquet of the officers of the Calivermen Civic Guard, Haarlem'' formerly known as ''The Banquet of the Officers of the St Adrian Militia Company in 1627'', refers to a ''schutterstuk'' painted by Frans Hals, in 1627, for the St. Adrian (or St. ...

''. Anna was the cousin of Boudewijn van Offenberg, the flag bearer in the pendant of this painting, painted in the same year for the St. George militia: ''

The Banquet of the Officers of the St George Militia Company in 1627 ''The Banquet of the Officers of the St George Militia Company in 1627'' refers to a schutterstuk painted by Frans Hals for the St. George (or St. Joris) civic guard of Haarlem, and today is considered one of the main attractions of the Frans ...

''. He died in Haarlem.

References

Johan Damius
De Haarlemse Schuttersstukken, by Jhr. Mr. C.C. van Valkenburg, pp. 60, Haerlem : jaarboek 1961, ISSN 0927-0728, on the website of the North Holland Archives 1570 births 1648 deaths Mayors of Haarlem People from Ladenburg Frans Hals {{Netherlands-mayor-stub