Johannes Herbert August Willem, Baron van Heerdt tot Eversberg (22 February 1829 – 10 January 1893) was a Dutch naval officer, civil servant, and colonial administrator. He served as

Governor of Curaçao and Dependencies The governor of the Netherlands Antilles was the representative of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Netherlands Antilles and the head of the government of the Netherlands Antilles. Duties With the introduction of the Charter for the Kingdo ...

from 1 October 1880 until 18 October 1882, and

Governor of Suriname This is a list of colonial governors of Suriname, a country in northern South America. It borders French Guiana to the east, Guyana to the west, Brazil to the south, and the Atlantic Ocean to the north. Suriname was first colonized by the British ...

from 11 November 1882 until 1 August 1885.

Biography

Van Heerdt tot Eversberg was born on 22 February 1829 in

Zwolle Zwolle () is a city and municipality in the Northeastern Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of Overijssel and the province's second-largest municipality after Enschede with a population of 130,592 as of 1 December 2021. Zwolle is o ...

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 ...

. He joined the

Royal Netherlands Navy The Royal Netherlands Navy ( nl, Koninklijke Marine, links=no) is the naval force of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. During the 17th century, the navy of the Dutch Republic (1581–1795) was one of the most powerful naval forces in the world an ...

, and left the navy in 1861 as

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

. The same year, he was part of the Dutch–French border commission tasked with mapping the

Marowijne River The Maroni or Marowijne (french: link=no, Maroni, nl, Marowijne, Sranan Tongo: ''Marwina-Liba'') is a river in South America that forms the border between French Guiana and Suriname. Course The Maroni runs through the Guianan moist forest ...

which forms to boundary between Suriname and

French Guiana French Guiana ( or ; french: link=no, Guyane ; gcr, label=French Guianese Creole, Lagwiyann ) is an overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France on the northern Atlantic ...

. On 10 April 1862, a map and a report was produced by the commission, and the border was considered solved. In 1885, gold was discovered near the Marowijne River, and the border was in dispute. As of 2021, the dispute has not been resolved. In 1863, van Heerdt tot Eversberg was appointed District Commissioner of Upper Suriname (nowadays approximates

Paramaribo District Paramaribo is a district of Suriname, encompassing the capital city of Paramaribo and the surrounding area. Paramaribo district has a population of 240,924, almost half the population of the entire country, and an area of 182 km2. The a ...

), and served until 1968. In 1868, he became custodian of the first mortgage office in Suriname., however he returned the same year to the Netherlands for health reasons, and in 1869 started to work for the Ministry of the Colonies. On 31 May 1880, van Heerdt tot Eversberg was appointed

, and was installed on 1 October 1880. , the governor of Suriname, was accused of personally profiting from gold concessions, and subsequently turned in his resignation. On 5 September 1882, it was announced that van Heerdt tot Eversberg would be transferred from Curaçao to Suriname. Van Heerdt tot Eversberg left Curaçao on 18 October 1882. On 11 November 1882, van Heerdt tot Eversberg was installed as

and served until 1 August 1885. Van Heerdt tot Eversberg died on 10 January 1893 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 ...

, at the age of 63.

Honours

* Knight of the

Order of the Netherlands Lion The Order of the Netherlands Lion, also known as the Order of the Lion of the Netherlands ( nl, De Orde van de Nederlandse Leeuw, french: L'Ordre du Lion Néerlandais) is a Dutch order of chivalry founded by King William I of the Netherlands on ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Heerdt tot Eversberg, Johannes van 1829 births 1893 deaths Governors of the Netherlands Antilles Governors of Suriname Royal Netherlands Navy officers People from Zwolle 19th-century Dutch civil servants Barons of the Netherlands Surinamese bankers Knights of the Order of the Netherlands Lion