Maurits Pasques de Chavonnes (1654 – 8 September 1724) was governor of the

Dutch Cape Colony The Cape Colony ( nl, Kaapkolonie) was a Dutch United East India Company (VOC) colony in Southern Africa, centered on the Cape of Good Hope, from where it derived its name. The original colony and its successive states that the colony was inco ...

from 1714 till 1721.

Early life

Maurits (or Mauritz) Pasques de Chavonnes was born 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 o ...

and baptized on 23 July 1654 in de Grote Kerk, The Hague. He was the youngest son of Jeanne de Savorningenealogieonline
and Pierre Pasques de Chavonnes, whose father, Joachim Pasques, marquis de Chavonnes, fled from

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

after the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre in 1572. He married Bathazarina Kien in 1689 and later had two children: Anna Magdalena Pasques de Chavonnes and Pieter Rochus Pasques de Chavonnes.

Career

He trained as a soldier and progressed to lieutenant colonel of the

States-General of the Netherlands The States General of the Netherlands ( nl, Staten-Generaal ) is the supreme bicameral legislature of the Netherlands consisting of the Senate () and the House of Representatives (). Both chambers meet at the Binnenhof in The Hague. The States ...

. Mauritz de Chavonnes was in charge of the infantry regiment in the army of the

Dutch Republic The United Provinces of the Netherlands, also known as the (Seven) United Provinces, officially as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands (Dutch: ''Republiek der Zeven Verenigde Nederlanden''), and commonly referred to in historiography ...

during the

War of the Spanish Succession The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict that took place from 1701 to 1714. The death of childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700 led to a struggle for control of the Spanish Empire between his heirs, Phil ...

(1701-1713). After the

Treaty of Utrecht The Peace of Utrecht was a series of peace treaties signed by the belligerents in the War of the Spanish Succession, in the Dutch city of Utrecht between April 1713 and February 1715. The war involved three contenders for the vacant throne ...

which ended the war, he joined the

Dutch East India Company The United East India Company ( nl, Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie, the VOC) was a chartered company established on the 20th March 1602 by the States General of the Netherlands amalgamating existing companies into the first joint-stock ...

, who appointed him as the Cape Governor in 1714, replacing Louis van Assenburgh who had died on 27 December 1712.Die Suid-Afrikaanse Krygshistoriese Vereniging
Military History Journal - Vol 6 No 2, Besoek op 3 Junie 2007 Within the first few months after arrival in the Cape he regulated the responsibilities of the garrison and for the first time in the Cape's history allowed the soldiers to wear uniforms and drafted instructions for the use of weapons and ammunition. De Chavonnes also instituted grazing licenses for the Cape stock farmers: in July 1714 he decided that (according to the Politieke Raad) "every person that has the requirement for grazing on any land shall request permission, and for recognition shall pay a semi-annual fee of six or an annual fee of twelve

Dutch rijksdaalder The ''rijksdaalder'' (Dutch, "Imperial dollar") was a Dutch coin first issued by the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands in the late 16th century during the Dutch Revolt which featured an armored half bust of William the Silent. It was the ...

to the Company". Furthermore, the farmers had to pay

tithe A tithe (; from Old English: ''teogoþa'' "tenth") is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Today, tithes are normally voluntary and paid in cash or cheques or more ...

s of all their harvests to the

. He contributed to the development of the Cape and was promoted to Justice of India in 1721. His military innovations included the organisation of so-called ''Free Black'' and Asian citizens in Table Valley into a military unit called ''Companie Vryswarten'' (Company Free Blacks) in 1722 under the command of their own officers. This company, together with others, took turns in the night watch of the company's barracks. He died on 8 September 1724 in the Cape after a day's illness and was buried with military honours on 14 September.

References

Bibliography

* ''500 Jaar Suid-Afrikaanse Geskiedenis'', Prof. CF Muller {{DEFAULTSORT:Chavonnes, Maurits Pasques De 1654 births 1724 deaths Diplomats from The Hague 18th-century Dutch colonial governors Governors of the Dutch Cape Colony Dutch emigrants to South Africa