Paulus Roelof Cantz'laar (22 November 1771 – 15 December 1831) was a Dutch naval officer and colonial governor. He served as Governor of

Curaçao and Dependencies The Colony of Curaçao and Dependencies ( nl, Kolonie Curaçao en onderhorigheden; pap, Kolonia di Kòrsou i dependensianan) was a Dutch colony in the Caribbean Sea from 1815 until 1828 and from 1845 until 1954. Between 1936 and 1948, the area wa ...

from 16 November 1820 until April 1828, and Governor of the Dutch West Indies from 20 May 1828 tot 15 December 1831.

Biography

Cantz'laar was born on 22 November 1771 in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

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 ...

. He joined the navy in 1790 as

midshipman A midshipman is an officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Canada (Naval Cadet), Australia, Bangladesh, Namibia, New Zealand, South Afr ...

and was promoted to lieutenant in 1793. In 1795 the entire service of sea officers was dismissed and he rejoined the navy of the

Batavian Republic The Batavian Republic ( nl, Bataafse Republiek; french: République Batave) was the successor state to the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands. It was proclaimed on 19 January 1795 and ended on 5 June 1806, with the accession of Louis Bona ...

in 1799. He was promoted to

first lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a s ...

on 23 August 1800 and to

captain lieutenant Captain lieutenant or captain-lieutenant is a military rank, used in a number of navies worldwide and formerly in the British Army. Northern Europe Denmark, Norway and Finland The same rank is used in the navies of Denmark (), Norway () and Finl ...

on 23 November 1804. In 1808 he got the title of

lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

. After a sea battle on 21 October 1813, he was taken to England as a

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of wa ...

. After the November revolution, the French rule of the Netherlands ended, and Catlz'laar was released. In 1814 Cantz'laar was named

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

and commander of a

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions are ...

marines Marines, or naval infantry, are typically a military force trained to operate in littoral zones in support of naval operations. Historically, tasks undertaken by marines have included helping maintain discipline and order aboard the ship (refle ...

he raised that same year. In 1815 he was named governor 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 ...

and Saba, of which he took control on 6 January 1816. He would remain here until 1820, when he was promoted

schout-bij-nacht () is a Dutch Naval rank, with a NATO rank of OF-7. The ' was responsible for ensuring that fleet continued to sail in the prescribed order at night. The title comes from the title of the officer who replaced the admiral at night and was therefo ...

. On 16 November 1820, he was appointed governor of

and served until April 1828. On 20 May 1828, he became the first

governor-general Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

of the combined Dutch West Indian possession, and left for

Paramaribo Paramaribo (; ; nicknamed Par'bo) is the capital and largest city of Suriname, located on the banks of the Suriname River in the Paramaribo District. Paramaribo has a population of roughly 241,000 people (2012 census), almost half of Suriname's ...

. Cantz'laar died on 15 December 1831 in Paramaribo, at the age of 60.

References

Encyclopaedie van Nederlandsch West-Indië
M. Nijhoff, E.J. Brill, Den Haag/Leiden, 1914–1917. {{DEFAULTSORT:Cantz'laar, Paulus Roelof 1771 births 1831 deaths Royal Netherlands Navy officers Governors of Sint Maarten Governors of Suriname Dutch military personnel of the Napoleonic Wars Military personnel from Amsterdam