Petrus Vuyst or Vuijst (1691, Alkmaar, Netherlands – 19 May 1732, Batavia) was the 20th

Governor of Ceylon {{Use dmy dates, date=November 2019 The Governor of Ceylon can refer to historical vice-regal representatives of three colonial powers: Portuguese Ceylon * List of Captains of Portuguese Ceylon (1518–1551) * List of Captain-majors of Portuguese ...

during the Dutch colonial period. Vuyst was born in Alkmaar as the son of Hendrik Vuyst of

Alkmaar Alkmaar () is a city and municipality in the Netherlands, located in the province of North Holland, about 30 km north of Amsterdam. Alkmaar is well known for its traditional cheese market. For tourists, it is a popular cultural destination. The ...

(1656–1705) and Maria de Nijs. He returned to the Netherlands for schooling, where he signed in as a student in

Leiden Leiden (; in English and archaic Dutch also Leyden) is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland, Netherlands. The municipality of Leiden has a population of 119,713, but the city forms one densely connected agglomeration wit ...

in 1711.Historische-Genealogische-Heraldieke aantekeningen over Ceylon
in ''De Wapenheraut'', D. G. van Epen, editor, Volume 1, The Hague, 1897, pp. 53-4 In

Haarlem Haarlem (; predecessor of ''Harlem'' in English) is a city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Holland. Haarlem is situated at the northern edge of the Randstad, one of the most populated metropoli ...

, he married the local Barbara Wilhelmina Gerlings (1692–1746) in 1714. The couple lived in Leiden where they had one surviving daughter, before leaving for the East Indies on 16 May 1716 on the ship ''De herstelde Leeuw''. He arrived in 1717 in Batavia where he was fiscal lawyer and in 1720 became Extraordinary Council of the Dutch East Indies. Between 1722 and 1724 he was Governor of Dutch Bengal and finally in 1726 was appointed governor of Ceylon. Vuyst's rule in Ceylon began well, as he ordered the fortifications of the strategic port of Galle to be strengthened, and had a new road built from the Fort of

Colombo Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo me ...

to the suburb of

Mutwal Modara ( si, මෝදර, translit=Mōdara; ta, முகத்துவாரம், translit=Mukattuvāram), also known as Mutwal ''(anglicised version)'', is a municipal ward of Colombo, capital of Sri Lanka. The mouth of the river Kelani Gan ...

. Vinod Moonesinghe. "Vuyst's Ghost", ''Medium''
/ref> However, he turned out to be notoriously inept and cruel. At his instigation a number of people, including Dutch settlers and officials, were sentenced to death on false or trumped up charges. He was dismissed from his position in 1729 and summoned to appear before the High Council in Batavia, which found him guilty of "judicial murders" and other serious crimes. He was executed on 19 May 1732.Rajpal Kumar de Silva and Willemina G. M. Beumer
''Illustriations and Views of Dutch Ceylon''
Serendib Publications, London, 1988, , p. 438 His widow and daughter returned to Holland, where they arrived in Haarlem in June 1733.

References

External link

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vuyst, Petrus 1691 births 1732 deaths 18th-century Dutch people Dutch expatriates in Sri Lanka Directors of Dutch Bengal Governors of Dutch Ceylon Leiden University alumni Executed Dutch people People from Batavia, Dutch East Indies https://www.erfgoedleiden.nl/