Pieter Philip van Bosse (16 December 1809 – 21 February 1879) was a Dutch

liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

politician. Serving as minister of Finance in six cabinets throughout the middle of the 19th century, Van Bosse led many reforms that liberalised the Dutch economy. He led a cabinet himself as

Prime Minister of the Netherlands The prime minister of the Netherlands ( nl, Minister-president van Nederland) is the head of the executive branch of the Government of the Netherlands. Although the monarch is the ''de jure'' head of government, the prime minister ''de facto'' ...

from 4 June 1868 to 4 January 1871.

Early life and education

Pieter Philip van Bosse was born 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 ...

, to an insurance broker and his wife. Three of his siblings died at a young age, and his father died when he was eleven years old, after which his mother successfully took over the brokerage firm. He attended the

Athenaeum Illustre of Amsterdam Athenaeum Illustre, or Amsterdamse Atheneum, was a city-sponsored 'illustrious school' founded after the beeldenstorm in the old ''Agnieten'' chapel on the Oudezijds Voorburgwal 231 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Famous scientists such as Caspar Barlae ...

, and studied Roman and Contemporary Law 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 ...

from 20 May 1829 to 25 January 1834. After his graduation, Van Bosse settled in

Weesp Weesp () is a city, an urban area in the municipality of Amsterdam and a former municipality in the province of North Holland, Netherlands. It had a population of in . It lies on the river Vecht and next to the Amsterdam–Rhine Canal in an are ...

as a manufacturer before returning to Amsterdam to work as a lawyer. In 1845, he was appointed referendary of the import and export rights department of the

Ministry of Finance A ministry of finance is a part of the government in most countries that is responsible for matters related to the finance. Lists of current ministries of finance Named "Ministry" * Ministry of Finance (Afghanistan) * Ministry of Finance and Ec ...

, he position he would retain for three years.

Political career

On 3 June 1848, Van Bosse was appointed

Minister of Finance A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...

. At the time, most of the state's revenue came from excises, and Van Bosse's attempts to introduce a limited income tax and an interest tax proved unsuccessful. Under the premiership of

Johan Rudolph Thorbecke Johan Rudolph Thorbecke (14 January 1798 – 4 June 1872) was a Dutch liberal statesman, one of the most important Dutch politicians of the 19th century. Thorbecke is best known for heading the commission that drafted the revision of the Const ...

, Van Bosse introduced reforms that liberalised the economy. A strong supporter of free trade, he procured the right of transit and discontinued levy on shipping rights on the

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and the

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. He reformed the coinage by introducing the

silver standard The silver standard is a monetary system in which the standard economic unit of account is a fixed weight of silver. Silver was far more widespread than gold as the monetary standard worldwide, from the Sumerians 3000 BC until 1873. Following t ...

and a simpler system of nickels, dimes, quarters, half guilders and '' rijksdaalders''. Moreover, he reformed the postal system, establishing a government monopoly of postal service. Van Bosse's first ministership came to an end in 1853 with the fall of Thorbecke's cabinet. Van Bosse was elected to the

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for the constituency of

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on 14 June 1853, and was re-elected in 1856. In his five years in opposition, he consistently insisted on tax reform and warned for excessive government expenditure. Moreover, Van Bosse won a seat in the municipal council of

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 ...

in 1857, which he would give up one year later. He served another term as minister of Finance from 12 March 1858 to 22 February 1860. This term was marked by the introduction of inheritance tax. In 1860, Van Bosse returned to the House of Representatives for

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, only to serve a third term as minister of Finance from 10 February to 1 June 1866. On 3 June 1868, Van Bosse started another term as minister of Finance in a cabinet formed by Thorbecke as

formateur A formateur (French for "someone who forms, who constitutes") is a politician who is appointed to lead the formation of a coalition government, after either a general election or the collapse of a previous government. The role of the formateur ...

. However, Thorbecke did not proceed to lead the cabinet, and Van Bosse himself headed the cabinet as Chairman of the Council of Ministers, an office later dubbed

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

. As Prime Minister, Van Bosse executed a policy based on financial solidity. The cabinet was responsible for the abolition of the death penalty and the discontinuation of levy on newspapers, stimulating the newspaper industry. When several ministers in the cabinet resigned for different reasons in late 1870, Van Bosse was forced to resign as Prime Minister. On 4 January 1871, he was succeeded by Thorbecke. Van Bosse was given the honorary title of

Minister of State Minister of State is a title borne by politicians in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a Minister of State is a Junior Minister of government, who is assigned to assist a specific Cabinet Minister. In o ...

in 1872. However, to his surprise, Van Bosse was appointed Minister of Colonial Affairs at the age of 68. Due to conflict in

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, disagreements within the cabinet and the House of Representatives regarding the

Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies ( nl, Nederlands(ch)-Indië; ), was a Dutch colony consisting of what is now Indonesia. It was formed from the nationalised trading posts of the Dutch East India Company, which ...

and his tense relation with the

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of the colony, Van Bosse was unable to achieve much. He ceased to be minister in 1872, but served another term as minister of Colonial Affairs from 1877. Van Bosse died in office, on 21 February 1879.

Private life

Van Bosse married Maria Johanna Reijnvaan in Amsterdam on 6 May 1836. The couple had two sons and three daughters. One daughter,

Marie Bilders-van Bosse Maria Philippina (Marie) Bilders-van Bosse (Amsterdam, 21 February 1837 – Wiesbaden, 11 July 1900) was a painter, famous for her landscape paintings in an early Dutch-impressionist style. Biography Marie van Bosse was a daughter of Piet ...

, became a famous landscape painter.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bosse, Pieter Philip van 1809 births 1879 deaths Prime Ministers of the Netherlands Ministers of Colonial Affairs of the Netherlands Members of the House of Representatives (Netherlands) Ministers of State (Netherlands) Ministers of Religious Affairs of the Netherlands Ministers of Finance of the Netherlands Dutch civil servants 19th-century Dutch lawyers Dutch members of the Dutch Reformed Church Politicians from Amsterdam Leiden University alumni Commanders of the Order of the Netherlands Lion Lawyers from Amsterdam