Schelto, Baron van Heemstra (14 November 1807 – 20 December 1864) was a Dutch politician. He was
Prime Minister from 1861 to 1862.
Van Heemstra was born in Groningen, the son of politician Willem Hendrik van Heemstra and Johanna Balthazarina van Idsinga. Van Heemskerk went to
secondary school
A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' secondary education, lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) ...
in
Franeker and studied law in Groningen. After a short period working as a lawyer in
Leeuwarden he was appointed in 1830 as
Grietman for
Doniawerstal.
He took part in the
Ten Days' Campaign in 1831.
He became Grietman of
Oostdongeradeel in 1840 and in 1844 joined the
House of Representatives in The Hague on behalf of the province of
Friesland.
In that position he was part of a group led by
Johan Rudolph Thorbecke called the "Ninemen" who proposed changes to the
Dutch Constitution. Although the proposal was rejected in 1845 it led to the
Constitutional Reform of 1848
The Constitutional Reform of 1848 (Dutch: ''Grondwetsherziening van 1848'') laid the basis for the present system of parliamentary democracy in the Netherlands. It is often described as the original version of the Dutch Constitution that is still ...
.
Van Heemstra was the
King's Commissioner for
Utrecht from 1850 to 1858 and for
Zeeland from 1858 to 1860.
In March 1861 Van Heemstra was appointed
Minister of the Interior in the
Van Hall-Van Heemstra cabinet. As minister, he was responsible, with Van Hall, for the introduction of legislation for the construction of state railways.
After the resignation of
Jacob van Zuylen van Nijevelt in November 1861 he became chairman of the
Council of Ministers, an office now known as
Prime Minister. His proposal for the state budget was rejected by parliament in December of that year which led to the fall of the cabinet and its formal resignation in February 1862. In 1862 he was given the honorary title of
Minister of State.
Van Heemstra was awarded the
Order of the Netherlands Lion and the
Order of the Oak Crown.
He was married to Henriëtte Hildegonde de Waal in June 1833 with whom he had six children. De Waal died in May 1857.
In May 1858 he wed Marianna A.J. Storij van Blokland.
Notes
References
1807 births
1864 deaths
Schelto
Schelto
Dutch members of the Dutch Reformed Church
Members of the House of Representatives (Netherlands)
Ministers of the Interior of the Netherlands
Ministers of State (Netherlands)
Politicians from Groningen (city)
Prime Ministers of the Netherlands
King's and Queen's Commissioners of Utrecht
King's and Queen's Commissioners of Zeeland
19th-century Dutch politicians
Deaths from pneumonia in the Netherlands
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