Ursul Philip Boissevain (4 November 1855 – 7 May 1930) was a Dutch

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the stu ...

and

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who pr ...

Biography

Boissevain Boissevain is the name of a Dutch patrician family of Huguenot origin. History The family originates from the Dordogne in France. Lucas Bouyssavy (1660–1705) appears to have been the founder of today's Boissevain family.

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 ...

as the fifth and youngest son of Henri Jean Arnaud Boissevain and Petronella Drost. He was named after Ursuline Philippine Baroness of Verschuer (1794-1866), wife of

theologian Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

Hermann Friedrich Kohlbrugge. He studied 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 ...

where he wrote his dissertation in 1879. He also studied in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

. After his studies Boissevain traveled through Europe and lived in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

for a number of years. In 1882 he started teaching classical languages at the Erasmus Gymnasium in

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"N ...

. Two years later Boissevain married Wilhelmina Carolina Momma (1859 – 1921). In 1887 he was appointed professor in Ancient History at the

University of Groningen The University of Groningen (abbreviated as UG; nl, Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, abbreviated as RUG) is a Public university#Continental Europe, public research university of more than 30,000 students in the city of Groningen (city), Groningen in ...

. From 1889 onwards he also taught 'Roman Antiquities'. He has published various historical works and treatises, including a five-volume edition of the Historia Romana (Roman History) of

Cassius Dio Lucius Cassius Dio (), also known as Dio Cassius ( ), was a Roman historian and senator of maternal Greek origin. He published 80 volumes of the history on ancient Rome, beginning with the arrival of Aeneas in Italy. The volumes documented the ...

. In 1898 Boissevain became a member of the

Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences ( nl, Koninklijke Nederlandse Akademie van Wetenschappen, abbreviated: KNAW) is an organization dedicated to the advancement of science and literature in the Netherlands. The academy is housed ...

. Between 1911 – 1922 he was the vice-chairman of the academy. In 1911, Boissevain became professor at the

University of Amsterdam The University of Amsterdam (abbreviated as UvA, nl, Universiteit van Amsterdam) is a public research university located in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The UvA is one of two large, publicly funded research universities in the city, the other being ...

, followed by his retirement in 1926. He died a few years later after a short illness, and was buried at Zorgvlied cemetery in Amsterdam.

References

External links

Ursul Philip Boissevain
Biography portal of the Netherlands {{DEFAULTSORT:Boissevain, Ursul Philip 1855 births 1930 deaths 20th-century Dutch historians Leiden University alumni Members of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences Academic staff of the University of Amsterdam Academic staff of the University of Groningen 19th-century Dutch historians