Volkert Overlander (also ''Volcker'' and ''Volckert Overlander''; 7 October 1570 – 18 October 1630) was a Dutch

noble A noble is a member of the nobility. Noble may also refer to: Places Antarctica * Noble Glacier, King George Island * Noble Nunatak, Marie Byrd Land * Noble Peak, Wiencke Island * Noble Rocks, Graham Land Australia * Noble Island, Gr ...

, jurist,

ship-owner A ship-owner is the owner of a merchant vessel (commercial ship) and is involved in the shipping industry. In the commercial sense of the term, a shipowner is someone who equips and exploits a ship, usually for delivering cargo at a certain fre ...

, merchant and an Amsterdam

regent A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...

from the Dutch Golden Age.

Biography

Volkert was born in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

, the son of Nicolaes Overlander († 1607), a merchant, and Catharina Sijs (1536–1617). He studies law at the

University of Leiden Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; nl, Universiteit Leiden) is a public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. The university was founded as a Protestant university in 1575 by William, Prince of Orange, as a reward to the city of Le ...

and finished at the

University of Basel The University of Basel (Latin: ''Universitas Basiliensis'', German: ''Universität Basel'') is a university in Basel, Switzerland. Founded on 4 April 1460, it is Switzerland's oldest university and among the world's oldest surviving universit ...

in 1595. In 1599 he married to Geertruid Hooft; his sister Gertruid (1577–1653) married Geertruids brother Pieter Jansz Hooft. The couple had ten children;

Maria Overlander van Purmerland Maria Overlander van Purmerland (Amsterdam, 24 June 1603 – 27 January 1678) was a noble from the Dutch Golden Age. Life Maria Overlander was the daughter of Volkert Overlander and Geertruid Hooft. Her sister Geertruid Overlander (1609–1634) w ...

∞

Frans Banning Cocq Frans Banninck Cocq (sometimes incorrectly spelled as Banning), ''lord of Purmerland and Ilpendam'' (1605–1655) was a burgemeester (mayor), knight and military person of Amsterdam in the mid-17th century. He belonged to the wealthy and powerful ...

and Geertruid Overlander (1609–1634) ∞

Cornelis de Graeff Cornelis de Graeff, also Cornelis de Graeff van (Zuid-)Polsbroek (15 October 1599 – 4 May 1664) was the most illustrious member of the De Graeff family. He was a mayor of Amsterdam from the Dutch Golden Age and a powerful Amsterdam regent after ...

. Volkert lived with his family at the cityhouse De Dolphijn. In 1602 he became one of the founders of the Dutch East Trading Company. Between 1614 and 1621 Volkert became a

councillor A councillor is an elected representative for a local government council in some countries. Canada Due to the control that the provinces have over their municipal governments, terms that councillors serve vary from province to province. Unl ...

of the

Admiralty of Amsterdam The Admiralty of Amsterdam was the largest of the five Dutch admiralties at the time of the Dutch Republic. The administration of the various admiralties was strongly influenced by provincial interests. The territory for which Amsterdam ...

. In 1618 Volkert bought the Free and High Fief Ilpendam and Purmerland from the ''Creditor'' from the Count of Egmond. He built the castle of

Ilpenstein Ilpenstein Castle (dutch: ''Ilpenstein'', ''Huis te Ilpendam'', ''Hof te Ilpendam'') was a castle of the Free and high Lordship of Purmerend, Purmerland and Ilpendam, located in Ilpendam (Waterland) in the north of the city of Amsterdam. History ...

in 1622. He was made first Dijkgraaf of the Purmer in early 1620s. He became an English

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...

in 1620. In the years 1621 and 1628 Volkert became

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

of Amsterdam. Between 1628 and 1629 Volkert became an advisor of the

States of Holland and West Friesland The States of Holland and West Frisia ( nl, Staten van Holland en West-Friesland) were the representation of the two Estates (''standen'') to the court of the Count of Holland. After the United Provinces were formed — and there no longer was a co ...

. He owned 150.000

Guilder Guilder is the English translation of the Dutch and German ''gulden'', originally shortened from Middle High German ''guldin pfenninc'' " gold penny". This was the term that became current in the southern and western parts of the Holy Roman Emp ...

. He died in

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 o ...

, aged 60.

External links

Volkert Overlander at ''Heren van Holland''

Literature

* Elias, J.E., De vroedschap van Amsterdam (1903-5 Haarlem), p. 274 * Moelker, H.P., De heerlijkheid Purmerland en Ilpendam (1978 Purmerend), p. 120-124 {{DEFAULTSORT:Overlander, Volkert 1570 births 1630 deaths Nobility from Amsterdam Lords of Purmerland and Ilpendam Mayors of Amsterdam Dutch East India Company people from Amsterdam Founders of the Dutch East India Company