Jacob Derk Burchard Anne, Baron van Heeckeren tot Enghuizen, also known as Baron van Heeckeren van Beverweerd (28 November 1792 – 28 September 1884), was a Dutch diplomat. He received the title baron of the

First French Empire The First French Empire, officially the French Republic, then the French Empire (; Latin: ) after 1809, also known as Napoleonic France, was the empire ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, who established French hegemony over much of continental E ...

in 1813. Van Heeckeren was born in

Zutphen Zutphen () is a city and municipality located in the province of Gelderland, Netherlands. It lies some 30 km northeast of Arnhem, on the eastern bank of the river Ijssel at the point where it is joined by the Berkel. First mentioned in th ...

in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, the son of Evert Frederik baron van Heeckeren van Enghuizen, a Dutch major and

courtier A courtier () is a person who attends the royal court of a monarch or other royalty. The earliest historical examples of courtiers were part of the retinues of rulers. Historically the court was the centre of government as well as the official ...

, and Henriette Johanna Susanna Maria des H.R.R. Countess of Nassau-la Lecq,Molhuysen, Philip Christiaan ''et al.'' (editors) (1911-1937) "Heeckeren tot Enghuizen, Jacob Derk Burchard Anne baron van" ''Nieuw Nederlandsch biografisch woordenboek onder redactie'' A. W. Sijthoff's uitgevers-maatschappij, Leiden, Volume 8
page 725OCLC 2230501
/ref> one of nine children.Molhuysen, Philip Christiaan ''et al.'' (editors) (1911-1937) Heeckeren van Enghuizen, Evert Frederik baron van" ''Nieuw Nederlandsch biografisch woordenboek onder redactie'' A. W. Sijthoff's uitgevers-maatschappij, Leiden, Volume 8
OCLC 2230501
/ref> Van Heeckeren’s first post was as an officer in the Dutch Navy, stationed in

Toulon Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...

. Later he was employed by Napoleon, who awarded him the title ''Baron de l'Empire''. It was about this time that van Heeckeren converted to

Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. For the Dutch government, Van Heeckeren was successively secretary of the legation at Lisbon (1814), Stockholm (1815–1817) and

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

(1817 - 1822)."J.D.B.A. baron van Heeckeren tot Enghuizen"
Parlement & Politiek In 1822 Van Heeckeren was the acting agent for the Dutch in

St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

. From 1823 to May 1837 he was ambassador extraordinary and

minister plenipotentiary An envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary, usually known as a minister, was a diplomatic head of mission who was ranked below ambassador. A diplomatic mission headed by an envoy was known as a legation rather than an embassy. Under the ...

to the court in St. Petersburg. From June 1842 to October 1875 he was ambassador extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary to the court in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

. Van Heeckeren was unmarried, but did not want his name to die with him. In St. Petersburg he came to know

Georges d'Anthès Georges may refer to: Places * Georges River, New South Wales, Australia * Georges Quay (Dublin) *Georges Township, Fayette County, Pennsylvania Other uses *Georges (name) * ''Georges'' (novel), a novel by Alexandre Dumas * "Georges" (song), a 19 ...

, an officer in the Russian army and the son of a noble landowner in the French

Alsace Alsace (, ; ; Low Alemannic German/ gsw-FR, Elsàss ; german: Elsass ; la, Alsatia) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in eastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine next to Germany and Switzerland. In 2020, it had ...

. After several letters and a visit to Georges’s father, Joseph Conrad d'Anthès, Jacob van Heeckeren requested that he be allowed to adopt Georges, giving him his name and the right to inherit his property. The old Baron d'Anthès accepted the offer, and, after the agreement of the King of the Netherlands by letters patent dated May 5, 1836, Georges-Charles d'Anthès took the name of Georges-Charles de Heeckeren d'Anthès. Writers have suggested that the relationship between Jacob and Georges was more than that of adoptive father-son.''Add to that brew the suspicions, current then and now, that d'Anthes and his adoptive father were lovers ...'' Eaton, Katherine Bliss (July 1999
"Review of Serena Vitale's ''Pushkin’s Button''"
''H-Net Reviews in the Humanities & Social Sciences'' After Georges d'Anthès’s duel with the poet

Alexander Pushkin Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin (; rus, links=no, Александр Сергеевич ПушкинIn pre-Revolutionary script, his name was written ., r=Aleksandr Sergeyevich Pushkin, p=ɐlʲɪkˈsandr sʲɪrˈɡʲe(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ ˈpuʂkʲɪn, ...

(who died from injuries), Jacob was recalled from St. Petersburg. Van Heeckeren tot Enghuizen was a

Knight Grand Cross Grand Cross is the highest class in many orders, and manifested in its insignia. Exceptionally, the highest class may be referred to as Grand Cordon or equivalent. In other cases, there may exist a rank even higher than Grand Cross, e.g. Grand ...

of the

Order of the Netherlands Lion The Order of the Netherlands Lion, also known as the Order of the Lion of the Netherlands ( nl, De Orde van de Nederlandse Leeuw, french: L'Ordre du Lion Néerlandais) is a Dutch order of chivalry founded by King William I of the Netherlands on ...

, and was a bearer of the

Grand Cross Grand Cross is the highest class in many orders, and manifested in its insignia. Exceptionally, the highest class may be referred to as Grand Cordon or equivalent. In other cases, there may exist a rank even higher than Grand Cross, e.g. Grand ...

of the

Order of the Oak Crown The Order of the Oak Crown (french: Ordre de la Couronne de chêne, german: Eichenlaubkronenorden, lb, Eechelaafkrounenuerden) is an order of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. History The Order of the Oak Crown was established in 1841 by Gran ...

, awarded 25 August 1863. From 14 July 1872 until his death he was Minister of State (Secretary of State) for the Netherlands. Van Heeckeren died in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Heeckeren Tot Enghuizen, Jacob Derk Burchard Anne Baron Van 1792 births 1884 deaths Converts to Roman Catholicism People from Zutphen Barons of the Netherlands