Johannes Gysius (c.1583–1652) 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

minister Minister may refer to: * Minister (Christianity), a Christian cleric ** Minister (Catholic Church) * Minister (government), a member of government who heads a ministry (government department) ** Minister without portfolio, a member of government w ...

. Gysius was born in

Ostend Ostend ( nl, Oostende, ; french: link=no, Ostende ; german: link=no, Ostende ; vls, Ostende) is a coastal city and municipality, located in the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerk ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

around 1583. He was married twice. His second wife was named Petronella Michiel Matthijsdr. The couple married in

Dordrecht Dordrecht (), historically known in English as Dordt (still colloquially used in Dutch, ) or Dort, is a city and municipality in the Western Netherlands, located in the province of South Holland. It is the province's fifth-largest city after R ...

South Holland South Holland ( nl, Zuid-Holland ) is a province of the Netherlands with a population of over 3.7 million as of October 2021 and a population density of about , making it the country's most populous province and one of the world's most densely ...

on 8 August 1617. The couple had one daughter, named Sara. She was born in 1630 in

Streefkerk Streefkerk is a town in the Dutch province of South Holland. It is a part of the municipality of Molenlanden, and lies on the southside of the river Lek, about 20 kilometres east of Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River ...

. He died in 1652 in Streefkerk. In 1616, his main work, ''Oorsprong en voortgang der Nederlandtscher beroerten'' (''Origin and progress of the disturbances in the Netherlands'') about the

Dutch Revolt The Eighty Years' War or Dutch Revolt ( nl, Nederlandse Opstand) (Historiography of the Eighty Years' War#Name and periodisation, c.1566/1568–1648) was an armed conflict in the Habsburg Netherlands between disparate groups of rebels and t ...

, was published anonymously. It describes the crimes committed by the Spanish rulers under

Philip II Philip II may refer to: * Philip II of Macedon (382–336 BC) * Philip II (emperor) (238–249), Roman emperor * Philip II, Prince of Taranto (1329–1374) * Philip II, Duke of Burgundy (1342–1404) * Philip II, Duke of Savoy (1438-1497) * Philip ...

against the Dutch population. The book is illustrated with depictions of atrocities that leave little to the imagination. The work was also seen by some as an indictment of the Catholic Church, but that was not the original intention. The reason Gijsius initially had the work published anonymously is because the book was published during the period of the

Twelve Years' Truce The Twelve Years' Truce was a ceasefire during the Eighty Years' War between Spain and the Dutch Republic, agreed in Antwerp on 9 April 1609 and ended on 9 April 1621. While European powers like France began treating the Republic as a sovereign n ...

with the Spaniards, and he did not wish to antagonise the proponents of that peace. However, that he was the writer must have been known, because the city of Dordrecht paid him 50 guilders for the work.

References

1580s births 1652 deaths 17th-century Dutch Calvinist and Reformed ministers 17th-century Dutch historians People from Liesveld People from Ostend {{Netherlands-historian-stub