Commercial in the Dutch Golden Age

Arthur Weststeijn - 9789004221406 Downloaded from Brill.com10/01/2021 04:09:38AM via free access Studies in the History of Political Thought

Edited by Terence Ball, Arizona State University Jörn Leonhard, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg Wyger Velema, University of

Advisory Board Janet Coleman, London School of and Political Science, UK Vittor Ivo Comparato, University of Perugia, Italy Jacques Guilhaumou, CNRS, France John Marshall, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, USA Markku Peltonen, University of Helsinki, Finland

VOLUME 7

The titles published in this series are listed at brill.nl/ship

Arthur Weststeijn - 9789004221406 Downloaded from Brill.com10/01/2021 04:09:38AM via free access Commercial Republicanism in the Dutch Golden Age

The Political Thought of Johan & Pieter de la Court

By Arthur Weststeijn

LEIDEN • BOSTON 2012

Arthur Weststeijn - 9789004221406 Downloaded from Brill.com10/01/2021 04:09:38AM via free access The digital edition of this title is published in Open Access.

Cover illustration: Abraham van den Tempel, The City of Leiden Receives the Textile Industry, 1651. Museum de Lakenhal, Leiden.

This book is printed on acid-free paper.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Weststeijn, Arthur. Commercial republicanism in the Dutch Golden Age : the political thought of Johan & Pieter de la Court / by Arthur Weststeijn. p. cm. -- (Studies in the history of political thought, ISSN 1873-6548 ; v. 7) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-90-04-22139-0 (hbk. : acid-free paper) 1. Netherlands--Politics and government--1648-1795. 2. Court, Johan de la, 1622-1660--Political and social views. 3. Court, Pieter de la, 1618?-1685--Political and social views. 4. Republicanism--Netherlands--History--17th century. 5. Merchants--Political activity--Netherlands--History--17th century. 6. Netherlands--Commercial policy. 7. Netherlands--Intellectual life--17th century. 8. Political culture--Netherlands--History-- 17th century. 9. Political science--Netherlands--History--17th century. 10. Economics-- Netherlands--History--17th century. I. Title. JA84.N2W48 2012 321.8’6--dc23 2011042155

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ISSN 1873-6548 ISBN 978 90 04 22139 0 ISBN 978 90 04 22140 6 (e-book)

Copyright 2012 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands. Koninklijke Brill NV incorporates the imprints Brill, Global Oriental, Hotei Publishing, IDC Publishers, Martinus Nijhofff Publishers and VSP.

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Arthur Weststeijn - 9789004221406 Downloaded from Brill.com10/01/2021 04:09:38AM via free access Volli, e volli sempre, e fortissimamente volli (Vittorio Alfijieri, 1783)

Arthur Weststeijn - 9789004221406 Downloaded from Brill.com10/01/2021 04:09:38AM via free access CONTENTS

List of Illustrations ...... ix Acknowledgments ...... xi A Note on References ...... xiii

Introduction ...... 1

I The Making of an Œuvre ...... 25 A Humanist Education ...... 26 The Dutch Debate ...... 37 The Making of an Œuvre ...... 50 Conclusion: Politics as a Ballgame ...... 63

II The Rhetoric of the Market ...... 69 Persuading the Passions ...... 71 In the Public Arena: Rhetoric in Action ...... 87 Fables and Frankness ...... 114 Conclusion: The Rhetoric of the Market ...... 133

III Wise Merchants ...... 141 Hobbes & the Foundation of the Commonwealth ...... 142 Citizenship in Theory and Practice ...... 157 The Ethics of Self-Interest ...... 168 Representing the Wise Merchant ...... 184 Conclusion: Commercial Citizenship in Perspective ...... 200

IV The Commercial Commonwealth ...... 205 The Batavian Athens ...... 206 The Politics of Free Trade ...... 224 Monarchy Dethroned ...... 242 Towards a Merchant ...... 261 Conclusion: The Radical Republic ...... 279

Arthur Weststeijn - 9789004221406 Downloaded from Brill.com10/01/2021 04:09:38AM via free access viii contents

V Concord and Toleration ...... 284 The Erasmian Moment...... 286 The Relation between Church and State ...... 298 Toleration: Pluralism for the Sake of Unity ...... 316 Epilogue: From Freedom of Religion to Freedom of Speech? ...... 337

Conclusion: The Brothers De la Court and the Commercial Republican Tradition ...... 345

Bibliography ...... 359 Index...... 389

Arthur Weststeijn - 9789004221406 Downloaded from Brill.com10/01/2021 04:09:38AM via free access LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

The colour plates can be found after p.178.

Plate A. Abraham van den Tempel, Pieter de la Court, 1667. Collection Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. Acquisition with support of the Vereniging Rembrandt.

Plate B. Abraham van den Tempel, Catharina van der Voort, 1667. Collection Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. Acquisition with support of the Vereniging Rembrandt.

Plate C. Godfried Schalcken, Pieter de la Court, 1679. Museum de Lakenhal, Leiden.

Plate D. Abraham van den Tempel, The City of Leiden Receives the Textile Industry, 1651. Museum de Lakenhal, Leiden.

Fig. 1. Frontispiece to Johan and Pieter de la Court, Consideratien van Staat, ofte Polityke Weeg-schaal, 1661. Amsterdam University Library, OTM: OG 63–822 ...... 94

Fig. 2. Joost van den Vondel, Op de Waeg-schaal, 1618. Amsterdam University Library, OTM: Pr. G16a ...... 95

Fig. 3. Frontispiece to Johan and Pieter de la Court, Politike Discoursen, 1662. Amsterdam University Library, OTM: OG 63–7504 ...... 97

Fig. 4. Frontispiece to Pieter de la Court, Historie der Gravelike Regering in Holland, 1662. Amsterdam University Library, OTM: OK 61–565 ...... 98

Fig. 5. Frontispiece to Pieter de la Court, Aanwysing der heylsame politike gronden en maximen, 1669. Amsterdam University Library, OTM: O 63–3745 ...... 99

Arthur Weststeijn - 9789004221406 Downloaded from Brill.com10/01/2021 04:09:38AM via free access x list of illustrations

Fig. 6. “A Frenchman and a Dutchman in the Kingdom of Apes,” from Pieter de la Court, Sinryke Fabulen, 1685. Amsterdam University Library, OTM: OK 63–2796 ...... 112

Fig. 7. “The frogs and a log,” from Pieter de la Court, Sinryke Fabulen, 1685. Amsterdam University Library, OTM: OK 63–2796...... 122

Fig. 8. “A boatman’s tale,” from Pieter de la Court, Sinryke Fabulen, 1685. Amsterdam University Library, OTM: OK 63–2796...... 125

Fig. 9. “The charcoal burner and the textile entrepreneur,” from Pieter de la Court, Sinryke Fabulen, 1685. Amsterdam University Library, OTM: OK 63–2796 ...... 126

Fig. 10. “The fox and the mask,” from Pieter de la Court, Sinryke Fabulen, 1685. Amsterdam University Library, OTM: OK 63–2796 ...... 127

Fig. 11. Godaert Kamper, Pieter de la Court and Elisabeth Tollenaar, 1657/58. Formerly Utrecht, Diaconessenhuis. Present location unknown...... 197

Fig. 12. “The and a city,” from Pieter de la Court, Sinryke Fabulen, 1685. Amsterdam University Library, OTM: OK 63–2796...... 290

Arthur Weststeijn - 9789004221406 Downloaded from Brill.com10/01/2021 04:09:38AM via free access ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Late in his life, when John Milton looked back upon the travels of his youth, one place in particular nourished his nostalgia: Florence, “a city which I have always valued above the rest for the elegance of its dialect and of its genius”. Milton especially remembered his frequent visits to one of Florence’s principal delights, its “private academies – an institution which deserves the highest commendation, as calculated to preserve at once polite letters and friendly intercourse”. Much has changed in the centuries since, and I doubt whether anyone these days would share Milton’s praise for the Florentine dialect. Nonetheless, the commendable phenomenon of the private academy has luckily endured the whips and scorns of time: in the green hills overlooking Florence, in the villas where Milton’s humanist predecessors escaped the heat and fever of the city below, the European University Institute still cultivates the blessed com- bination of polite letters and friendly intercourse. This book is based on a doctoral thesis largely researched and written in this unrivalled setting, and fijirst of all I am grateful to the European University Institute for, simply, its mere existence. I have been particu- larly fortunate to be supervised at the EUI by Martin van Gelderen, whose intellectual guidance has been vital for my tentative steps on the aca- demic path, and whose exceptionally stimulating seminars, workshops, and convegni offfered a continuous source of inspiration in the best Florentine tradition. Many others at the EUI have also played an impor- tant role in the development of my research. In particular, I would like to thank Tony Molho for his encouraging comments at the start of the pro- ject, and Rainer Bauböck for similar support at the very end when he kindly agreed to be a member of the examining jury of my doctoral thesis. I am also greatly indebted to Susan Karr for her exemplary critical eye, and to three occasional visitors, Jonathan Scott, Kevin Sharpe, and Tim Stanton, who provided a listening ear and subsequent valuable advice. Meanwhile, all members of the Irish-Iberian-Italian axis in Florence proved day by day (and often night by night) that Europe, like any empire, is at its best in the peripheries. At the other side of the Atlantic, I had the opportunity to spend a few months in the very diffferent but equally thrilling scenery of the frozen lakes that surround the University of Wisconsin at Madison. Johann

Arthur Weststeijn - 9789004221406 Downloaded from Brill.com10/01/2021 04:09:38AM via free access xii acknowledgments

Sommerville offfered me a warm welcome in wintry Madison as well as very helpful comments on an early draft of my argument. I am equally grateful to the questions, criticism and enthusiasm of audiences at con- ferences in both the Old World and the New, from Budapest to Los Angeles and from Chicago to Berlin. Back in The Netherlands, Alex Bick, Jan Hartman and Eric Schliesser suddenly turned up as fellow De la Court- watchers with lots of insights and inspiration. I would also like to express my deepest gratitude to Jonathan Israel for generously sharing his knowl- edge and criticism on numerous crucial stages throughout the making of this book. A special word of thanks goes to my colleagues at the Faculty of Philosophy at the University of Groningen, in particular to Lodi Nauta, whose exceptional ability to combine scholarly rigour with intellectual openness stands as a model to academics worldwide. My new home and my new colleagues at the Royal Netherlands Institute in Rome have meanwhile provided a setting of polite letters and friendly intercourse that even Florence can hardly match. Yet my largest debt of all is to Wyger Velema, who fijirst suggested the topic of this book to me, and whose char- acteristic enthusiasm (and unparalleled wine cellar by Dutch standards) has been crucial in keeping me on the track ever since. For once, there- fore, the commonplace tribute is true: without Wyger this book would never have been written. I dedicate this book to my parents, who from the earliest days have taught me the power and the glory of the written word – by showing not only that the pen is the mightiest sword, but also that books, read or unread, are by far the nicest wallpaper.

Arthur Weststeijn - 9789004221406 Downloaded from Brill.com10/01/2021 04:09:38AM via free access A NOTE ON REFERENCES

The history behind the œuvre of Johan (1620–1660) and Pieter de la Court (1618–1685) is a complex tale of brotherly collaboration, sudden death, and endless revisions. This tale, told in full in chapter 1 below, requires some preliminary remarks. The lack of historical evidence makes it in many cases impossible to assert with utter certainty who of the two brothers wrote what exactly. Therefore, I consistently speak of ‘the De la Courts’ in plural, and only of ‘De la Court’ in singular when there is actual proof that the author was Pieter de la Court. This means that all references to the original argument from the Politike Weeg-schaal, to the Politike Discoursen, and to Welvaren speak of the two De la Courts as authors, whereas all references to the revisions in the Politike Weeg-schaal and to the treatises Interest van Holland, Aanwysing, and Sinryke Fabulen speak of a single De la Court. Besides, for the sake of clarity I refer always to the most complete edi- tions of the brothers’ works, or, in the case of manuscripts, to the available published editions. This means that all short references to their treatises stand for the following: – Politike Weeg-schaal refers to the fourth, revised edition of Consideratien van Staat, ofte Politike Weeg-schaal (Amsterdam: Dirk Dirksz, 1662), with the respective part, book, and chapter. – Politike Discoursen refers to the second, revised edition of Politike Discoursen, handelende in Ses onderscheide Boeken van Steeden, Landen, Oorlogen, Kerken, Regeeringen en Zeeden (Amsterdam: ‘Ciprianus vander Gracht’, 1662), with the respective part, book, and chapter. – Interest van Holland refers to Interest van Holland, ofte gronden van Hollands-welvaren (Amsterdam: ‘Cyprianus vander Gracht’, 1662), with the respective chapter. – Aanwysing refers to the fijirst edition of Aanwysing der heilsame politike Gronden en Maximen van de Republike van Holland en West-Vriesland (Leiden and Rotterdam: Hakkens, 1669), with the respective part and chapter. – Sinryke Fabulen refers to Sinryke Fabulen, verklaart en toegepast tot alderley zeede-lessen, dienstig om waargenoomen te werden in het men- schelijke en burgerlijke leeven (Amsterdam: Hieronymus Sweerts, 1685).

Arthur Weststeijn - 9789004221406 Downloaded from Brill.com10/01/2021 04:09:38AM via free access xiv a note on references

– Welvaren refers to Het welvaren van Leiden. Handschrift uit het jaar 1659, ed. F. Driessen (The Hague: Martinus Nijhofff, 1911), with the respective chapter. When quoting from these works I maintain in translation the typography, including capitals and italics, of the original Dutch version that appears in full in the footnotes; unless stated otherwise, translations are mine. Full details of the entire oeuvre of the brothers De la Court are listed in the bibliography.

Arthur Weststeijn - 9789004221406 Downloaded from Brill.com10/01/2021 04:09:38AM via free access