Peter Stuyvesant
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Pieter Stuyvesant (abt. 1610 - 1672)

Pieter (Peter) "Petrus, Pierre" Stuyvesant aka Stuijvesant, Stuijffsandt
Born about in Peperga, Friesland, Nederlandmap
Ancestors ancestors
Son of and
Brother of , [half], [half], [half] and [half]
Husband of — married 13 Aug 1645 in Breda, Staats-Brabant, Nederlandmap
Descendants descendants
Father of
Died at about age 62 in New York, Province of New Yorkmap
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Profile last modified | Created 13 Sep 2010
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Peter Stuyvesant was a New Netherland settler.
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Discuss: new_netherland
Preceded by
Willem Kieft
Director-General of New Netherland
1647-1664
Succeeded by
The fall of New Netherland

Contents

Biography

Notables Project
Peter Stuyvesant is Notable.

Peter Stuyvesant was the 7th and final Director-General of New Netherland, [1][2] ruling the colony for 17 years until the English takeover.

"Peter Stuyvesant, also known as Petrus Stuyvesant, is an important figure in the history of New York City [earlier New Amsterdam], New York State and New Netherland. His name is still commonly used, especially in New York State, for street names, school names, building names, etc. A British-German-Danish cigarette brand is also named after him. Surprisingly, his ancestors no longer bear his name. His last direct descendant, Augustus Van Horne Stuyvesant Jr. died in 1953 at age 83 in New York City. A nineteenth century Stuyvesant descendant, Rutherford Stuyvesant, changed his name to Stuyvesant Rutherford in 1863 to satisfy the terms of a will. The paucity of descendants bearing his name may have something to do with the fact that Peter Stuyvesant has been blamed for turning over New Amsterdam to the British in 1664. The blame is not quite fair, because the citizens of New Amsterdam refused to help defend the city against a fleet of British warships. As a result Stuyvesant was forced to hand the city of New Amsterdam over to the British who promptly renamed it New York." [3]

From Genealogical and Personal History of Western Pennsylvania:

During the persecutions of the sixteenth century some members of the family fled to Holland, where one of them (Samuel Bayard) married Anna Stuyvesant, a sister of Peter Stuyvesant, the first Dutch governor of New York, then New Amsterdam. When he came to take possession of his province, in 1647, his sister, then a widow, accompanied him with her children. Thus was planted on the shores of the New World a race in whose veins flowed the blood of the du Terralls and Stuyvesants, of the good knight "without fear and without reproach," and of the valiant soldier-governor of the province of New Netherlands.

Origins

Pieter Stuyvesant was born in Peperga, Friesland, [4] (abt. ca.) 1611.

His parents were Balthasar Joannis Stuyfsant and [[[Hardenstein-1|Margaretha|Hardenstein]]]. Peter's father was the pastor of the Dutch Reformed Church of Peperga. [5] Stuyvesant was likely baptized with the name Pieter, but he also went by the Latin form, Petrus. [6] Peter is the English translation of the Dutch name Pieter. [7]

Pepergae, Frisia c. 1570
Vermeldingen Tietjerksteradeel e.o.: Pieter Stuyvesant was a student at Franeker in Dec.1629/Jan.1630 (languages and philosophy), 'commies' for the WIC, 1635 at Fernando Noronha, director of Curaçao 1643, (sic. Governor) of Nieuw-Nederland (incl. Nieuw Amsterdam) and the ABC-Islands 1646-1664, later kolonist. Made his will in New York 19 Jan. 1671, and died there in February 1672. He married at the Walloon church in Breda on 13 August 1645 Judith Bayard, (bapt. in Breda 16 Nov. 1608 [8]Children (Baptized in Nieuw Amsterdam): Balthazar Lazarus, 13 Oct. 1647; Nicolaas Willem, 2 Dec. 1648 (afstammelingen tot 20e eeuw) [9]

Family

Peter was married to Judith Bayard at the Walloon church in Breda, Brabant, on 13 August 1645. [10] Judith was the daughter of Balthazar (Lasare) Bayard and Judith de Vos. [11] Prior to their marriage, Judith was Peter's sister-in-law as Judith's brother had previously married Peter's sister Anne.

The marriage of 'Pierre' and Judith, 13 Aug 1645

Together Peter and Judith baptized two children at the Dutch Reformed Church of New Amsterdam.

  • 1647 Oct 13 Balthazar lazarus. - De Hr. Petrus Stuijvesant, Gouvneur generael. Witnesses: Lubbert Dinclagen, Jean de La Montagnie, Capt. luyt. Nuton en syn huis vrs., Paulus Leendertszen. Equipagiemr, Corn. Van Tienhoven, Secretrs. Commissr. Keijser, Anneken Bogardus. [12]
  • 1648 Dec 02 Nicolaes Willem - de Hr. Generael Petrus Stuijvesant, Judith Baijard. Witnesses: De E. E. H. H. Bewinthebbers de West indische Compagnie (The Honorable, their excellencies, The Directors of the West India Company). [13]

Nicolaes Willem, who is described in Judith's will as the eldest son, [14] married Marritje Beekman and Elizabeth Schlechtenhorst. Balthazar Lazarus is described in Judith's will as deceased,[15] but he is believed to have left descendants.

Early Life

Peter served in the Dutch Army prior to his appointment as director-general of New Netherland. In 1635, Peter joined the West India Company and, in 1642, became director of the Dutch West India Company's colony in Curaçao. Peter was shot in the right leg during an attack on the Spanish at St. Martin. [16] The leg was eventually amputated and for the rest of his life he wore a prosthetic made of wood. [17][18][19]

New Netherland

Peter was sworn in as the Director of New Netherland on 28 Jul 1646. [20] On 14/24th of August, 1664, four English frigates arrived with the intention of occupying New Netherland. [21] On the 30th of August or the 9th of September, 1664, Peter surrendered New Netherland to the English. [22]
"Dated Amsterdam, in New Netherland, 17th September 1644, we having been ordered on the 7th not to call this place otherwise than New-York, on the Island of Manhattans, in America." [23]

Records

Signature of Peter Stuyvesant 1663
  • 1651 Mar 12 Through his attorney, Jan Jansen Damen, Peter buys the house that he had been leasing in New Netherland from the Directors of the Dutch West India Company for 6400 guilders. [24]
  • 1661 Apr 12 Deed conveying land to Adriaen Hegeman. image original deed Description: This 1661 deed, signed by Peter Stuyvesant, Director-General of New Netherlands, conveyed a plot of land in the village of Vlack Bos (Flatbush) to Adriaen Hegeman, an early Dutch settler. In 1784, Peter Lefferts (1753-1791) married Femmetie Hegeman (1760-1847), an ancestor of Adriaen. After their marriage, Peter arranged to purchase 100 acres of the original Hegeman plot, thus enlarging the Lefferts family’s Flatbush homestead. After this transaction, the original deed passed into the hands of the Lefferts family. [25][26]

The Flushing Remonstrance

Though religious tolerance had begun in the Netherlands, and Willem Kieft, the previous director of New Netherland, had given the English a charter for the town of Flushing in 1645, Peter did not want members of other religions to congregate in New Netherland.
"Stuyvesant, himself a member of the Dutch Reformed Church, opposed religious pluralism and came into conflict with Lutherans, Jews, Roman Catholics and Quakers as they attempted to build places of worship in the city and practice their faiths.[27]
Eventually, the Quakers protesting Stuyvesant wrote the Flushing Remonstrance. [28] The directors of the Dutch West India Company sided with the Quakers and religious freedom was born in America.
"It is considered a precursor to the United States Constitution's provision on freedom of religion in the Bill of Rights." [29]

Will

On 4 January 1639, Petrus Stuijffsandt from Stellingwerf made a will in Amsterdam. At the time, he expected to soon depart from Amsterdam to Curaçao in the service of the West India Company. He was not yet age thirty but before such a dangerous journey it was customary to make a will. Since did not yet have a family of his own, he named his sisters as his heirs. His full sister Anna Stuijffsants, wife Samuel Beyert, French schoolmaster, or her children were to receive three-quarters of his estate, and his half sister Margriete Stuijffsants was to receive the other quarter. [30][31][32]

Death

Peter died in New York, New York in 1672. He is buried in a vault beneath St. Mark's Church In-the-Bowery in New York. A plaque placed on the vault years after his death gives his date of death as February 1672,[33][34] but multiple secondary sources, including Wikipedia and Historical Dictionary of Colonial America,[35] give his date of death as August 1672. The church also features a stained glass window depicting Peter. [36]

Sources

  1. ↑ Collections NY Gen. & Biog. Soc.: 1901, Vol. 2, Page 23
  2. ↑ Collections NY Gen. & Biog. Soc.: 1901, Vol. 2, Page 25
  3. ↑ New Netherland Institute, "Peter Stuyvesant"
  4. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Peperga" which is now located in the Netherlands.
  5. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Peperga"
  6. ↑ Wikipedia-bijdragers, "Peter Stuyvesant"
  7. ↑ Wiktionary contributors, "Pieter"
  8. ↑ Spiegel van bekende Friezen 107-118, Jaarb. CBG 1982 163 e.v. (m.n. 168, 169); Navorscher 1959 49-59; De Vrije Fries 1994 21-41
  9. ↑ Alle Friezen Friesland, Tietjerksteradeel Acknowledgements Tietjerksteradeel e.o., Archive number 1730, Bevolking Tietjerksteradeel, verzameling Nieuwland - Tresoar, inventory number 1, Deed number 10222 Municipality: Tietjerksteradeel Period: 1600-1850
  10. ↑ "Netherlands, Noord-Brabant, Church Records, 1473-1965," images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-99QX-5FJ1?cc=2037960&wc=SM4W-L2W%3A346028601%2C346028302%2C346028603 : 22 August 2014), Waals Hervormde > Breda > Dopen 1607-1810 Klapper, Huwelijken 1607-1810, Huwelijksafkondigingen 1793-1807 > image 302 of 496; Nederlands Rijksarchiefdienst, Den Haag (Netherlands National Archives, The Hague).
  11. ↑ Wardell: Stuyvesant: Stuyvesant, Peter
  12. ↑ Collections NY Gen. & Biog. Soc.: 1901, Vol. 2, Page 23
  13. ↑ Collections NY Gen. & Biog. Soc.: 1901, Vol. 2, Page 25
  14. ↑ Collections NY Hist. Soc.: 1893, Vol. 25, Page 139
  15. ↑ Collections NY Hist. Soc.: 1893, Vol. 25, Page 140
  16. ↑ Shorto, Island...: Page 147
  17. ↑ Petrus Stuyvesant: How Did "Peg-Leg" Peter Stuyvesant Lose His Right Leg?
  18. ↑ New Netherland Institute, "Peter Stuyvesant"
  19. ↑ Munsell: 1870, Vol. 2, Page 15
  20. ↑ OCallaghan: 1856, Vol. 1, Page 177
  21. ↑ OCallaghan: 1858, Vol. 2, Page 410-415
  22. ↑ OCallaghan: 1858, Vol. 2, Page 415
  23. ↑ OCallaghan: 1858, Vol. 2, Page 415
  24. ↑ Register: Vol. 3 (book images), Document 87b, Page 216
  25. ↑ Translation of Peter Stuyvesant deed...
  26. ↑ Lefferts family papers, ARC.145, box OS1; Brooklyn Historical Society
  27. ↑ "Wikipedia contributors, "Peter Stuyvesant"
  28. ↑ OCallaghan: 1883, Vol. 14/Vol. 3, Page 402-403
  29. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Flushing Remonstrance"
  30. ↑ Will of Peter Stuyvesant
  31. ↑ Karlijn van Houwelingen "Stadsarchieven digitaliseren..."
  32. ↑ Last will of Petrus Stuyvesant
  33. ↑ St. Mark's Church In-the-Bowery
  34. ↑ Find A Grave: Memorial #999
  35. ↑ Pencak, William. Historical Dictionary of Colonial America, page 230.
  36. ↑ David W. Dunlap "Peter Stuyvesant..."
  • "Peter Stuyvesant (Will with image)." archief.amsterdam. Accessed 03 Sep 2017 at archief.amsterdam/stukken/beroemd/peter_stuyvesant/ (URL not working as of 7 April 2024; probably can be found in some other part of the archive).
  • Shorto, Russell. The Island at the Center of the World: The Epic Story of Dutch Manhattan and the Forgotten Colony That Shaped America. 2014. Print.

See also:





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Images: 13
Peter Stuyvesant
Peter Stuyvesant
Peter Stuyvesant
Peter Stuyvesant
The Fall of New Amsterdam, by Jean Leon Gerome Ferris
The Fall of New Amsterdam, by Jean Leon Gerome Ferris
Peter Stuyvesant, Bouwerie Farm, Whitehall Stuyvesant's Bouwerie House
Peter Stuyvesant, Bouwerie Farm, Whitehall Stuyvesant's Bouwerie House
map of Whitehall Street showing Peter Stuyvesant house
map of Whitehall Street showing Peter Stuyvesant house
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Comments: 4

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Weinheimer-29 Mark Weinheimer
The link to the will: "Peter Stuyvesant (Will with image)." archief.amsterdam. Accessed 03 Sep 2017. https://archief.amsterdam/stukken/beroemd/peter_stuyvesant/ is broken. There is a new translation from Jan, here: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/58fe66ccbf629a6c1f5929d9/t/595f9cac9f7456a96e0cbad1/1499438253089/NL+Stadsarchief+Amsterdam+5075+1377+1.pdf
posted by Mark Weinheimer
edited by Mark Weinheimer
Isaac Taylor
Hallo,

Will the profile manager(s) remove the anachronism "United States" from the deathplace of this 17th century profile? It's a great profile. However, USA didn't exist for a century after he died.

Bedankt,

posted by Isaac Taylor
Meehan-411 Beryl Meehan
See Newton-8803 re the baptism of son Balthazar in 1647
posted by Beryl Meehan
Timmerman-225 Bea (Timmerman) Wijma
Hi Linda,

According the sources Pieter (Peter) was born in Peperga and this is mentioned in his BIo as well, this seems quite accurate because , before 1622 his father Balthasar Joannis was working as a minister at a church in Peperga and of course they lived there as well, Pieter was born about 1611 , see his fathers profile for these sources. They moved to Scherpenzeel in 1619 and from there to Berlikum in 1622, so both children Pieter and Anna were born in Peperga . So his birthplace should/can be corrected . Thanks :)

posted by Bea (Timmerman) Wijma

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