Jan Wichers
Governor-General of Suriname
In office
24 December 1784[1] – 15 June 1790[1]
Preceded byBernard Texier
Succeeded byJurriaan François de Friderici
Personal details
Born
Jan Gerhard Wichers

(1745-07-15)15 July 1745
Groningen, Dutch Republic
Died3 October 1808(1808-10-03) (aged 63)
Vreeswijk, Kingdom of Holland
Occupationmilitary officer, lawyer

Jan Gerard Wichers (15 July 1745 – 3 October 1808) was a military officer and lawyer. He served as Governor of Suriname from 1784 until 1790.

Biography

Wichers was born on 15 July 1745 in Groningen, Dutch Republic. In 1760, he started studying law at the University of Groningen, and obtained his doctorate on 15 June 1768.[2] He enlisted in the army.[3]

In 1771, Wichers was appointed Raad Fiscaal (Attorney general) in Suriname.[4] In 1775, Jan Wicherides, his only child, was born as a result of an extra-maritial affair with the free negress Adjuba.[5][6] Jan Wicherides would later become mayor of Uithoorn.[7]

On 24 December 1784, Wichers was appointed Governor-General of Suriname.[1] In 1785, he was promoted major general.[3] In 1790, Fort Groningen was built.[8] A city was planned around the fort, however the development of the town remained limited.[9] Wichers wanted to promote a mixed race middle class, because he felt that the Europeans in the colony had little loyalty to Suriname. He had planned, but never executed, to give an award of ƒ100,- for every mixed race child who was manumitted.[10]

On 15 June 1790, Wichers was succeeded by Jurriaan François de Friderici.[1] He returned to the Netherlands, and became a member of the Council of American Colonies in the Hague. In 1806, he became a member of the Maatschappij der Nederlandse Letterkunde.[11]

Wichers died on 3 October 1808 in Vreeswijk, at the age of 63.[2]

Legacy

In 2012, RTV Noord aired a documentary about Groningen, Suriname, the town founded by Jan Wichers.[12]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Surinaamsche Staatkundige Almanach voor den Jaare 1794". Digital Library for Dutch Literature (in Dutch). 1794. p. 36. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  2. 1 2 P.J. Blok and P.C. Molhuysen (1937). Nieuw Nederlandsch biografisch woordenboek (in Dutch). Vol. 10. Leiden: A.W. Sijthoff.
  3. 1 2 "Appointment on August 22, 1785 in Den Haag (Netherlands)". Commission Books at Dutch National Archives (in Dutch). Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  4. ↑ Benjamins, Herman Daniël; Snelleman, Johannes (1917). Encyclopaedie van Nederlandsch West-Indië (in Dutch). Leiden: Martinus Nijhoff Publishers. p. 324. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help)
  5. ↑ "Suriname: Gereformeerden , Voornaam: Jan Wicherides". Dutch National Archives (in Dutch). Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  6. ↑ Wim Hoogbergen and Okke ten Hove (2001). "De vrije gekleurde en zwarte bevolking van Paramaribo, 1762-1863". OSO. Tijdschrift voor Surinaamse taalkunde, letterkunde en geschiedenis (in Dutch). p. 313. Retrieved 4 January 2022. The source stated that Jan Wicherides was manumitted, however the National Archives (and others) state that Adjuba was already free
  7. ↑ "Burgemeesters". Suriname.nu (in Dutch). Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  8. ↑ "Fort uit 1790 in Saramacca ontdekt". Star Nieuws (in Dutch). Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  9. ↑ A. Kappler (1854). Zes jaren in Suriname (PDF) (in Dutch). Utrecht. p. 137. Retrieved 4 January 2022.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  10. ↑ Jeroen Dewulf (2008). "'Wanneer ik dronken ben, word ik vreemdeling' De identiteitsproblematiek van Tip Marugg in multicultureel perspectief". Neerlandica extra Muros / Internationale Neerlandistiek (in Dutch). p. 11. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  11. ↑ A.J. van der Aa (1877). Biographisch woordenboek der Nederlanden (in Dutch). Vol. 20. Haarlem: J.J. van Brederode.
  12. ↑ "Groningen ligt in Suriname". Beno Hofman (in Dutch). Retrieved 4 January 2022.
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