Witsen is the surname of a major family in the history of Amsterdam. Its most notable member was the politician and scholar Nicolaes Witsen, but many other members of the family also held leading roles in trade and politics up until the French occupation of the Netherlands in the late 18th century. It probably originated in Akersloot in Noord-Holland, where Jacob Witsz was a farmer and owned a farmhouse known as ‘de Noord’. A 1774 history of the family states that the family came from Schagerwaard, which had been known as the Witsmeer before it was reclaimed.
Family tree
Gerrit Jacobsz. Witsen was an influential salt merchant trading with France, Portugal and the Baltic Sea. He was mayor of Amsterdam in 1609, 1613 and 1618. He was painted by Michiel Jansz. van Mierevelt.
* Aertge Witsen, who married Cornelis Bicker, lord Van Swieten and owner of Kasteel Swieten
Cornelis Jacobsz. Witsen, who began his working life as a herring-packer but after the Alteratie quickly rose to become a counsellor and schepen; married Marrij Jacobsz.
*Jonas Cornelisz. Witsen , mayor of Amsterdam in 1619, 1623 and 1624 and governor of the Noordsche Compagnie, the New Netherland Company and the Dutch West India Company. He traded with Levant, Palestine and Guinea and was also active alongside his brother Jan and his uncle Gerrit in trade with Russia. He lived on the Singel and in 1590 married Weijntje Jansdr. Swaeroogh. He, Frans Hendricksz. Oetgens and Barthold Cromhout speculated on the Third Increase in Amsterdam, mainly around the Haarlemmerdijk and the Westelijke Eilanden. He was also painted as a captain by Cornelis van der Voort. His daughter Marritje of Maria Witsen married Gerrit Hudde, lived on the Singel. Johannes Hudde was her son
**Cornelis Witsen was secretary to Cornelis Haga, the Dutch Republic's first ambassador to the Ottoman Sultan and from 1628 its consul in Aleppo. He and Salomon Sweers left for the east in 1640, in 1641 he was on the 'Raad van Indië'; in 1642 and 1644 he was one of the backers of Abel Tasman's expedition; he died as governor of the Banda Islands.
**Jan, died unmarried
**Jacob
*Jan Cornelisz. Witsen ; in 1597 married Margrieta Oetgens. They had three children:
** Petronella
** Maria
** Cornelis Jan Witsen ; in 1634 married Catherina Claesdr. Gaeff, alias Opsie; lived at Keizersgracht 327; he had financial problems maintaining his status as a gentleman and caused Rembrandt's bankruptcy; Hans Bontemantel caricatured him as a useless drunk and in 1667 he was reluctantly appointed a schout.
***Lambert Cornelisz. Witsen ; captain; knight in a French order of chivalry; married Sara Nuijts with whom he had eleven children:
****Lambert Witsen ; the last Witsen to live at Keizersgracht 327; his will included 82 paintings.
****Nicolaes Witsen ; in 1704 married Anna Catharina Tulp, owner of Tulpenburg, who died in 1713; married a second time to Johanna Eleonora Huydecoper; inherited his uncle Nicolaas Witsen 's library but was only moderately interested in books himself.
*****Nicolaes Witsen ; father of:
******Sara Maria Witsen.
*****Lambert Witsen
***Nicolaes Witsen ; travelled to Russia with Jacob Boreel, where he befriended the dying Peter the Great; mayor, author of a book about shipbuilding, investor in the Dutch East India Company, cartographer, collector of curiosities;, cartograaf, verzamelaar van curiositeiten, etc; in 1674 married the minister's daughter Catharina de Hochepied; their six children died young and they instead adopted Nicolaes Lambertsz. Witsen after the death of Nicolaes's brother Lambert; a millionaire by his death, probably equivalent to a billionaire by modern standards.
***Cornelis Witsen ; army captain; never married; died due to a fall from his horse
***Jonas Witsen ; laid the foundation stone of the new stadhuis op de Dam, possibly for 's Lands Zeemagazijn; travelled widely and was very cultured; was painted by Jan Lievens; married Sara van Raey in 1675, but died two weeks later.
****Jonas Witsen ; baptised eight months after his father's death; collected paintings and gained three plantations in Suriname thanks to his marriage to his first wife Elisabeth Basseliers; lived as mayor at Keizersgracht 674; in 1704 remarried to Isabella Maria Hooft; had one daughter:
*****Jonas Witsen ; counsellor to the Admiralty for the Noorderkwartier; in 1731 married Alberta Maria Pels; lived at Keizersgracht 672, now the Museum Van Loon.
*******Jonas Witsen ; in 1793 married the actress Johanna Susanna van der Stel
********Jonas Witsen ; in 1818 married Helena Meijlant
*********Jonas Jan Witsen ; in 1848 married Jacoba Elisabeth Bonekamp
**********Willem Witsen ; in 1893 married Elisabeth van Vloten, daughter of Johannes van Vloten, but divorced her a few years later; in 1907 married Augusta Maria Schorr
***********Erik Witsen ; in 1925 married Catharina Franciska van den Broek, daughter of Antonius van den Broek
************Jenno Witsen ; in 1957 married Ineke de Leede
*****Nicolaas Witsen Jonasz ; in 1734 married Constantia Hooft; lived at Herengracht 550; father of
******Hester Witsen ; in 1756 married Pieter Elias.
