Michael Reyniersz Pauw
Encyclopedia
Knight Michiel Reiniersz Pauw (29 March 1590, Amsterdam
- 20 March 1640, Amsterdam) was a burgermeester
of Amsterdam
and a director of the Dutch West India Company
(WIC)
He was born in Amsterdam
in a rich merchant family - his father, Reinier Pauw (1564–1636) wasn't only a merchant, but also a Mayor of Amsterdam - and studied law in Leiden.
His brother Adriaan Pauw
(1581 - February 21, 1653 http://home.zonnet.nl/d.van.duijvenbode/geschmin.htm) was Grand Pensionary
of Holland from 1631 to 1636 and from 1651 to 1653, and signatory of the Peace of Münster
(1648) for which he was instrumental as ambassador for Holland.
The WIC was founded in 1621 to exploit trade in the Western Hemisphere
, and by 1625 had established a colony at Fort Amsterdam
(Lower Manhattan
) and Fort Orange
. In the hope of encouraging settlement the company, in 1629, started to offer vast land grants and the feudal title of patroon
. under the auspices of the Charter of Freedoms and Exemptions
. In 1630, Pauw purchased two tracts from the Lenape
at Hopoghan Hackingh (Hoboken
) and at Ashasimus (Harsimus
), though the patroon
ship likely included the entire peninsula between the Hudson River
and Hackensack River
now known as Hudson County, New Jersey
, and possibly his holdings on Staten Eylandt (Staten Island
). It was given the Latin
ized form of his surname (which means "peacock"), Pavonia
. It is said it was sold to him by the Manhattans after they had retreated there after the sale of their home island to Peter Minuit
some years before. Initially, a small hut and ferry landing were built at Arresick, called Powles Hoek (Paulus Hook), but Pauw failed to fulfill the other conditions set forth by the company (which included populating the area with at least fifty adults), and was later required to sell his interests back to it.
In 1634 he collaborated with Kiliaen van Rensselaer
and Wouter van Twiller
in sending cattle (horses and cows) in the next six years.
The name Pavonia remains as an avenue and library branch in contemporary Jersey City. There is also a Pavonia Court in Bayonne and Pavonia Avenue in Kearny. Erie Railroad
's Hudson waterfront terminus was called Pavonia Terminal
located nearby PATH
rapid transit system's station once called Pavonia. Saint Peter's College, located on land that was part of the patroonship, has as its mascot a peacock.
Pavonia was not the only American territory that would bear his name.
First described by Amerigo Vespucci, who traveled with a Portuguese
expedition of Gonçalo Coelho
to Brazil
in the year 1503, the Fernando de Noronha
Archipelago was invaded by the English
, and from 1556 until 1612, was held by the French
. In 1628, it was occupied by the Dutch
, who were displaced two years later by a Spanish
-Portuguese military expedition led by Rui Calaza Borges. The Dutch occupied the island once again in 1635, making it a hospital for their troops who occupied Northeastern Brazil (the Brazilian coast between Rio São Francisco and Maranhão). The island became known as Pavonia
, in honor of Pauw. It would remain under Dutch control for nearly twenty years, when it was reconquered by Portugal.
Pauw was apparently very successful, and was able to commission one of the most popular architects of the period to build a grachtenpand, or canal house, in Amsterdam. Clad in white sandstone imported from Germany it was the first in the city have a neck gable
.
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
- 20 March 1640, Amsterdam) was a burgermeester
Burgomaster
Burgomaster is the English form of various terms in or derived from Germanic languages for the chief magistrate or chairman of the executive council of a sub-national level of administration...
of Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
and a director of the Dutch West India Company
Dutch West India Company
Dutch West India Company was a chartered company of Dutch merchants. Among its founding fathers was Willem Usselincx...
(WIC)
He was born in Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
in a rich merchant family - his father, Reinier Pauw (1564–1636) wasn't only a merchant, but also a Mayor of Amsterdam - and studied law in Leiden.
His brother Adriaan Pauw
Adriaan Pauw
Adriaan Pauw, knight, heer van Heemstede, Bennebroek, Nieuwerkerk etc. was Grand Pensionary of Holland from 1631 to 1636 and from 1651 to 1653.-Life:...
(1581 - February 21, 1653 http://home.zonnet.nl/d.van.duijvenbode/geschmin.htm) was Grand Pensionary
Grand Pensionary
The Grand Pensionary was the most important Dutch official during the time of the United Provinces. In theory he was only a civil servant of the Estates of the dominant province among the Seven United Provinces: the county of Holland...
of Holland from 1631 to 1636 and from 1651 to 1653, and signatory of the Peace of Münster
Peace of Münster
The Peace of Münster was a treaty between the Dutch Republic and Spain signed in 1648. It was a landmark treaty for the Dutch republic and one of the key events in Dutch history; with it, the United Netherlands finally became independent from the Spanish Crown...
(1648) for which he was instrumental as ambassador for Holland.
The WIC was founded in 1621 to exploit trade in the Western Hemisphere
Western Hemisphere
The Western Hemisphere or western hemisphere is mainly used as a geographical term for the half of the Earth that lies west of the Prime Meridian and east of the Antimeridian , the other half being called the Eastern Hemisphere.In this sense, the western hemisphere consists of the western portions...
, and by 1625 had established a colony at Fort Amsterdam
Fort Amsterdam
For the historic fort on the island of Saint Martin, see Fort Amsterdam Fort Amsterdam was a fort on the southern tip of Manhattan that was the administrative headquarters for the Dutch and then British rule of New York from...
(Lower Manhattan
Lower Manhattan
Lower Manhattan is the southernmost part of the island of Manhattan, the main island and center of business and government of the City of New York...
) and Fort Orange
Fort Orange
Fort Orange was the first permanent Dutch settlement in New Netherland and was on the site of the present-day city of Albany, New York. It was a replacement for Fort Nassau, which had been built on nearby Castle Island in the Hudson River, and which served as a trading post until 1617 or 1618,...
. In the hope of encouraging settlement the company, in 1629, started to offer vast land grants and the feudal title of patroon
Patroon
In the United States, a patroon was a landholder with manorial rights to large tracts of land in the 17th century Dutch colony of New Netherland in North America...
. under the auspices of the Charter of Freedoms and Exemptions
Charter of Freedoms and Exemptions
The Charter of Freedoms and Exemptions, sometimes referred to as the Charter of Privileges and Exemptions, is a document written by the Dutch West India Company in an effort to settle its colony of New Netherland in North America through the establishment of feudal patroonships purchased and...
. In 1630, Pauw purchased two tracts from the Lenape
Lenape
The Lenape are an Algonquian group of Native Americans of the Northeastern Woodlands. They are also called Delaware Indians. As a result of the American Revolutionary War and later Indian removals from the eastern United States, today the main groups live in Canada, where they are enrolled in the...
at Hopoghan Hackingh (Hoboken
Hoboken, New Jersey
Hoboken is a city in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population was 50,005. The city is part of the New York metropolitan area and contains Hoboken Terminal, a major transportation hub for the region...
) and at Ashasimus (Harsimus
Harsimus
Harsimus is a neighborhood within Downtown Jersey City. The neighborhood stretches from the Harsimus Stem Embankment in the north to Christopher Columbus Drive in the south between Coles Street and Grove Street or more broadly, to Marin Boulevard...
), though the patroon
Patroon
In the United States, a patroon was a landholder with manorial rights to large tracts of land in the 17th century Dutch colony of New Netherland in North America...
ship likely included the entire peninsula between the Hudson River
Hudson River
The Hudson is a river that flows from north to south through eastern New York. The highest official source is at Lake Tear of the Clouds, on the slopes of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains. The river itself officially begins in Henderson Lake in Newcomb, New York...
and Hackensack River
Hackensack River
The Hackensack River is a river, approximately 45 miles long, in the U.S. states of New York and New Jersey, emptying into Newark Bay, a back chamber of New York Harbor. The watershed of the river includes part of the suburban area outside New York City just west of the lower Hudson River,...
now known as Hudson County, New Jersey
Hudson County, New Jersey
Hudson County is the smallest county in New Jersey and one of the most densely populated in United States. It takes its name from the Hudson River, which creates part of its eastern border. Part of the New York metropolitan area, its county seat and largest city is Jersey City.- Municipalities...
, and possibly his holdings on Staten Eylandt (Staten Island
Staten Island
Staten Island is a borough of New York City, New York, United States, located in the southwest part of the city. Staten Island is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull, and from the rest of New York by New York Bay...
). It was given the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
ized form of his surname (which means "peacock"), Pavonia
Pavonia, New Netherland
Pavonia was the first European settlement on the west bank of the North River that was part of the 17th century province of New Netherland in what would become today's Hudson County, New Jersey.-Hudson and the Hackensack:...
. It is said it was sold to him by the Manhattans after they had retreated there after the sale of their home island to Peter Minuit
Peter Minuit
Peter Minuit, Pieter Minuit, Pierre Minuit or Peter Minnewit was a Walloon from Wesel, in present-day North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, then part of the Duchy of Cleves. He was the Director-General of the Dutch colony of New Netherland from 1626 until 1633, and he founded the Swedish colony of...
some years before. Initially, a small hut and ferry landing were built at Arresick, called Powles Hoek (Paulus Hook), but Pauw failed to fulfill the other conditions set forth by the company (which included populating the area with at least fifty adults), and was later required to sell his interests back to it.
In 1634 he collaborated with Kiliaen van Rensselaer
Kiliaen van Rensselaer
Kiliaen van Rensselaer was a Dutch diamond and pearl merchant from Amsterdam who was one of the founders and directors of the Dutch West India Company and was instrumental in the establishment of New Netherland...
and Wouter van Twiller
Wouter van Twiller
Wouter van Twiller was an employee of the Dutch West India Company and the Director-General of New Netherland from 1633 until 1638...
in sending cattle (horses and cows) in the next six years.
The name Pavonia remains as an avenue and library branch in contemporary Jersey City. There is also a Pavonia Court in Bayonne and Pavonia Avenue in Kearny. Erie Railroad
Erie Railroad
The Erie Railroad was a railroad that operated in New York State, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, originally connecting New York City with Lake Erie...
's Hudson waterfront terminus was called Pavonia Terminal
Pavonia Terminal
Pavonia Terminal was the Erie Railroad terminal on the Hudson River situated on the landfilled Harsimus Cove in Jersey City, New Jersey.-History:The Erie began developing the waterfront site in 1856.The intermodal complex was built between 1886 and 1889...
located nearby PATH
Port Authority Trans-Hudson
PATH, derived from Port Authority Trans-Hudson, is a rapid transit railroad linking Manhattan, New York City with Newark, Harrison, Hoboken and Jersey City in metropolitan northern New Jersey...
rapid transit system's station once called Pavonia. Saint Peter's College, located on land that was part of the patroonship, has as its mascot a peacock.
Pavonia was not the only American territory that would bear his name.
First described by Amerigo Vespucci, who traveled with a Portuguese
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
expedition of Gonçalo Coelho
Gonçalo Coelho
Gonçalo Coelho was a Portuguese explorer who belonged to a prominent family in northern Portugal. He commanded two expeditions which explored much of the coast of Brazil....
to Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
in the year 1503, the Fernando de Noronha
Fernando de Noronha
Fernando de Noronha is an archipelago of 21 islands and islets in the Atlantic Ocean, offshore from the Brazilian coast. The main island has an area of and had a population of 3,012 in the year 2010...
Archipelago was invaded by the English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, and from 1556 until 1612, was held by the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. In 1628, it was occupied by the Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, who were displaced two years later by a Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
-Portuguese military expedition led by Rui Calaza Borges. The Dutch occupied the island once again in 1635, making it a hospital for their troops who occupied Northeastern Brazil (the Brazilian coast between Rio São Francisco and Maranhão). The island became known as Pavonia
Pavonia
Pavonia may refer to:biota:*Pavonia , a moth genus*Pavonia pavonia, "emperor moth", a moth species*Pavonia , a plant genus in the family Malvaceaeplaces:...
, in honor of Pauw. It would remain under Dutch control for nearly twenty years, when it was reconquered by Portugal.
Pauw was apparently very successful, and was able to commission one of the most popular architects of the period to build a grachtenpand, or canal house, in Amsterdam. Clad in white sandstone imported from Germany it was the first in the city have a neck gable
Gable
A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of a sloping roof. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system being used and aesthetic concerns. Thus the type of roof enclosing the volume dictates the shape of the gable...
.