DE MANDEVILLE ANCESTRY IN THE NETHERLANDS

Our ancestor Gillis Jans De Mandeville (b. 1626) migrated to America and was a 2^nd great-grandfather of Margareta Van Dyke Van Voorhees (a great-grandmother of our Margaret Williamson McCreary). Gillis’ grandfather Dr. Michael Jans De Mandeville spent much of his life in Nijmegen, and may have had some close encounters with some Schenck Van Nydeggen people.  Michael’s Huguenot (French Calvinist) ancestors reportedly came from France.

Nijmegen city hall. Dr. Michael De Mandeville was on the city council in 1618. Harness of Sir Maarten Schenck Van Nydeggen reportedly hangs in chambers. 

Michael De Mandeville married Maria Van De Raede (b. Antwerp) on June 13, 1601 and their son (our ancestor) Johann "Jan" Michaelsz De Mandeville was born in Nijmegen soon afterwards. That was about a dozen years after the death at Nijmegen of Sir Maarten Schenck Van Nydeggen. In 1601, the Dutch Wars of Independence from Spain were continuing, with a truce of a few years still some time away (1609), and General Pieter Schenck Van Nydeggen was in his final years of life, somewhere. My guide at Doesburg, Gelderland, suggested looking further south for Schenck Van Nydeggen.   

Dr. Michael De Mandeville became City Physician of Nijmegen, and was prominent in civic events. He would have been a frequent visitor to the city hall (he was on the city council in 1618), where it is reported that the military harness of Sir Maarten Schenck Van Nydeggen hangs.  The city hall was locked up when Lara and Gary were in Nijmegen.

Michael taught at the Latin School (still standing, pictured below) in Nijmegen. In 1607, Michael was asked to resign as principal at the Latin School in order to devote full time to the practice of medicine.

Latin School at Nijmegen. Dr. Michael De Mandeville taught here.

Latin School of 1544, Nijmegen.

No doubt Michael and his physician descendants visited the hospital (now a restaurant) at the Commanderie of St. Jan. This was founded in the 13^th Century as a shelter for pilgrims headed for the Middle East.

Commanderie van St. Jan, Nijmegen. A former hospital no doubt visited by at least 3 generations of De Mandeville physicians.

Michael and Maria had many kids. I had thought that they might have been associated with St. Steven’s Church in Nijmegen (http://gelderlandchurches.tripod.com/nijmegensteven.html ), but a guide said “no”. This was the same guide who told me “maybe” about the purported grave in that church of Sir Maarten Schenck Van Nydeggen. I wonder about the relationships between the Dutch Reformed and Huguenot (Calvinist) congregations in Nijmegen in those days. In 1623, Nijmegen denied citizenship to any Catholics moving into the city. “…within a span of three decades five of the largest towns of the central and eastern areas of the Republic had deprived their Catholic population of the right to participate in the community on a par with the Calvinists.” (page 163, “Calvinism and Religious Toleration in the Dutch Golden Age”). 

Lara at tulip fields north of Leiden, where ancestor Rev. Jan De Mandeville studied theology.

On March 3, 1623, Johannes “Jan” Michaelsz de Mandeville entered Leiden University, and studied theology. He probably had had some earlier education elsewhere. Rembrandt Van Rijn lived in Leiden then. Leiden was then a center for cultivation of tulips. Lara and Gary saw tulips aplenty just north of Leiden in April 2012.

In 1624, Johannes “Jan” Michaelsz de Mandeville lectured on the Hebrew language at the Atheneum at Harderwijk, Gelderland. He was married in Harderwijk the next year, according to the Gelderland Archives. This is contrary to what many family trees say, which is Garderen. Jan married Trintgen Wilms on April 24, 1625, at Harderwijk. A son of Jan and Trintgen was Gillis Jans De Mandeville, the ancestor of the American De Mandeville people. Gillis was baptized in June 1626 at Doesburg, according to the Gelderland Archives; a witness was Gillis’ grandpa Michael of Nijmegen. It is not clear where Jan, Trintgen, and little Gillis lived then. Gillis was probably named after his uncle Aegidius (Gillis) De Mandeville, who in turn was named after Aegedius Radaeus Van De Raede (father of Maria, who was Gillis’ grandmother).

Martinikerk in Doesburg, Gelderland. Baptism location of Gillis De Mandeville, son of Jan and grandson of Michael (a witness at the 1626 baptism).

Doesburg on the River Ijssel. De Mandeville, Schenck, and Scherpenzeel associations.

In 1628, Rev. Johannes “Jan” Michaelsz de Mandeville was appointed candidate minister at the Reformed Church at Kootwijk (west of Apeldoorn and southeast of Harderwijk; near Garderen). Meanwhile, Jan’s brother Emmanuel was studying medicine at Leiden.

Church at Kootwijk, Gelderland. Rev. Jan De Mandeville preached here in 1628.

I really liked cozy Kootwijk village, set in the woods. Jan became minister at nearby Garderen in 1630. He lived at Garderen until his death in 1657. An illegible stone in the church cemetery is thought to be Jan’s. My visit to Garderen was cut short by a downpour and a need to deal with end-of-day motorway traffic heading back towards my base at Huizen.

Church at Garderen, Gelderland. Rev. Jan De Mandeville preached here for much of his life and was probably buried here.

The plague in Nijmegen in 1635 killed Jan’s father Michael, and 6,000 other people. Jan’s physician brother Emmanuel appears at www.huisvandenijmeegsegeschiedenis.nl/info/18_The_Plague

Nijmegen of 1641. Dr. Michael De Mandeville was one of 6,000 people who died of plague here in 1635.

Perhaps shortly after this time Jan’s son Gillis married Elsie Hendricks at Garderen. Their home was at Voorthuizen village, near Garderen. Jan died in 1657. Gillis’ family left for America in 1659 aboard the ship “De Trouw” (Faith). His daughter Tryntje Gillis De Mandeville later in America married Cornelius Janse Vanderveer. Gillis De Mandeville reportedly became a friend of Gov. Peter Stuyvesant, who had to surrender New Netherland to England in 1664.

Citizens urging Governor Peter Stuyvesant (friend of Gillis De Mandeville) to not fire on the English. 1664 Fall of New Netherland, from Wikipedia.