Nicolaas Witsen
From Freepedia
Nicolaas Witsen (1641-1717) was born to a family of successful Dutch businessmen and rapidly became a key figure in the political, economic and cultural relations between tsarist Russia and the Netherlands. He studied law at Leiden University and was mayor of Amsterdam intermittently for a total of thirteen years between 1682 and 1705.
icolaas Witsen travelled frequently to Russia and explored its territory extensively. He first visited Moscow in 1664 and developed an immediate and intense interest for the unexplored expanses to its east. Throughout his life, he remained fascinated by Russian society, its government, traditions and culture. He wrote several influental books and articles about Russia and published the first map of Siberia in 1687.
It was Nicolaas Witsen's expertise in shipbuilding that first brought him into contact with the Russian Tsar Peter the Great. In 1671, Nicolaas Witsen published his first book about shipbuilding, which is still considered to be an important reference work today. Its comprehensive but detailed descriptions and practical drawings captured the attention of the Russian monarch, who was determined to build a maritime fleet to European standards. Peter the Great began an intensive correspondence with Nicolaas Witsen, which resulted in several orders for warships from the shipwharves in Amsterdam. However, the two men did not meet in person for many years.
In 1697, Nicolaas Witsen arranged an incognito apprenticeship for the Tsar at the shipbuilding wharves of Amsterdam and Zaandam. During his study tour, Peter the Great familiarised himself not only with the art of shipbuilding, but also with the selection and training of officers and sailors and the complexities of managing an international harbour. After returning to Russia, he appointed the Dutch naval officer Cornelis Cruys as the Head of the future Russian fleet in the new capital of St. Petersburg. Nicolaas Witsen continued studying and advising the Russian government until his death on 10th of August 1717, during the second visit of Peter the Great to the Netherlands.
