Pieter Cort van der Linden

Pieter Wilhelm Adrianus Cort van der Linden (14 May 1846 – 15 July 1935) was a Dutch politician who served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands from 29 August 1913 to 9 September 1918.

His Excellency Pieter Cort van der Linden
Pieter Cort van der Linden
Prime Minister of the Netherlands
In office 29 August 1913 – 9 September 1918
Monarch	Wilhelmina
Preceded by	Theo Heemskerk
Succeeded by	Charles Ruijs de Beerenbrouck
Minister of the Interior
In office 29 August 1913 – 9 September 1918
Prime Minister	Pieter Cort van der Linden
Preceded by	Theo Heemskerk
Succeeded by	Charles Ruijs de Beerenbrouck
Minister of Foreign Affairs
In office 29 August 1913 – 27 September 1913 Ad interim
Prime Minister	Pieter Cort van der Linden
Preceded by	René de Marees van Swinderen
Succeeded by	John Loudon
Member of the Council of State
In office 8 October 1918 – 1 January 1935
In office 4 November 1902 – 29 August 1913
Vice President	See list Johan Schorer (1902–1903) Petrus van Swinderen (1903–1911) Joan Röell (1912–1913) Wilhelmus van Leeuwen (1918–1928) Alex van Lynden van Sandenburg (1928–1932) Frans Beelaerts van Blokland (1933–1935)
Minister of Justice
In office 27 July 1897 – 1 August 1901
Prime Minister	Nicolaas Pierson
Preceded by	Willem van der Kaay
Succeeded by	Jan Loeff
Personal details
Born	Pieter Wilhelm Adrianus Cort van der Linden 14 May 1846 The Hague, Netherlands
Died	15 July 1935 (aged 89) The Hague, Netherlands
Nationality	Dutch
Political party	Independent Liberal
Spouse(s)	Joanna Wittewaall ​ ​ (m. 1873; died 1874)​ Johanna de Koning ​ ​ (m. 1880; his death 1935)​
Children	4 sons
Alma mater	Leiden University (Bachelor of Laws, Master of Laws, Doctor of Philosophy)
Occupation	Politician · Civil servant · Jurist · Lawyer · Economist · Researcher · Historian · Academic administrator · Editor · Author · Professor

Biography

He was the last prime minister to lead a liberal cabinet and the last liberal to be Prime Minister until Mark Rutte in 2010 (92 years later). However, the First Rutte cabinet held only a minority in the House of Representatives. One of Cort van der Linden's major achievements was maintaining Dutch neutrality during World War I although personally, he was pro-German.

He also introduced universal suffrage in the Netherlands in what is now known as the Pacification of 1917. That made the Social Democratic Workers' Party and the General League of Roman Catholic Caucuses win the 1918 elections. The Catholic Charles Ruijs de Beerenbrouck took Cort van der Linden's place as Prime Minister.

References

Literature

• Minderaa, J.T. (1979), "Linden, Pieter Wilhelm Adrianus Cort van der (1846-1935)", Biografisch Woordenboek van Nederland, 1, retrieved 13 March 2008

External Links

• Paul Moeyes: Cort van der Linden, Pieter Wilhelm Adriaan, in: 1914-1918-online. International Encyclopedia of the First World War.

Decorations

Honours
Ribbon bar	Honour	Country	Date	Comment
	Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Orange-Nassau	Netherlands	1 August 1901
	Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Netherlands Lion	Netherlands	28 January 1915
Honorific Titles
Ribbon bar	Honour	Country	Date	Comment
	Minister of State	Netherlands	28 January 1915	Style of Excellency