Director van Rensselaerswyck van 1648 tot 1652
After the death of the patroon between 1643 and 1646, Brant Aertsz van Slichtenhorst was appointed Director of the Colony on November 10, 1647. He arrived in the colony on 22 March 1648. (page 14) His contract provided that he was to hold the office of Hoof-officier, as such he was to preside over the court, to act as public prosecutor and to perform the combined duties of a modern sheriff and chief of police. As Director, he was the chief administrative officer of the colony and as such was to collect the patroon’s revenues derived from farms. Mills, licenses to trade, etc. . In addition to his salary, he was to receive on third of the fines and proceeds from confiscated property. As a third source of income, he was to have the toepachten, or fees paid in addition to the annual rent and tithes of the farms.
The court as organized by Van Slichtenhorst consisted at first of four and afterwards of five persons, of whom two were designated a Gecommitteerden, or commissioners, and two, or afterwards three, are in the record indiscriminately referred to as raden, raetspersonen, gerechtspersonen, or rechtsvrienden. The duties of the commissioners were primarily of an administrative nature, while those of the raden seem to have been chiefly judicial. The Gecommitteerden represented the patroon and acted under definite instructions. The raden, on the other hand, were appointed by the director, but represented the colonists, it being at that time held sufficient if persons who were to represent others were chosen from among them, so as to represent their class. The only requirement was that they should not be in the patroon’s service.
(Page 17) The proceedings of the court presided over by Van Slichtenhorst cover the period from April 2, 1648, to April 15, 1652. They form the most important source for the history of the colony during that period.
The outstanding event of the that period was the controversy between Van Slichtenhorst and General Peter Stuyvesant reading the jurisdiction of the territory around Fort Orange, which forms one of the dramatic events of the history of New Netherland. This controversy had it origin in the claim made by the patroon, as early as 1632, that “all lands lying on the west side of the river, from Beyren Island to Moeneminnes Castle” ...” even including the place where Fort Orange stands,” had been bought and paid for by him. The Dutch West India Company, on the other hand, maintained that the territory of the fort, which was erected several years before the land of the colony was purchases from the Indians, belonged to the Company and consequently (Page 18) was not included in the patroon’s purchase. The question ... came to be an issue when Van Slichtenhorst, soon after his arrival in the colony, began to issue permits for the erection of houses in the immediate vicinity of the fort. Stuyvesant objected on the ground that they endanger the security of the fort and ordered the destruction of all building within range of a cannon shot. ...Van Slichtenhorst, protested vigorously and proceeded with the erection of the buildings. In 1651 Van Slichtenhorst was summoned to appear before the director General and council at Manhattan and was there detained for four months. [The controversy was settled on April 10, 1652, when the director General and Council erected a separate Court for Fort Orange, independent of that of the Colony. By virtue of this, the hamlet of Beverwyck was taken out of the jurisdiction of the patroon and became an independent village which afterwards became the city of Albany.] Van Slichtenhorst vigorously protested against the erection of the court at Fort Orange and Beaverwyck and with his own hands tore down the proclamation which had been posted on the house of the patroon. For this he was arrested on April 18, 1652, and taken to Manhattan, where he was detained until August 1653. With his arrest, Van Slichtenhorst’s administration came to a close. On July 24, 1652, he was succeeded as director by Jan Baptist Van Rensselaer and as officer of justice by Gerard Swart, so that thereafter the two functions were no longer combine in one person. [Swart continued as Schout until 1665, when by order of Governor Richard Nicholls the Court of the Colony was consolidated with that of Fort Orange.
VVG Genealogie Fragmenten
Brant Aertsz van Slichtenhorst, luitenant-schout 1635, otr. Nijkerk/Putten 19-12-1613 Aeltgen Gijsberts van Wenckom, dr. van Gijsbert Gerrits van Wenckum, v. Nijkerk 1589, en Bate van Domseler, eigenaar van 1/4 van Emeler, gen. de Olde Hofstede, krankzinnig op latere leeftijd.
- 14-6-1622: Brant Aertsz. van Slichtenhorst, wnd. tot Nykerck, is erfgenaam van Bartraet van Dompselaer, in leven weduwe en boedelhawster van Henrick van Meholt (ook: Mehelt?). In die kwaliteit machtigt hij Evert van Wede, procureur voor de Hove van Utrecht, om mede namens hem te komen tot een akkoord tussen enerzijds de curateur en crediteuren van genoemde boedel en anderzijds Peter Schade voor Mr. Henrick d´Wilt, Raedt in de voornoemde Hove.
Getuigen: Gerrit Willems. (timmerman) en Frederick Jans van der Ham (tekent als: Frederick Janss.) (Amersfoort Volmacht: 14-06-1622 Notaris J. van Ingen AT002 a002 folio 251 V).
- 8-7-1623: Thonis Henricksz en Marritgen Dircx zijn vrouw verkopen aan Brant Aertsz van Slichtenhorst en Aeltgen van Wenckum zijn vrouw huis, hof en hofstede en de Muurhuizen, waaraan belend Heer Peter Man en Brant Aertsz van Slichtenhorst voor 6 gulden, 6 stuivers per jaar aan de Lieve Vrouwe Kapel; 1 gulden, 9 stuivers aan St. Jans Broederschap; 14 stuivers aan St. Petersgasthuis. Hoofdsom 400 gulden aan Coenraat Fransen (Transporten 436-16).
- 1624: Engelbertus Schevenhuijs beleent Brandt Aertsen en Altjen van Wenckum met Strijp ter Beek et welcke sie angekoft van Henric Beekman (Henrick Beekman Henrick draagt goed over aan genoemde echtelieden) (AKP (Slicher van Bath) nr. 194 (oude aantekeningen begin 1980)).
- 1630: Beekmansgoet alias die Strijpe besit Brandt Aerts hij ende sijn huijsfrou onhorich te letten opt misbruijck (in ander handschrift; betaalt Brandt Artzen 5ds. voor opruckinge (onder geschreven in ander handschrift: Carel Gerritzen 4. morgen gnt. Den Duist (AKP (Wartena) 37e).
- 11-6-1632: Brant Aertzn. van Slichtenhorst, Brant Aertzn., wnd. te Nijekerck, man van Alidt van Wenckum. Huwelijkse voorwaarden: 09-12-1613. Zij vermaken elkaar de lijftocht van al hun bezittingen die zij in deze stad staende en uitstaende hebben, tot wederhuwelijk van de langstlevende en langer niet.
Zij secluderen de weeskamer van Amersfoort.
Getuigen: Cornelis van Ingen, Frederick Janzn, van den Ham en Andries Corneliszn. (Testament: 11-06-1632 J. van Ingen AT 002a003 folio 257 V – 258).
- 1633: Aelt Brandtsen hadde lade peinden ant gereide op Strijp ter Beke om te hebben de jure van approbatie over pandschap vor den Kelner de welcke peinding verklaart worden van geenen werde. “In de saecke van Willem van Huijsteen als volm. van sijne beste moeder Aelt Brands doen peinden aan het gerede van Beekmansgoet. Op 2-3-1607 onderpand drie morgen door Henrick Henrichs Beekman met vrouw Weyme Aelts aen voorseyde Aelt en sijne huijsvrouw Wychmoet (van Coot?) ende van Brant Aerts van voorn. Henrick geacquireert..” (AKP (Slicher van Bath) nr. 194 (oude aantekeningen begin 1980)).
- 26-9-1635: Lidmaat NG Gemeente te Amersfoort; in de Muerhuysen in den ouden Lombert bij ´t Gevangenhuys; met attestatie van Harderwijk en zijn huijsvrouw Aeltgen van Wenckom; vertrokken.
- 7-7-1641: Brant Aertsz van Slichtenhorst, Luitenant Schout, verkoopt voor hemzelf en als vader voor zijn onmondige kinderen bij zijn overleden vrouw Juffrouwe alid van Wenckum; Aernt van Slichtenhorst, zoon van Brant aan Johan Francken, Majoor dezer stad, en Catharina du Molin zijn vrouw en hun erven een huis en erf in de Muurhuizen van de straat tot achter aan de Singelgracht, waaraan belend erfgenamen van de heer Renkman en verder nog Brant Aertsz van Slichtenhorst (Transporten 436-19)
- 1643: Brant Aertsen bezitter Beekmansgoed ofte Strijp ter Beek. Verscheidene leenacten te weten:.Rutgerus Fleetman gevet opruckinge aen Brant Aertsen;.Rutgerus Fleetman approbiert het transport van Strijp ter Beek geschiet van Brandt Aertsen op Wolf van Hennekeler den Jonge en Arnolda van Coot, echtelieden (AKP (Slicher van Bath) nr. 194 (oude aantekeningen begin 1980)).
- 1657: Stripterbeek gevrijd (AKP (Slicher van Bath) nr. 194 (oude aantekeningen begin 1980).
- 1648: Brant Aertsz van Slichtenhorst from Nykerck province of Gelder land According to O Callaghan History of New Netherland 8 69 van Slichtenhorst was appointed director of the colony Nov 10 1646 and sailed with his family and servants for Virginia Sept 26 1647 The records of the colony show that he arrived March 22 1648 and held the office of director till July 24 1652 when he was succeeded by Jan Baptist van Rensselacr Between June 20 1651 and July 24 1652 van Slichtenhorst was most of the time at the Manhatans and JB van Rensselaer acd d in his stead for the first two months apparently in conjunction with Capt Slijter April 4 1650 de Hooges complained to the council that Director van Slichtenhorst had thus far rendered no accounts The director replied that hy wet wat souwde ontfangen dan dot het Antonij de Hooges hecft opqesnapt hat he would have received something if Antonij de Hooges had not gobbled it up Van Slichtenhorst was still in the colony in July 1655 and lived in Holland in 1660 (Rensselaer Bowier Manuscripts Being the Letters of Kiliaen Van Rensselaer, 1630-1643, and Other Documents Relating to the Colony of Rensselaerswyck By New York State Library, Kiliaen van Rensselaer, Arnold Johan Ferdinand Van Laer, Nicolaas de Roever, Susan De Lancey Van Rennselaer Strong, page 838).
Grietge van Slichtenhorst 1614-/1628
Arend van Slichtenhorst , Dr. Nijkerk 1616-1657
Elizabeth van Slichtenhorstcirca 1652
Gehuwd op 4 november 1698 met
George Sydebham 