Dirk Jan de Geer | |
|---|---|
 De Geer in 1929 | |
| Chairman of the Council of Ministers | |
| In office 10 August 1939 – 3 September 1940 | |
| Monarch | Wilhelmina |
| Preceded by | Hendrikus Colijn |
| Succeeded by | Pieter Sjoerds Gerbrandy |
| In office 8 March 1926 – 10 August 1929 | |
| Monarch | Wilhelmina |
| Preceded by | Hendrikus Colijn |
| Succeeded by | Charles Ruijs de Beerenbrouck |
| Chairman of the Christian Historical Union | |
| In office 30 June 1933 – 10 August 1939 | |
| Preceded by | Jan Rudolph Slotemaker de Bruïne |
| Succeeded by | Hendrik Tilanus |
| Parliamentary leader in theHouse of Representatives | |
| In office 28 April 1933 – 10 August 1939 | |
| Preceded by | Reinhardt Snoeck Henkemans |
| Succeeded by | Hendrik Tilanus |
| Parliamentary group | Christian Historical Union |
| Leader of the Christian Historical Union | |
| In office 8 July 1929 – 14 May 1940 | |
| Preceded by | Johan de Visser |
| Succeeded by | Hendrik Tilanus |
| Minister of the Interiorand Agriculture | |
| In office 4 August 1925 – 8 March 1926 | |
| Prime Minister | Hendrikus Colijn |
| Preceded by | Charles Ruijs de Beerenbrouck |
| Succeeded by | Jan Kan |
| Minister of Finance | |
| In office 10 August 1939 – 3 September 1940 | |
| Prime Minister | Dirk Jan de Geer |
| Preceded by | Christiaan Bodenhausen |
| Succeeded by | Charles Welter |
| In office 8 March 1926 – 26 May 1933 | |
| Prime Minister | Dirk Jan de Geer (1926–1929) Charles Ruijs de Beerenbrouck (1929–1933) |
| Preceded by | Hendrikus Colijn |
| Succeeded by | Pieter Oud |
| In office 28 July 1921 – 11 August 1923 | |
| Prime Minister | Charles Ruijs de Beerenbrouck |
| Preceded by | Simon de Vries |
| Succeeded by | Hendrikus Colijn |
| Mayor of Arnhem | |
| In office 8 May 1920 – 28 July 1921 | |
| Preceded by | Aarnoud van Heemstra |
| Succeeded by | Salomon de Monchy |
| Member of the House of Representatives | |
| In office 9 May 1933 – 10 August 1939 | |
| In office 25 July 1922 – 18 September 1922 | |
| In office 4 November 1907 – 30 August 1921 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Dirk Jan de Geer (1870-12-14)14 December 1870 Groningen, Netherlands |
| Died | 28 November 1960(1960-11-28) (aged 89) Soest, Netherlands |
| Political party | Christian Historical Union (from 1908) |
| Other political affiliations | Christian Historical Party (1903–1908) Christian Historical Voters' League (until 1903) |
| Spouse | |
| Relations |
|
| Children | 5 |
| Alma mater | Utrecht University (LLB,LLM) |
| Occupation | |
JonkheerDirk Jan de Geer (14 December 1870 – 28 November 1960) was a Dutch politician of theChristian Historical Union. He served asChairman of the Council of Ministers from 8 March 1926 until 10 August 1929, and from 10 August 1939 until 3 September 1940.
Born inGroningen, he was a descendant of theDe Geer family. After receiving hisJ.D. from a college of law in 1895, De Geer worked as a journalist and acted as a town councilor ofRotterdam (1901–1907).
He served from 1907 as aChristian Historical member of Parliament. BeforeWorld War II, he was a stable and respected politician. From 1920 to 1921, he served as mayor ofArnhem. Between 1921 and 1923, De Geer served asMinister of Finance. He resigned in 1923 because of his disagreement with the Naval Law of 1924. From 1925 to 1926 he served as Minister of the Interior and Minister of Agriculture, then became Chairman of the Council of Ministers on 8 March 1926, serving for three years until resigning on 10 August 1929. He also served as Minister of Finance from 1926 to 1933.
After the fall of thefifth cabinet of Hendrikus Colijn, De Geer again formed a government in August 1939 and concurrently held the offices of Minister of Finance and of General Affairs. However, as he knew, he was not suited for the role of prime minister of a nation at war. WhenNazi Germanyattacked the Netherlands on 10 May 1940 (beginning of theWestern campaign), the situation soon became very serious, and the government fled to Britain.
In Britain, De Geer advocated negotiating aseparate peace between the Netherlands and Germany and damaged the Dutch government and Dutch morale by openly stating that the war could never be won. At the instigation ofQueen Wilhelmina, he was removed from office and replaced byPieter Sjoerds Gerbrandy – officially on account of ill-health.[1]
Later, he was sent with adiplomatic package to theDutch East Indies, nowIndonesia. He never arrived there, for on a stopover inPortugal he left the flight and went to the Germans, who allowed him to return to his ailing wife and the rest of his family in the Netherlands.[2]
That greatly angered Wilhelmina, who called him a traitor and deserter to the Dutch cause. He later wrote a controversial leaflet with "instructions" for the people on how to co-operate with the Germans. "With this pamphlet", theDutch government-in-exile stated in a broadcast, "the writer has betrayed the Netherlands people, whatever happens to him personally".[2] Wilhelmina warned De Geer that if he published the pamphlet, he would be put on trial after the conclusion of the war.[3]
With the permission[2] of theReichskommissariat Niederlande, De Geer went through with the publication. After the war, he was found guilty of high treason in time of war and was stripped of all of his honorary titles. The Appeal Court confirmed the sentence of a year's imprisonment with three years' probation, but waived the fine of 20,000guilders and the deprivation of the title "Minister of State".[4]
On 11 August 1904, De Geer married Maria Voorhoeve (1 May 1883 – 6 April 1955).[5][6]
De Geer died on 28 November 1960 atSoest, at the age of 89, sixteen days before his 90th birthday, several years after having suffered astroke.
His grandson is ex-footballerBoudewijn de Geer, and his great-grandson is football manager and former playerMike de Geer.
| Ribbon bar | Honour | Country | Date | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Knight Grand Cross of theOrder of the Netherlands Lion | Netherlands | 31 August 1933 | Stripped of title on 15 March 1950 |
 | Commander of theOrder of Orange-Nassau | Netherlands | 11 August 1923 | Stripped of title on 15 March 1950 |
| Ribbon bar | Honour | Country | Date | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Minister of State | Netherlands | 31 August 1933 | Style ofExcellency Stripped of title on 12 November 1947 |
| House of Representatives of the Netherlands | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member forSchiedam 1907–1918 | District abolished |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Leader of the Christian Historical Union 1929–1940 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Parliamentary leader of the Christian Historical Union in the House of Representatives 1933–1939 | |
| Preceded by | Chairman of the Christian Historical Union 1933–1939 | |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Mayor of Arnhem 1920–1921 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister of Finance 1921–1923 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister of the Interior and Agriculture 1925–1926 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Chairman of the Council of Ministers 1926–1929 | Succeeded by |
| Minister of Finance 1926–1933 | Succeeded by | |
| Preceded by | Chairman of the Council of Ministers 1939–1940 | Succeeded by |
| Minister of General Affairs 1939–1940 | Succeeded by | |
| Preceded by | Minister of Finance 1939–1940 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| People | |
