born Oct. 29, 1837, Maassluis, Neth.
died Nov. 8, 1920, The Hague
Dutch theologian and politician.
After serving as a pastor (1863–74), he founded a Calvinist-oriented newspaper (1872) and was elected to the national assembly (1874). He formed the Anti-Revolutionary Party, the first organized Dutch political party, and built up a lower-middle-class following with a program that combined orthodox religious positions and a progressive social agenda. To provide Calvinist training for pastors, he founded the Free University at Amsterdam (1880), and in 1892 he founded the Reformed Churches in The Netherlands. As prime minister of The Netherlands (1901–05), he advocated a wider franchise and broader social benefits.