From the Huron Expositor - Wednesday, 6 April, 1994
Article 1 of 4. Who was Colonel Van Egmond and why did he come here?
He wasn't the inventor of apple cider and the annual Ciderfest. And he didn't even live in the Van Egmond house that stands today in Egmondville. His eldest son, Constant, built that in 1846. It might have been a fine retirement home for Van Egmond, but it was a jail cell that housed the Colonel in his final days after the ill-fated Mackenzie Rebellion of 1837.
"Like his distinguished forebear, Colonel Anthony Van Egmond was to end his days in jail charged with treason, with only death from a violent illness saving him from the gallows tree," wrote Professor James Scott of Seaforth in his book, The Settlement of Huron County.
Not a very happy ending to the life of the wealthiest landowner of his time in this district. Van Egmond was a significant figure in both Huron County and Canadian history. Along with John Galt and William Tiger Dunlop, he opened the Huron Tract to the early Canadian settlers and offered land and employment to many. Van Egmond was also the original rebel of Huron County being virtually the only participant in the 1837 Rebellion from this area.
But Colonel Anthony Van Egmond had a colourful past long before he set foot in North America. He was a participant in one of the most important military campaigns of the 19th century.Van Egmond and Napoleon
Colonel Anthony Van Egmond was born in Holland in 1771. One of his illustrious relatives was Count Egmont, who was beheaded in the city square of Brussels on June 5, 1568 at the commencement of the Dutch revolt against Spain.
Young Van Egmond joined the Dutch forces as an officer in the war between France and the European Coalition which began in 1793. In 1795, the French army, under the command of Napoleon and aided by the Dutch republican party, overran Holland with ease and converted it into a dependency of the French Republic, according to former Seaforth native, historian Wilfred Brenton Kerr, fellow of the Royal Historical Society and Assistant Professor of History at the University of Buffalo, who published a 13-part series on Colonel Van Egmond and the Rebellion of 1837 in the Huron Expositor of 1931.
Like most of his colleagues, Van Egmond was immediately conscripted for service with the French, wrote Professor James Scott. But mystery surrounds Van Egmond's next few years. There are sketchy accounts and strange claims about Van Egmond's life from both Scott and Kerr during the period from 1796 to 1812.
Professor Scott writes that Anthony Van Egmond was a member of court in 1802-03 for judging cases of robbery. The cases involved so-called 'German Robin Hoods', who where rebels against the French invaders. They had taken to the woods and led guerrilla raids on the rich in order to provide the peasants with enough food to survive, according to Scott.
Van Egmond wrote about the trials in later years and commented favourably on the accused.
"Had these three men been judged by a Court purely of equity in lieu of one of law and their good deeds been allowed to weigh in contra of their misdeeds, they would have been honourably acquitted. It was the laws and not the crimes that condemned them," wrote the Colonel.
Both Seaforth historians mention Van Egmond's marriage to Susanna Dietz and the birth of their son, Constant. But Scott suggests both events happened between 1802 and 1808. Kerr claims Susanna Van Egmond accompanied Colonel Van Egmond in the great invasion of Russia and the march to Moscow in 1812 and gave birth along the way.
Other claims by Kerr are also remarkable. After the French overran Holland in 1795, he writes: "Accordingly Van Egmond took service under Napoleon. It is said that he was an aide-de-camp of the Emperor (Napoleon) himself and that he campaigned in Italy and Spain."
Van Egmond did survive the invasion and retreat from Moscow in 1812, wrote Scott.
Kerr says the family of three returned safely to Holland in time to witness the great continental revolt against Napoleon in the year 1813, the expulsion of the Emperor to Elba and the restoration of the old monarchies, including that of Holland.
Van Egmond's fighting days weren't over yet. He joined up again with the Dutch army now that they had broken away and joined the allied force against Napoleon. Van Egmond ended up serving under the Duke of Wellington, whose forces he joined in time to take part in the historic Battle of Waterloo.
"Severely wounded in this greatest of 19th-century battles, he was carried off the field, having thereby earned a fitting climax to a military career of 22 years during which he had received 14 wounds and had attained the rank of Colonel. These facts are sufficient indication of his military qualities," writes Wilfred Brenton Kerr.
Having honourably capped off a long and distinguished military career, Van Egmond focused now on North America and further adventures.
(with references from Professors James Scott and Wilfred Brenton Kerr)
The article includes a photo of the Van Egmond House with the caption: The house that Constant Van Egmond (Colonel Anthony Van Egmond's oldest son) built as the centrepiece of today's Van Egmond Reserve in Egmondville. It's the site of the annual Ciderfest that features arts, crafts, food, entertainment, and a chance to tour through the museum.
Next week: Colonel Van Egmond on the Move - Van Egmond and the Canada Company
Article 1 of 4. Who was Colonel Van Egmond and why did he come here?
He wasn't the inventor of apple cider and the annual Ciderfest. And he didn't even live in the Van Egmond house that stands today in Egmondville. His eldest son, Constant, built that in 1846. It might have been a fine retirement home for Van Egmond, but it was a jail cell that housed the Colonel in his final days after the ill-fated Mackenzie Rebellion of 1837.
"Like his distinguished forebear, Colonel Anthony Van Egmond was to end his days in jail charged with treason, with only death from a violent illness saving him from the gallows tree," wrote Professor James Scott of Seaforth in his book, The Settlement of Huron County.
Not a very happy ending to the life of the wealthiest landowner of his time in this district. Van Egmond was a significant figure in both Huron County and Canadian history. Along with John Galt and William Tiger Dunlop, he opened the Huron Tract to the early Canadian settlers and offered land and employment to many. Van Egmond was also the original rebel of Huron County being virtually the only participant in the 1837 Rebellion from this area.
But Colonel Anthony Van Egmond had a colourful past long before he set foot in North America. He was a participant in one of the most important military campaigns of the 19th century.Van Egmond and Napoleon
Colonel Anthony Van Egmond was born in Holland in 1771. One of his illustrious relatives was Count Egmont, who was beheaded in the city square of Brussels on June 5, 1568 at the commencement of the Dutch revolt against Spain.
Young Van Egmond joined the Dutch forces as an officer in the war between France and the European Coalition which began in 1793. In 1795, the French army, under the command of Napoleon and aided by the Dutch republican party, overran Holland with ease and converted it into a dependency of the French Republic, according to former Seaforth native, historian Wilfred Brenton Kerr, fellow of the Royal Historical Society and Assistant Professor of History at the University of Buffalo, who published a 13-part series on Colonel Van Egmond and the Rebellion of 1837 in the Huron Expositor of 1931.
Like most of his colleagues, Van Egmond was immediately conscripted for service with the French, wrote Professor James Scott. But mystery surrounds Van Egmond's next few years. There are sketchy accounts and strange claims about Van Egmond's life from both Scott and Kerr during the period from 1796 to 1812.
Professor Scott writes that Anthony Van Egmond was a member of court in 1802-03 for judging cases of robbery. The cases involved so-called 'German Robin Hoods', who where rebels against the French invaders. They had taken to the woods and led guerrilla raids on the rich in order to provide the peasants with enough food to survive, according to Scott.
Van Egmond wrote about the trials in later years and commented favourably on the accused.
"Had these three men been judged by a Court purely of equity in lieu of one of law and their good deeds been allowed to weigh in contra of their misdeeds, they would have been honourably acquitted. It was the laws and not the crimes that condemned them," wrote the Colonel.
Both Seaforth historians mention Van Egmond's marriage to Susanna Dietz and the birth of their son, Constant. But Scott suggests both events happened between 1802 and 1808. Kerr claims Susanna Van Egmond accompanied Colonel Van Egmond in the great invasion of Russia and the march to Moscow in 1812 and gave birth along the way.
Other claims by Kerr are also remarkable. After the French overran Holland in 1795, he writes: "Accordingly Van Egmond took service under Napoleon. It is said that he was an aide-de-camp of the Emperor (Napoleon) himself and that he campaigned in Italy and Spain."
Van Egmond did survive the invasion and retreat from Moscow in 1812, wrote Scott.
Kerr says the family of three returned safely to Holland in time to witness the great continental revolt against Napoleon in the year 1813, the expulsion of the Emperor to Elba and the restoration of the old monarchies, including that of Holland.
Van Egmond's fighting days weren't over yet. He joined up again with the Dutch army now that they had broken away and joined the allied force against Napoleon. Van Egmond ended up serving under the Duke of Wellington, whose forces he joined in time to take part in the historic Battle of Waterloo.
"Severely wounded in this greatest of 19th-century battles, he was carried off the field, having thereby earned a fitting climax to a military career of 22 years during which he had received 14 wounds and had attained the rank of Colonel. These facts are sufficient indication of his military qualities," writes Wilfred Brenton Kerr.
Having honourably capped off a long and distinguished military career, Van Egmond focused now on North America and further adventures.
(with references from Professors James Scott and Wilfred Brenton Kerr)
The article includes a photo of the Van Egmond House with the caption: The house that Constant Van Egmond (Colonel Anthony Van Egmond's oldest son) built as the centrepiece of today's Van Egmond Reserve in Egmondville. It's the site of the annual Ciderfest that features arts, crafts, food, entertainment, and a chance to tour through the museum.
Next week: Colonel Van Egmond on the Move - Van Egmond and the Canada Company