- Council of eight men
The Council of eight men was an early representational democracy in
New Amsterdam . It replaced the previouscouncil of twelve men .Council
In 1643
Abraham Pietersen Van Deusen who had not served on thecouncil of twelve men was appointed to a new council of eight men. The council contacted the States-General and blamed governorWillem Kieft for the declining economic condition of the nascent colony, and the war with the Native Americans. They requested that a newDirector-General of New Netherland be appointed and that the people themselves be given more influence in the new government. Director General Kieft was dismissed, andPeter Stuyvesant took his place and Stuyvesant remained in power until the colony was turned over to the British in 1664. Kieft returned to Holland, but the vessel was lost at sea and his body was never recovered. John Franklin Jameson (1859-1937) writes:The commonalty were called together; they were sore distressed. They chose eight, in the stead of the previous twelve, persons to aid in consulting for the best; but the occupation every one had to take care of his own, prevented anything beneficial being adopted at that time. nevertheless it was resolved that as many Englishmen as were to be got in the country should be enlisted, who were indeed now proposing to depart; the third part of these were to be paid by the commonalty; this promise was made by the commonalty but was not followed by the pay.
Council Members
The council members were: [New York State; O'Callaghan, EB; Broadhead, John Romeyn: "Documents relative to the colonial history of the state of New York", p. 191, 1856]
*
Isaac Allerton
* Jan Jansen Dam [soon replaced by Jan Everts Bout]
* Barent Dircksen
* Thomas Hal [Hall]
* Jochem Pietersen Kuyter
* Cornelius Melyn [chairman]
*Abraham Pietersen Van Deursen
* Gerrit Wolphertsen [Van Kouwenhoven]References
*Benson John Lossing; The Empire State: A Compendious History of the Commonwealth of New York
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