Photo PAUL KRÜGER PUBLIC DOMAIN{{PD-US}}
Paul Krüger was born on October 10 1825 in Steynsburg Cape Province in South Africa.
This area has been in British hands since 1806 and they introduce all kinds of changes that do not do the German and Dutch farmers who live there any good.
In 1834 things go wrong and many farmers leave the Cape for the Transvaal, this exodus becomes known as the great migration and Paul Krüger and his family are also part of it.
There they founded three cities but there was a lot of disagreement among themselves.
Krüger becomes leader of local militias and in the course of time rises to vice president of the Transvaal and leader of the resistance against the British.
In 1880 the first Boer war against the British takes place and partly thanks to Krüger Transvaal becomes sovereign. In 1882 he becomes President of the Republic of South Africa (Transvaal). In 1899 a second Boer war against the British follows.
But the British send troops from Europe and the farmers have no chance. Paul Krüger flees, Queen Wilhelmina is very concerned about the fate of the Dutch farmers and Krüger and sends a ship the “Gelderlander” to rescue him.
Krüger arrives in Marseille in November 1900 and begins a tour of Europe to find support for the farmers. In December he is in the Netherlands and Queen Wilhelmina invites him to a dinner at the Palace, given the delicate political situation this is not a real state dinner.
The story goes that there were finger bowls on the table and that Krüger had used them as a drinking cup which is against etiquette, when Wilhelmina saw this she also started drinking from her finger bowl in order not to embarrass her guest. This story crops up again and again.
According to culinary historian and author Lizet Kruyff who has done research into this, this story is not true. She found a letter from a lady-in-waiting who was present at this dinner, written to her mother which refutes this story.( read the whole story on the blog of Lizet Kryuff “vingerkommetjes en een broodje aap: het laatste woord” op lizetkruyff.nl )
Wilhelmina sent a letter of recommendation to the German emperor but he refused to receive Krüger. Krüger then stayed in Hilversum where he rented rooms where he got pneumonia. With a few interruptions he stayed in Hilversum and in 1904 he went to Switzerland for a cure where he died on July 14.
Many souvenirs of Paul Krüger and the Boer War were made, especially in the Netherlands and Germany, including glasses and jars with his portrait, a tobacco jar, statues, etc.
Nowadays popular collector’s items, especially in South Africa.
Info from: Wikipedia
lizetkruyff.nl
Historiek.net
FROM THE COLLECTION OF DENRONCOLLECTIONS
Bust made in Germany
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