Gerard Jacob Theodoor Beelaerts van Blokland

Gerard Jacob Theodoor Beelaerts van Blokland (12 January 1843 – 14 March 1897) was a Dutch politician known for serving as European envoy for the South African Republic from 1884 to 1897, and as Speaker of the House of Representatives from 1888 to 1891. Biography Early life Gerard Jacob Theodoor was born in Rotterdam, into the Beelaerts van Blokland family – an old Dutch patrician family and members of the Dutch nobility since 1815. His grandfather served as attorney-general and secretary of justice of the Dutch Cape Colony and British Cape Colony, respectively. His father was born in the Cape. Career After completing his studies, Beelaerts started his career working as lawyer at the Supreme Court of the Netherlands and as clerk in the Netherlands Department of Justice eventually rising to the rank of legal secretary. As a lawyer, he was a member of various state committees.