Baron Caspar Breugel-Douglas, born 1752

Baron Caspar Breugel Douglas

Breugal Douglas

Portrait of Jhr. R. Baron van Breugel Douglas (Caspar's father), Corporal of Volunteer Jagers Company, BJ16, coloured lithograph from 1866. This company consisted of students from the University of Franeker. Note the yellow piping on the trousers.

In the background is a fourier with the company's flag shown, the flag is preserved in the Fries Museum in Leeuwarden (Note: the text on the reverse PRO - VINCIE - VRIES - LAND).

Mr. Caspar van Breugel and Mary Douglas, the ancestors of Robert Baron van Breugel Douglas.
from the Oil Painting "The Rey's Court" by J. Fri Must, 1787. (n the district Reeshof in Tilburg.)
In the middle is Jan van Breugel the Rovere Rustenhoven who next to his mother Eva Maria Burman.
On the horse (See enlarged image) is retired army captain Charles Rey de Carle, second husband of Eva Maria Burman.
Coll. Dr.. Francisco Tudela van Breugel Douglas, Lima, Peru .

Baron Caspar Breugel Douglas, diplomat (Born Vevey (Switzerland) 01.05.1896 - Died Cannes (France) 10/08/1982) was the son of Robert Baron van Breugel Douglas (1864-1924) and Vera Vassilievna Khlebnikoff. He was a 3x great-grandson of General Robert Douglas.

Caspar married 08/07/1928 Aga Ioana Maria Berendei. From this marriage a daughter was born.

Baron van Breugel Douglas became the first Netherlands Ambassador accredited to the Soviet Union.

Casper van Breugel Douglas, son of a Brabant family rains in 1815 was elevated to the peerage, in The Hague attended the five-year high school and was, after obtaining the diploma, an appointment at the Department of Foreign Affairs. He explained in the July 1921 exam for embassy attaché, and was living then, as one of the secretaries of the Dutch delegation, the fleet conference in Washington (1921/1922) at. Then he worked in the embassies in Brussels (1922/1923) and Constantinople (1923). In November 1923, Van Breugel Douglas promoted to the embassy secretary, in which rank he subsequently worked for the Dutch representatives in Rio de Janeiro (1923-1926), Bucharest (1927/1928) - where he married the daughter of a Romanian hofdignitaris - , Berlin (1928/1929), Copenhagen (1929/1930), Ankara (1930-1932) and Washington (1933-1937). On the last post he worked since February 1934 with the rank of embassy council. In May 1937 he was appointed envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary in Athens.

Van Breugel Douglas's career was well established in the usual way: his promotions came after the required number of years, albeit with some delay, position. He showed a typical representative of the aristocratic mentality in the prewar years in the Dutch diplomatic service prevailed. Himself he made the comment once that tact, sense of duty and intellectual preparedness requirements were for the good functioning of the corps. His eyes were those with an aristocratic background, therefore, best suited for this. Just such ideas in his career would lead to clashes with diplomatic personnel of a lower origin. Coincidentally, Van Breugel Douglas has emerged as a fairly headstrong person. The ambassador stayed and made love in high society, not without pride, reported he has received a number of officers and knights cross.

After the German occupation of Greece in April 1941 was Van Breugel Douglas left the post in Athens. In late December he was sent to China, because at that time the only immediately available to the diplomatic post. A major drawback was that his knowledge of the problems of the Dutch-Chinese relations was minimal. Therefore he followed, in transit to its new destination, a crash course in Batavia mainly his knowledge of the problems arising from the presence of a large number of Chinese in the Dutch East Indies was complete. Given the political divisions which China in those years had fallen prey, Douglas, Van Breugel carefully instructed them to prepare a few visits to the occupied by the Japanese cities of Shanghai and Beijing. He also had unofficial contacts with the Japanese puppet regime created under the leadership of Wang Ching-wei at Nanking. But primarily served the envoy to focus on the relationship with the Nationalist government under Chiang Kai-shek in Tsjoen King.

Before Van Breugel Douglas himself very well in Chongqing had established, was an important part of his service has already overtaken by events. With the capitulation of the Dutch East Indies, in March 1942, disappeared in the interest of the Nationalists could have relations with the Netherlands. For Chiang Kai-shek and his followers had no point, through Van Breugel Douglas, the Dutch government to knock on military cooperation, deliveries of goods and credit. For the envoy was little differently than most of his time to fill with - not uninteresting - observations. Even further, the embassy in China for post-Van Breugel Douglas anything but a pleasure. Living conditions in Chongqing were different than he was used, really bad. The regime of Chiang Kai-shek was in the eyes of the ambassador a little uplifting impression: the Kuo-min-tang was a government of corruption permeated regime.

As chef de poste said Douglas Van Breugel the reports together, taking until the end of 1942 assisted by embassy secretary and interpreter H. Bos. The latter is undoubtedly strong mark on the content of the news, since he alone of the Dutch embassy and the Chinese language mastered after years of residence there was a good insight into the politics of this country. A conflict between Van Breugel Douglas and he was therefore inevitable. Also affiliated with the Dutch embassy military representative, L.Ph. Taming of, came into serious collision.

On November 12, 1942 it was decided Van Breugel Douglas as extraordinary and plenipotentiary ambassador to the Soviet Union to send. On July 10, 1942, the Dutch government in London signed an agreement with the USSR concerning recognition and the establishment of diplomatic relations. It was not easy for the post in Moscow a suitable candidate. In November, however, the thoughts went out to Van Breugel Douglas. They did not deem it wise to keep him longer in Chongqing. The ambassador in Moscow, he had at least the advantage that his mother came from Russia. Moreover hoped Minister of Foreign Affairs and Van Breugel Douglas Kleffens that the situation in the Soviet Union with a "bias would consider more than a righteous Dutch ... seems inevitable. Whether the Cabinet should however just did Van Breugel Douglas in Moscow to name the question. Immediately proved himself little happy feeling with his new position. Especially the personal and temporary nature of the title conferred on him ambassador put Van Breugel Douglas strongly. He feared this an incredible impression on the Russians.

Due to various logistical problems, Van Breugel Douglas until September 1943 in the Soviet Union. Once installed in Moscow, the ambassador put his displeasure not to hide. He considered his staff is too small and complained that the Dutch Embassy was housed in several rooms in the Russian capital. The housing problem was only resolved in 1945. The ambassador ruled not positive about the Soviet Union and its inhabitants. In his reports he mentioned "this primitive people," "apostles of Communism" and especially of their "simplistic feelings.

Since obtaining information and establishing personal contacts with the Soviet authorities bureaucratic set almost impossible, Western embassies were heavily dependent on each other to obtain and gather information about the USSR. Van Breugel Douglas also visited Moscow regularly foreign colleagues. His personal contacts with British and American diplomats were well, making it through them, sometimes with great tenacity, Dutch interests in the Russian government could emerge. This was particularly true for repatriation issue. During the war, many Dutch people, through the Arbeitseinsatz, involuntarily transported to Eastern Europe. Van Breugel Douglas was ordered to take an arrangement with Moscow in order to expedite their return to the Netherlands. Since the Soviet government, however, all Russian, Polish or German territory found Dutch regarded as accomplices of Germany, his efforts had little success. After the war he was therefore insufficient to blame for the returnees having intently, an accusation that also in 1952 by the Committee of Inquiry into government policy 1940-1945 was considered unfounded.

In June 1946, Ambassador Van Breugel Douglas recalled and with effect from 1 October officially laid off due to alleged "improper financial transactions, comprising the 'introduction of illegally obtained rubles" and "trading with by him under diplomatic immunity imported goods "(Annex Senate 1950-1951). The charges against him originated in a report published in June 1946 the Court of Audit. A hastily set by the minister official inquiry in 1947 was the Court's findings in writing. On April 16, 1948 it was decided Van Breugel Douglas honorable, but not at his own request to dismiss.

Van Breugel Douglas wished not to acquiesce in this graceful little abrupt and end of his career. He tried to undo the dismissal by the First Parliamentary Committee for the applications in turn. In April 1951, this committee concluded that there are insufficient grounds for dismissal had been. The debt was too one-sided at the ambassador laid. In all, the whole affair a few years drag on and never quite satisfactory for the ex-ambassador to be resolved. After his resignation as ambassador Van Breugel Douglas lived mostly abroad, most recently in Cannes, where he died at the age of 86

A: Details of the affair, Van Breugel Douglas in the collection of the collection Bylandt 1940-1945 and 1942-1946 Douglas Van Breugel, both held by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in The Hague.

L: Appendices to the report of the proceedings of the Senate of the States General 1950-1951, No. 80, ibid 1951-1952, No. 18, Report containing the results of the study [of] Committee of Inquiry into Government Policy 1940-1945 VIa / b (The Hague, 1952) 493-512; AE Kersten, Foreign Affairs in exile 1940-1945. Institutional aspects of foreign policy gained momentum (Alphen aan den Rijn, 1981); F. Dankers, Netherlands and China, 1940-1950. The highlights of the Dutch policy towards China in continuity and change [Unpublished doctoral thesis Div. History University of Nijmegen] (Nijmegen, 1982), MAP van den Berg, "The repatriantenkwestie 1945. The return of Dutch from the Soviet Union ', in The Low Countries and the Soviet Union. Imaging and relationships. Under edited by ML Roholl [et al] (Amsterdam, 1989) 11-27 GT White, A distant enemy is approaching. The diplomatic relations between the Netherlands and the Soviet Union, 1942-1953 (Kampen, 1990).

Original version included in: Biographical Dictionary of The Netherlands 4 (The Hague 1994) Could you help improve it?

Arms of van Breugel Douglas. — Per pale, Dexter, van Breugel as in plate. Sinister, Douglas of Friarshaw.
CRESTS : Dexter, On a coronet a sitting hound proper, gorged with a coronet or, between two wings, one argent and the other
gules ; Sinister, Douglas, as before.
MOTTOES : Above the Douglas Crest, "Do or die," and beneath the shield, " In trinitate fortitudo " ( Wapenboek van den Nederlandschen Adel" by J. B. Rietstap).

Baron Caspar Breugel Douglas

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