03 January, 2006
(The children of Abraham Daniel Frederick Ellerman were listed here in the original and are recorded in Appendix 11.)
After the birth of the last of these children, political events occurred almost immediately which gave my father an opportunity of displaying upon a more prominent scene the admirable qualities he possessed and of exercising those noble sentiments of charity, philanthropy and devotion to the public weal which so eminently distinguished his character.
It is fortunate that amongst the private letters and official correspondence of my father I have discovered sufficient, though not enough, to throw light upon the part which he took in the events which broke out in the Autumn of 1831, upon his conduct which called forth feelings of gratitude on the part of his fellow citizens and admiration on the part of all who knew him.
History has recorded the sad tale of the Revolution which threw a country, up to then enjoying the greatest measure of success and prosperity, into an abyss of misery. Under the reign of King William of Holland all had been done to advance the trade and commerce of Belgium and from its famed position the port of Antwerp reaped a large share of this general prosperity.
In some respects, the administration of the Dutch opened the door to dissatisfaction amongst certain classes of society and had the King been better advised or sent his son, the Prince of Orange, either on a mission of conciliation and timely concession, all would have been well. After a fruitless attempt on the part of the Prince during which his good intentions were frustrated by orders received from The Hague, he took his departure from Antwerp for London 25th October 1830. His presence in town had up to then served to keep the smouldering agitation of the populace in check but after his retreat the dissatisfied party managed to open a communication with the rebels outside the town. On that day General Chassé withdrew the Dutch troops within the walls of the citadel leaving only the gates of the town house strongly guarded. A Burgher guard was formed to protect the Bank and other public property in case of an uproar and the whole city soon assumed an aspect of extraordinary agitation and excitement. On the 26th October an attack was made by about 50 men upon the guard stationed at the town house which was responded to by a vigorous fire on the part of the Dutch. The town house was taken and the next attempt was on the Palace, then occupied by the Duke of Saxe-Weimar, who escaped with difficulty. On the evening of the 26th October the rebels had become masters of two of the gates of the City (The …. and the Red Gate) so that on the following morning the patriots, in their blouses and armed in all manner of ways, made their entry into the City which then presented a most strange spectacle never to be forgotten by any person who witnessed such a scene. Barricades were thrown up in the street which were overrun by motley and noisy groups vociferating patriotic songs. All was confusion, the Dutch troops as they had to abandon their posts either fled along their ramparts towards the Citadel were taken prisoner if not shot down. The patriots, emboldened by success, imagined that they could insist upon the surrender of the Citadel then defended by 6000 men and supported by a fleet of armed Dutch vessels in the Scheldt. ¶ 5:24 pm
After the birth of the last of these children, political events occurred almost immediately which gave my father an opportunity of displaying upon a more prominent scene the admirable qualities he possessed and of exercising those noble sentiments of charity, philanthropy and devotion to the public weal which so eminently distinguished his character.
It is fortunate that amongst the private letters and official correspondence of my father I have discovered sufficient, though not enough, to throw light upon the part which he took in the events which broke out in the Autumn of 1831, upon his conduct which called forth feelings of gratitude on the part of his fellow citizens and admiration on the part of all who knew him.
History has recorded the sad tale of the Revolution which threw a country, up to then enjoying the greatest measure of success and prosperity, into an abyss of misery. Under the reign of King William of Holland all had been done to advance the trade and commerce of Belgium and from its famed position the port of Antwerp reaped a large share of this general prosperity.
In some respects, the administration of the Dutch opened the door to dissatisfaction amongst certain classes of society and had the King been better advised or sent his son, the Prince of Orange, either on a mission of conciliation and timely concession, all would have been well. After a fruitless attempt on the part of the Prince during which his good intentions were frustrated by orders received from The Hague, he took his departure from Antwerp for London 25th October 1830. His presence in town had up to then served to keep the smouldering agitation of the populace in check but after his retreat the dissatisfied party managed to open a communication with the rebels outside the town. On that day General Chassé withdrew the Dutch troops within the walls of the citadel leaving only the gates of the town house strongly guarded. A Burgher guard was formed to protect the Bank and other public property in case of an uproar and the whole city soon assumed an aspect of extraordinary agitation and excitement. On the 26th October an attack was made by about 50 men upon the guard stationed at the town house which was responded to by a vigorous fire on the part of the Dutch. The town house was taken and the next attempt was on the Palace, then occupied by the Duke of Saxe-Weimar, who escaped with difficulty. On the evening of the 26th October the rebels had become masters of two of the gates of the City (The …. and the Red Gate) so that on the following morning the patriots, in their blouses and armed in all manner of ways, made their entry into the City which then presented a most strange spectacle never to be forgotten by any person who witnessed such a scene. Barricades were thrown up in the street which were overrun by motley and noisy groups vociferating patriotic songs. All was confusion, the Dutch troops as they had to abandon their posts either fled along their ramparts towards the Citadel were taken prisoner if not shot down. The patriots, emboldened by success, imagined that they could insist upon the surrender of the Citadel then defended by 6000 men and supported by a fleet of armed Dutch vessels in the Scheldt. ¶ 5:24 pm
