It sounds like a dark urban legend or a bad horror movie script. You've probably seen the memes or the "did you know" facts floating around Reddit. But history is weirder than fiction. In 1672, a year the Dutch still call Het Rampjaar (The Disaster Year), a mob actually murdered and partially consumed their own leader. This wasn't just some minor political scuffle. It was a gruesome, public, and politically charged execution that changed the trajectory of the Netherlands forever.
The Netherlands prime minister eaten by a crowd wasn't technically a "prime minister" in the modern sense—he was the Grand Pensionary, Johan de Witt. Along with his brother Cornelis, he met an end so violent it still makes historians flinch.
The Year of Disaster: Why People Snapped
To understand how a civilized society turns into a pack of cannibals, you have to look at the pressure cooker of 1672. Imagine the country is underwater—literally. To stop invading French armies, the Dutch intentionally flooded their own land. Panic was everywhere. The French were attacking from the south, the English from the sea, and two German bishops were hitting them from the east.
People were terrified.
Johan de Witt had been the face of the Dutch Republic for nearly twenty years. He was brilliant, a mathematician who hung out with Spinoza, and a staunch republican. But he made a fatal mistake. He tried to keep the military small to prevent the House of Orange from gaining power. When the country was suddenly on the verge of total collapse, the public needed a scapegoat. They found two: Johan and his brother.
The Setup and the Trap
The tension didn't just explode out of nowhere. It was stoked by "Orangists" who wanted the young William III of Orange to take over as Stadtholder.
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Cornelis de Witt was arrested on trumped-up charges of plotting to assassinate William. He was tortured on the rack. He didn't confess. He just quoted Latin poetry while they stretched his limbs. Seriously. Eventually, the court banished him, but that wasn't enough for the mob outside.
On August 20, 1672, Johan went to the Gevangenpoort prison in The Hague to visit his brother and help him leave for exile. That was the trap. A group of local militia and angry citizens surrounded the building. The guards? They were "ordered" to leave. It was a setup.
The Horror at the Gevangenpoort
The brothers were dragged out.
It wasn't quick. They were shot, stabbed, and beaten. Once they were dead, the mob went into a literal frenzy. This is where the story gets stomach-turning. They dragged the bodies to the nearby public gallows and hung them upside down by their feet.
Then they started carving.
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Eyewitnesses, including some fairly reputable historians of the time, recorded that pieces of the brothers were sold as souvenirs. Fingers, toes, ears—people were taking trophies. Some accounts even say people fried and ate pieces of the brothers' livers. It sounds insane. You'd think people would have some limit, but the collective madness of a mob is a terrifying thing. There’s a preserved tongue and a finger currently sitting in the Haags Historisch Museum. Go see them if you have a strong stomach.
Why Does This Story Still Matter?
Honestly, the Netherlands prime minister eaten story is more than just a "gross history" factoid. It represents the brutal intersection of populist rage and political maneuvering.
William III, who later became King of England in the Glorious Revolution, never punished the ringleaders of the mob. In fact, he gave some of them pensions and high-ranking jobs. While there's no proof he ordered the hit, he definitely didn't mind the results.
It’s a reminder that even the most "enlightened" societies are only a few meals or a major invasion away from total chaos. Johan de Witt was a man of logic and law, but logic is useless when people are hungry, scared, and looking for someone to blame for their problems.
Common Misconceptions
People often get a few things wrong about this event:
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- Was the whole body eaten? No. It wasn't a banquet. It was a symbolic act of desecration. They were "eaten" in the sense that parts were consumed in a ritualistic, hateful frenzy.
- Was he a King? No. De Witt was a republican leader. His death actually paved the way for the monarchy-like Stadtholder system to return.
- Is it just a myth? Definitely not. The documentation from 1672 is extensive, including drawings and paintings made shortly after the event.
Navigating Historical Trauma
If you're visiting The Hague today, you can actually walk the path where this happened. The Gevangenpoort is a museum now. Standing there, looking at the spot where the brothers were lynched, gives you a very different perspective on Dutch "tolerance."
History isn't just about dates. It's about what happens when the social contract breaks. The de Witt brothers were the victims of a society that had lost its mind under the weight of war and propaganda.
How to Learn More Without the Gore
If you want to dig deeper into the actual politics (the less cannibalistic part), look into the works of historians like Jonathan Israel. His book The Dutch Republic is the gold standard for this era. It explains the complex legalities of why de Witt’s power was so fragile.
You should also check out the Rijksmuseum’s digital archives. They have contemporary prints that show the scene in graphic detail. It’s fascinating and horrifying at the same time.
Moving Forward: Lessons from 1672
We like to think we're past this kind of behavior. But the de Witt story is a case study in how quickly "the people" can turn on a leader when they feel betrayed.
- Watch the rhetoric: The de Witts were dehumanized by pamphlets and rumors long before they were physically attacked.
- Understand the context: "Cannibalism" in history is often about power and the total rejection of the victim's humanity.
- Visit the sites: If you're a history buff, seeing the actual artifacts at the Haags Historisch Museum makes the event feel terrifyingly real.
To truly understand the Netherlands, you have to understand the Year of Disaster. It shaped their views on monarchy, republic, and the dangers of the mob. It’s a dark stain, but one that is essential to the Dutch identity.
When researching historical events of this nature, prioritize primary sources like the diaries of Constantijn Huygens or official state papers from the States General. These provide the most accurate timeline of the transition from the "True Freedom" era of de Witt to the reign of William III. For those interested in the artistic representation of the event, Jan de Baen’s painting of the corpses is the most famous—and accurate—visual record of the aftermath.