Lodewijk Thomson

Prince Wilhelm of Wied, Isa Boletini and officers of the International Gendarmerie: Duncan Heaton-Armstrong and Colonel Thomson near Durres in June 1914

Lodewijk Willem Johan Karel Thomson (Voorschoten, 11 juni 1869 – Durrës (Albania) 15 juni 1914) was an Dutch militairy commander and politician.

Thomson is best known as the first Dutch soldier on a peacekeeping was killed. Lodewijk Thomson was a child of Bernard and Mary Heidenreich Thomson Wilhelmina Carpenter Meerdervoort and comes from a family of English origin.

Life

• In 1888 Thomson graduated affect the Royal Military Academy. In 1891, he began training as a cartographer.
• In 1893 Thomson left with the rank of first lieutenant of infantry to Batavia. In the East Thomson has been involved in the fighting in Aceh.
• On November 29 1895 he married Arnhem with Lamberhurst Tine Henriette Slotemaker (In the family were born two daughters, a young daughter is deceased).
• In 1896 he returned to the Netherlands.
• In 1900 Thomson spent some time in South Africa as a military attaché of the Dutch government during the Boer War.

Probably because of its efficient approach for the monitoring of the track during the railroad strikes of 1903 the same year he was promoted to captain.

Political career

Because of fighting him to the ground was so hot for, that he is the Liberal Union election suggested that the Lower House elections of 1905 for the District of Leeuwarden. In this election, he defeated the Socialist Wibaut (post ballot). Four years later he defeated Pieter Troelstra Jelles (again after the ballot). In 1913 the latter was then at the expense of Thomson in the House. Louis Thomson was defense specialist in the House and was in favor of democratization in the army.

Albania

Following the election of 1912 in the Ottoman Empire by the Young Turks were fraudulently won 215 of the 222 seats in parliament, broke into [[Albania] ] a revolution. This led to calls for greater autonomy. Because in 1912 the First Balkan War broke, which caused the Ottoman possessions in Europe (except Thrace) were lost, were the Albanians do nothing else than the declare independence. The European great powers essentially, then Wilhelm zu Wied, a cousin of Queen Wilhelmina, as ruler of Albania.

On August 1 asked by the International Control Commission established powers to Netherlands to a gendarmerie corps to set up and officers there to deliver, so as to restore order in Albania. Albania was a powder keg right where domestic groups to feed on men stood and foreign powers such as Italy and Turkey were ready to pick in the country. At the request of Secretary of War Colijn Thomson was, by now promoted to major, with Colonel Willem de Veer, to Albania.

Thomson and several Fier were clashing personalities. Yet they stayed together, until May 21, 1914 on a piece appeared inThe New Courantwhich De Veer was accused of a high order of a conference envoy to have ignored by, unbeknownst to Thomson, the Minister of Interior Essad Pasha allowed to have their own police force to set up. The spring had this not exactly popular, but not much later,Thomson Director de la force arméewhich he Fier was outdated. This demanded that Thomson would declare on their honor that he masterminded the allegationswasThe New Courant. Thomson did not honor that. The spring was so upset that he even demanded the resignation of commander Thomson in a fire on June 6 letter to the Minister of War. However, there was not. The spring went on leave. Furthermore, the shot came from the direction of the rebels, but the city itself, which gave substance to speculation about possible Italian involvement.

Thomson was initially buried in Albania, but after a few weeks, on July 15, Thomson was reburied under intense public interest in the Southern Cemetery in Groningen. His widow did not address her husband's request to be buried in The Hague. During the funeral a raging storm, the lightning struck next to the cemetery.

Comments on Thomson's death

Because the foreign powers could offer no guarantees for the safety of the Dutch officers, decided Foreign Minister John Loudon to all officers from Albania to recover.

On September 1914 Wilhelm zu Wied also left the Balkan country. Through the turbulent times the area over which he ruled in fact, limited to the cities Vlora and Durres.

Memory

Bust of the Thomson Hereweg Groningen

The Trees and Bloemenbuurt of The Hague in 1914 were the Square and the Thomson Thomson Avenue named after him. On September 14, 1918 revealed his daughter Marie Thomson at Thomson Place a memorial to her father, designed by the sculptor Charles van Wijk and after his death completed by Eagle Ode. The monument was funded from a collection by a national committee, supported by local subcommittees.

In Groningen, the Thomson Street to Thomson said. This was around the end of 2000 created and built at the site of the former Rabenhaupt Barracks. Close the street on the Hereweg, is a bust of Thomson, which from 1919 to 2002 at the Southern Cemetery was.

At a central place in the city of Durrës in Albania is also a bust of Thomson. This bust comes with both Albanian and Dutch caption that reads: Tribute to the Dutch hero of Durazzo (Italian Durazzo is the name of Durrës). The downstream café with terrace is also named after Thomson.

References

• Biografisch Woordenboek van Nederland - biografie
• Parlement & Politiek - L.W.J.K. Thomson
• Website Thomson Foundation