author
C. V. (Carel Victor) Gerritsen
1850–1905
A Dutch radical politician and outspoken reformer, he pushed for open government, fair wages, and birth control at a time when those ideas were far from mainstream. He is also remembered for helping build an extraordinary library of women’s history with his wife, Aletta Jacobs.
1 Audiobook
Brieven uit en over Amerika
by C. V. (Carel Victor) Gerritsen, Aletta H. (Aletta Henriette) Jacobs
About the author
Born in Amersfoort in 1850, Carel Victor Gerritsen became a prominent Dutch politician known for his independent, reform-minded views. He served in Amsterdam politics and later in the Dutch House of Representatives, where he argued for greater transparency in government and broader social reform.
Gerritsen was closely connected to the early feminist movement. Together with his wife, physician and activist Aletta Jacobs, he supported causes including women’s rights, birth control, and better conditions for working people. Their shared interest in reform also led them to collect books, pamphlets, and journals on women’s history and social questions.
That collection became one of his lasting legacies. Often known as the Gerritsen Collection, it grew into an important resource for the study of feminism and women’s history, long after his death in Amsterdam in 1905. For listeners coming to his work today, he stands out as a political writer whose ideas were tied to larger battles over equality, public debate, and social change.