J. Hendrik van Balen

Born in Kralingen on September 8, 1851, Johan Hendrik van Balen was a Dutch writer who also worked for Rijkswaterstaat, the Dutch public works service. Sources about him describe a long career in popular writing, especially for younger audiences, and note that he also published under pseudonyms including R. Ede and Kapitein Hendrik Verveen.

Van Balen wrote and published adventure stories, historical tales, and travel-themed books in Dutch. Library and bibliographic records connect him with works such as Onder de Mooren: Avontuurlijke reizen door alle werelddeelen, and booksellers and literary reference pages describe him as a notably productive author of children's books about Dutch history and far-off places.

He died in Den Helder in 1921. Although he is not widely known today, his work still survives through library catalogs, digital archives, and Project Gutenberg, where modern readers can still encounter the energetic, educational style that shaped his books.