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The
arms were assumed in
1608 by Admiral Steven
van der Hagen
(Amersfoort 1563 –
Utrecht 1624), who
established the Dutch
colonial rule of The
East Indies on the
island of Ambon. He
played a pioneer role in
the rise of the Dutch
republic and in the
development of the world
trade in the beginning
of the seventeenth
century.
His forebears were well
known wool and grain
merchants in Bruges and
Ypre. His mother was
Maria van Surckesteyn,
whose father was a
member of the city
council of Amersfoort.
Steven married Stefania
van der Maeth (1567 –
1633) whose forebears
were members of the city
governments of Haarlem
and Utrecht. He was
appointed Governor of
Ambon and a member of
Council of the Indies in
1617. His son, Cornelis
(1590 – 1622) was a
member of the city
government of Utrecht
and his grandson, Steven
(1622 – 1677) was a
member of the Vroedschap
of Amsterdam (a small
circle of leading
families) being in the
city government. Their
descendants living in
Germany, Belgium,
Holland and Australia
have been active in
commerce, banking and
industry.
The armiger Jan Joop
(John) van der Hagen, a
former banker, born in
Hilversum in 1938,
descends in a direct
line from the Admiral.
The
upper part of the shield
shows a crescent, a star
and the sun which were
the names of ships of
the first expedition to
the far east undertaken
by the admiral in 1599.
The other part shows the
arms of the van der
Maeth family.
The
crest illustrates the
ship with full sails
indicating the rank of
Admiral.
The
van der Hagen arms have
been published in the
book entitled:
“Repertorium Familie
Wapens van Bekende
Nederlandse Geslachten”
(G.E.C. ten Houte de
Lange, The Hague 2001)
(Translation: Family
Arms of Well Known
Lineages in The
Netherlands). The arms
also appear in the
social register of
Belgium called "Carnet
Mondain ".
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