biography
pronunciation:
[hohft]
| biography:
| Poet, playwright, and historian, born in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. A true Renaissance man, he was a bailiff at Muiden, and lived at Muiden Castle (Muiderslot) where he was host to literary gatherings (the Muiderkring). He wrote lyrical verse early in his career, then plays, notably Granida (1605) a bucolic play, Baeto (1626) a tragedy, Geeraerdt van Velsen (1613) a historical play in which he expresses his own political views, and the popular comedy Warenar (1617). He finally turned to the writing of history with his unfinished Nederlandsche Historiën 1555–85 (1628–47). Inspired by the pure style of Tacitus' Latin prose, he was important for his efforts to purify the Dutch language. |
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