Hendrik Terwoort (ca. 1549-1575)
Hendrik Terwoort, an Anabaptist martyr, about 26 years of age, was burned at the stake at London, 22 July 1575, together with Jan Pietersz. Hendrik, who was a goldsmith, was a refugee from Flanders, likely from Ghent; he was charged with the crime of having held Anabaptist meetings in a private house in Aldersgate at London. He remained in Newgate prison for a long time with a number of other Mennonites, of whom one died in prison and all others finally were set free except Hendrik and Jan. These two martyrs wrote two letters to their friends, the last on 21 July, the day before their death. These letters are found in van Braght's Martyrs' Mirror, who gives detailed information about this martyrdom, including a letter written by Jacques de Somere, a Calvinist, to his mother in Ghent, Belgium. A petition written by Hendrik Terwoort and Jan Pietersz and others and sent to Queen Elizabeth of England, in which they stated that they cannot believe otherwise than that "they feel in their conscience," was fruitless.
The Confessio of Thomas van Imbroek (Imbroich), martyred in 1558 at Cologne, printed at Ghent in 1579 (German edition about the same time or earlier), contains a song on these two martyrs, beginning "Aenhoort met neerstichden [i.e., neerstigheden], menschen verstaet wel mijn" (Hear attentively, ye people, understand me well).
Bibliography
Braght, Thieleman J. van. Het Bloedigh Tooneel of Martelaers Spiegel der Doops-gesinde of Weereloose Christenen, Die om 't getuygenis van Jesus haren Salighmaker geleden hebben ende gedood zijn van Christi tijd of tot desen tijd toe. Den Tweeden Druk. Amsterdam: Hieronymus Sweerts, 1685: II: 694-712.
Braght, Thieleman J. van. The Bloody Theatre or Martyrs' Mirror of the Defenseless Christians Who Baptized Only upon Confession of Faith and Who Suffered and Died for the Testimony of Jesus Their Saviour . . . to the Year A.D. 1660. Scottdale, PA: Herald Press, 1951: 1008-1024. Available online at: http://www.homecomers.org/mirror/index.htm.
| Author(s) | Nanne van der Zijpp |
|---|---|
| Date Published | 1956 |
Cite This Article
MLA style
van der Zijpp, Nanne. "Hendrik Terwoort (ca. 1549-1575)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. 1956. Web. 16 Apr 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Hendrik_Terwoort_(ca._1549-1575)&oldid=95189.
APA style
van der Zijpp, Nanne. (1956). Hendrik Terwoort (ca. 1549-1575). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 16 April 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Hendrik_Terwoort_(ca._1549-1575)&oldid=95189.
Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 2, pp. 701-702. All rights reserved.
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