Pieter Cort van der Linden


Pieter Wilhelm Adrianus Cort van der Linden was a Dutch politician who served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands from August 1913 to September 1918.

Biography

He was the last prime minister to lead a liberal cabinet and the last liberal to be Prime Minister until Mark Rutte in 2010. One of Cort van der Linden's major achievements was maintaining Dutch neutrality during World War I although personally, he was pro-German.
He also introduced universal suffrage in the Netherlands in what is now known as the Pacification of 1917. That made the Social Democratic Workers' Party and the General League of Roman Catholic Caucuses win the 1918 elections. The Catholic Charles Ruijs de Beerenbrouck took Cort van der Linden's place as Prime Minister.
Van der Linden is remembered for passing the 1874 act of parliament prohibiting child labour in heavy industry.

Decorations

Ribbon barHonourCountryDateComment
Minister of StateNetherlands28 January 1915Style of Excellency