Emants, Marcellus (1848-1923)

Emants, Marcellus

NOVELIST, POET, PLAYWRIGHT (THE NETHERLANDS)

BORN 12 Aug 1848, Voorburg, Zuid-Holland - DIED 14 Oct 1923, Baden, Aargau: Grand Hôtel
CAUSE OF DEATH stroke
GRAVE LOCATION Den Haag, Zuid-Holland: Algemene Begraafplaats, Kerkhoflaan 12 (A3/R5/7)

Marcellus Emants was one of the few Dutch naturalists. He came from a family of magistrates from The Hague and his father Guilliam Balthasar Emants (1818-1870) was a judge. He studied law at Leiden University according to the wishes of his father, but he preferred art. After his father's death in 1871 he was financially independent and he halted his studies. He travelled over the world. In 1872 he wrote the essay "Bergkristal van Oberammergau" about the passion plays that he had attended there.

In 1873 he married a distant cousin, Christina Prins. In 1875 he was widowed and in 1880 he married Eva Verniers van der Loeff, who wrote the novel "Beemsen Esquire" under the pseudonym Nessun. After her death in 1900 he married the German actress Jenny Kühn (1877-1956) in 1904. It was a bad marriage, but they had a daughter, Eva Clara (1909-1985).

Emants wrote in a sober style and he corresponded with one of his influences, Ivan Turgenev. In 1879 he published his epic poem "Lilith", followed by "Godenschemering" in 1883. He was involved in the simplication of Dutch spelling. During the First World War he felt trapped in the Netherlands and after the armistice he planned to go to Switzerland. In 1920 he left The Hague with his family and he lived in hotels and sanatoria in Switzerland. He died at the Grand Hôtel in Baden and was buried in The Hague. His daughter Eva was buried in the same grave after her death in 1985.

Images
The grave of Marcellus Emants at the Gemeentelijke Begraafplaats, Den Haag. Picture by Androom (03 Aug 2007)	The grave of Marcellus Emants at the Gemeentelijke Begraafplaats, Den Haag. Picture by Androom (03 Aug 2007)