Lenaert Jansz de Graeff

Lenaert Jansz de Graeff, also Lena(e)rt Jansz Graeff, Leendert de Graeff and Leonhard de Graeff belonged to the powerful Amsterdam patriciate. He was one of the leaders of the Protestant Reformation in Amsterdam, a friend of Henry, Count of Bréderode, the "Grote Geus", and his deputy as vice-general-captain of Amsterdam, and according to a family tradition identified with "Monseigneur de Graeff", a privateer and captain of the Sea Beggars during the Capture of Brielle. In recent research, Lenaert Jansz de Graeff is described as one of the leaders of the Sea Beggars alongside Admiral William II de la Marck, Lord Lumey and Willem Bloys van Treslong. His character was also used in a historical novel about De Grote Geus.