Julius van Zuylen van Nijevelt

Julius Philip Jacob Adriaan, Count van Zuylen van Nijevelt (19 August 1819 – 1 July 1894) was a conservative Dutch politician who served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1860 until 1861, and again from 1866 until 1868. During his second ministership, he also served as Chairman of the Council of Ministers.

Early life Julius Philip Jacob Adriaan van Zuylen van Nijevelt was born in Dommeldange in Luxembourg on 19 August 1819 to Pieter Hendrik, Count van Zuylen van Nijevelt and Suzanna Martha, Baroness van Zuylen van Nijevelt. He started studying at Utrecht University on 24 January 1838, and obtained the Master of Laws degree on 28 June 1841.

Career Van Zuylen van Nijevelt started his diplomatic career as attaché at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in The Hague in February 1842, at the age of 23. He occupied diplomatic posts in Hanover, Berlin and Vienna before returning to The Hague in 1848. In spring of that year, he was sent to Paris in the aftermath of the French Revolution of 1848. After his return, he became chargé d'affaires in Brussels, and subsequently secretary to the diplomatic mission. During his time in Brussels, Van Zuylen van Nijevelt was influenced by the Réveil movement, and felt uneasy having to serve a Catholic envoy and a Catholic Minister of Foreign Affairs. He felt more at home at his following post in London, where he observed the anti-Catholic reaction to the Universalis Ecclesiae in 1850. He was delighted to hear of the similar reaction to the reestablishment of the episcopal hierarchy in the Netherlands in 1853.

Van Zuylen van Nijevelt was sent to Constantinople in 1855 to succeed the resident minister, who had been recalled to the Netherlands following corruption charges. During the six years he spent there, he acted as protector and promotor of Christianity, which earned him international recognition. He offered The Union Church of Istanbul to use the Dutch Chapel. He also wrote reports on Dutch colonisation, including on Rhodes, and sought out locations for Dutch trading posts in anticipation of the opening of the Suez Canal.

Following the 1860 Dutch general election, Floris Adriaan van Hall was tasked with forming a government. While he had sought the ministerial post of Foreign Affairs for himself, he was forced to take the Finance portfolio. Instead, Van Zuylen van Nijevelt was recalled to be appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs on 4 April 1860. His policy was aimed at maintaining neutrality, avoiding entanglement and guarding against foreign interference. The Netherlands' role in international affairs lay beyond Europe, in its colonies. He resigned on 14 January 1861 in protest of Van Hall's political opportunism. a seat vacated by his cousin Jacob van Zuylen van Nijevelt, who had succeeded him as Minister of Foreign Affairs.