Maeyken van Deventer, Put to Death for the Testimony of Jesus Christ, in the Year 1573

Not only the people of the city of Ghent, in Flanders, of whom we have just spoken, but also those of Rotterdam, in Holland, again stained their hands at this time with the blood of the saints. This was seen in the case of a very pious and God-fearing heroine of Jesus Christ. According to the flesh she was a native of Deventer, yet she was from the heavenly Jerusalem, born again of God. Her name here on earth was Maeyken van Deventer, while her inward and spiritual name was known only to God, and recorded in the secret book of God's everlasting remembrance.

She was arrested for her saving faith in the city of Rotterdam, in Holland, without any fear of the neighboring cities, since the city of Dortrecht had already a year before, under the reign of the Prince of Orange, William the First, agreed by capitulation to shed no more innocent blood on account of the faith. That had taken place in July, in the year 1572, while this happened about the middle of the year 1573.

They did not stop at imprisonment, but went further with her, so that when she could not be turned from her steadfast and true faith, sentence of death was quickly pronounced upon her, that she should be put to death as an immovable and obstinate heretic. O God, how could You tolerate it!

This sentence was quickly carried out on her by the executioner, so that, having commended her soul into the hands of God, she left her body upon earth as a prey.

Observations concerning the death sentence of

Maeyken van Deventer

We have taken much trouble to obtain, if possible, the death sentence of this pious woman Maeyken van Deventer, as well as those of others of our dear fellow believers who were put to death at Rotterdam. But we have been informed by the secretary there, who searched for it, that in the year 1600, just fifty-nine years ago, there was a great fire in the city hall, in which the examinations and death sentences of these martyrs were all burned, together with everything that had been recorded about this before the year 1600, as we also showed happened at Breda for the year 1572. This is certainly a lamentable matter, which might cause to pass into oblivion what we ought constantly to remember, namely, the steadfast death of the saints. To prevent such oblivion, we have thought it necessary to notice this matter more fully than has ever been done before. This by way of notice.