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{{Short description|Dutch botanist and academic (1895–1966)}}
{{Use Oxford spelling|date=June 2024}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2024}}
{{Infobox academic {{Infobox academic
| name = Victor Jacob Koningsberger | name = Victor Jacob Koningsberger
| image = V.J. Koningsberger 1960.jpg | image = V.J. Koningsberger 1960.jpg
| alt = Black-and-white image of a man in a suit | alt = Black-and-white image of a man in a suit
| caption = | caption = Koningsberger in 1960
| birth_name = | birth_name =
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1895|02|10|df=y}} | birth_date = {{Birth date|1895|02|10|df=y}}
| birth_place = ], ] | birth_place = ], Dutch East Indies
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1966|02|28|1895|02|10|df=y}} | death_date = {{Death date and age|1966|02|28|1895|02|10|df=y}}
| death_place = ], Utrecht, Netherlands | death_place = ], Utrecht, Netherlands
| nationality = <!-- use only when necessary per ] --> | nationality = <!-- use only when necessary per ] -->
| other_names = | other_names =
| signature = VJ Koningsberg, signature, 1934.jpg | signature = Koningsberger sig.png
| module= | module=
| occupation = Botanist | occupation = Botanist
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| father = ] | father = ]
| relatives = {{ill|Jacob Christiaan Koningsberger (1896-1956)|nl|Jacob Christiaan Koningsberger (1896-1956)|lt=Jacob Christiaan Koningsberger}} (brother) | relatives = {{ill|Jacob Christiaan Koningsberger (1896-1956)|nl|Jacob Christiaan Koningsberger (1896-1956)|lt=Jacob Christiaan Koningsberger}} (brother)
|spouse = |spouse = Tilly Dijkstra
{{plainlist}}
{{endplainlist}}
| children = | children =
| education = ] | education = ]
| alma_mater = ] | alma_mater = ]
| doctoral_advisor = | doctoral_advisor = ]
| thesis_title = Tropismus und Wachstum | thesis_title = Tropismus und Wachstum
| thesis_url = https://natuurtijdschriften.nl/pub/552698/RTBN1922019001001.pdf | thesis_url = https://natuurtijdschriften.nl/pub/552698/RTBN1922019001001.pdf
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}} }}
'''Victor Jacob Koningsberger''' (10 February 1895 &ndash; 28 February 1966) was a Dutch botanist. He served as the ] of ] between 1952 and 1953. '''Victor Jacob Koningsberger''' (10 February 1895 &ndash; 28 February 1966) was a Dutch botanist and academic. Born in the ], he completed his studies in ] and ], defending his doctoral dissertation &ndash; an exploration of the influence of light on plant growth &ndash; in 1922. He subsequently spent a decade in the Indies administering centres for sugar cane experimentation before returning to the Netherlands to replace his teacher ] as Professor of Botany at ]. In this capacity, he continued to explore ]. He served as the ] of Utrecht University between 1952 and 1953.

Koningsberger was Chairman of the ] from 1951 through 1965, as well as a member of the ] from 1948 until his death. For his contributions, he was inducted into the ] and the ]. He has been commemorated with a series of lectures, as well as a namesake building in the ].


==Early life and career== ==Early life and career==
Koningsberger was born in ], ] (now Bogor, Indonesia) on 10 February 1895 to the biologist ] and his wife Manuella Ursule Mariana Hellendoorn. In 1899, aged four, he travelled with his parents to the Netherlands; during the journey, his mother died. Consequently, when the elder Koningsberger returned to the Indies in the early 1900s, Victor and his younger brother {{ill|Jacob Christiaan Koningsberger (1896-1956)|nl|Jacob Christiaan Koningsberger (1896-1956)|lt=Jacob}} remained with relatives in the Netherlands.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=328}}{{sfn|Doel, Koningsberger}} Victor studied at the ] in ], graduating in 1914.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=328}} Koningsberger was born in ], Dutch East Indies (now Bogor, Indonesia), on 10 February 1895, to the biologist ] and his wife Manuella Ursule Mariana Hellendoorn. In 1899, aged four, he travelled with his parents to the Netherlands; his mother died during the journey. Consequently, when the elder Koningsberger returned to the Indies in the early 1900s, Victor and his younger brother {{ill|Jacob Christiaan Koningsberger (1896-1956)|nl|Jacob Christiaan Koningsberger (1896-1956)|lt=Jacob}} remained with relatives in the Netherlands.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=328}}{{sfn|Doel, Koningsberger}} Victor studied at the ] in ], graduating in 1914.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=328}}


As the ], Koningsberger was kept as a reserve officer.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=328}} He received a study leave of three days per week in 1917, using this time to study biology at ]; in May 1918, he completed his candidate's exam '']''. Koningsberger continued his studies under the botanist ] and zoologist {{ill|Hermann Jacques Jordan|nl}}, simultaneously attending ] held by the psychiatrist {{ill|Cornelis Winkler|nl}}. He passed his doctoral examination, again with honours, in 1920. During this period, he married Tilly Dijkstra, a fellow student and assistant at Went's botanical laboratory.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=330}} As the ], Koningsberger was kept as a reserve officer.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=328}} He received a study leave of three days per week in 1917, using this time to study biology at ]; in May 1918, he completed his candidate's exam '']''. Koningsberger continued his studies under the botanist ] and the zoologist {{ill|Hermann Jacques Jordan|nl}}, simultaneously attending ] held by the psychiatrist {{ill|Cornelis Winkler|nl}}. He passed his doctoral examination, again with honours, in 1920. During this period, he married Tilly Dijkstra, a fellow student and assistant at Went's botanical laboratory.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=330}}


On 23 June 1922, Koningsberger completed his doctoral studies after defending his dissertation ''Tropismus und Wachstum'' (''Tropism and Growth''). Building on earlier studies by Anton Hendrik Blaauw,{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=330}} which hypothesized that the curvature of plants was affected by unequal lighting during growth, as well as more than a decade of laboratory work,{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=330}} Koningsberger designed{{sfn|Raalte|1966|p=1}} and employed an innovative automatic precision ] that allowed him to accurately measure the growth of oat seedlings in consistent lighting and temperatures without introducing ] curvature. He concluded that, although the evidence indicated a high level of complexity in lighting's influence on growth, Blaauw's hypothesis had strong support.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|pp=331&ndash;332}} On 23 June 1922, Koningsberger completed his doctoral studies after defending his dissertation ''Tropismus und Wachstum'' (''Tropism and Growth''). Building on earlier studies by Anton Hendrik Blaauw, which hypothesized that the curvature of plants was affected by unequal lighting during growth, as well as more than a decade of laboratory work,{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=330}} Koningsberger designed{{sfn|Raalte|1966|p=1}} and employed an innovative automatic precision ] that allowed him to accurately measure the growth of oat seedlings in consistent lighting and temperatures without introducing ] curvature. He concluded that, although the evidence indicated a high level of complexity in light's influence on growth, Blaauw's hypothesis was strongly supported.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|pp=331&ndash;332}}


], which Koningsberger led from 1926 through 1934]]
After graduating, Koningsberger spent a year in Utrecht as Went's head research assistant. In 1924, he travelled to the Dutch East Indies, taking control of a station for sugar experimentation in ], East Java. Two years later, following the resignation of Ph. van Harreveld, he was made the director of a larger station in ]. Although several senior researchers resigned in protest, over the course of eight years Koningsberger cultivated a sense of solidarity in the station, which employed 32 staff at the peak of the sugar boom. As production waned in the early 1930s, Koningsberger oversaw the downsizing of the station.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|pp=331&ndash;332}} Writing in '']'', M.&nbsp;H. van Raalte described the ] industry under Koningsberger as "an example of scientifically guided agriculture in the tropics."{{sfn|Raalte|1966|p=1}} After graduating, Koningsberger spent a year in Utrecht as Went's head research assistant. In 1924, he travelled to the Dutch East Indies, taking control of a station for ] experimentation in ], East Java. Two years later, following the resignation of Ph. van Harreveld, he was made the director of a larger station in ]. Although several senior researchers resigned in protest, over the course of eight years Koningsberger cultivated a sense of solidarity in the station, which employed 32 staff at the peak of the sugar boom. As production waned in the early 1930s, Koningsberger oversaw the downsizing of the station.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|pp=331&ndash;332}} Writing in '']'', M.&nbsp;H. van Raalte described the sugar cane industry under Koningsberger as "an example of scientifically guided agriculture in the tropics."{{sfn|Raalte|1966|p=1}}


==Professorship== ==Professorship==
After a decade in the Indies, Koningsberger returned to the Netherlands to replace Went as Professor of Botany at Utrecht University, effective 2 July 1934.{{sfn|Utrecht University, Prof.dr. V.J. Koningsberger}} Three months later, on 24 September, he delivered his inaugural speech, "Sunt certi denique fines" ("The Boundaries are Certain"); in the speech, he explored the apparent discrepancies between the certainties of physics and chemistry and the uncertainties of physiological research.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=333}} He attributed these discrepancies to the continuation of life processes, which affect the results of physiological endeavours, where chemistry research was done in more consistent settings.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=334}} Throughout his academic career, Koningsberger retained an interest in studies of growth and ]; his efforts to understand these processes included explorations of the effects of growth substance on cell membranes,{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=337}} as well as the mechanisms of ] activity.{{sfn|Raalte|1966|p=1}} After a decade in the Indies, Koningsberger returned to the Netherlands to replace Went as Professor of Botany at Utrecht University, effective 2 July 1934.{{sfn|Utrecht University, Prof.dr. V.J. Koningsberger}} Three months later, on 24 September, he delivered his inaugural speech, "Sunt certi denique fines" ("The Boundaries are Certain"). In the speech, he explored the apparent discrepancies between the certainties of physics and chemistry and the uncertainties of physiological research.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=333}} He attributed these discrepancies to the continuity of life processes, which affect the results of physiological endeavours, whereas chemistry research was done in more constant settings.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=334}} Throughout his academic career, Koningsberger retained an interest in studies of growth and ]; his efforts to understand these processes included explorations of the effects of growth substance on cell membranes,{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=337}} as well as the mechanisms of ] activity.{{sfn|Raalte|1966|p=1}}


In his interpersonal relations, Koningsberger was recognized for his compassion and sympathy. He and Tilly opened their home to Koningsberger's colleagues and students.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=330}} On 25 November 1940, shortly following the expulsion of Jewish academics in the ], Koningsberger spoke out, delivering a speech that began "My conscience compels me to commemorate here, with deep sorrow and disappointment, the dismissal from their office of a number of Dutch colleagues, solely on grounds of their origin or religion."{{efn|Original: "Mijn geweten gebiedt mij hier met diepe smart en teleurstelling te gedenken de ontheffing uit de uitoefening van hun ambt van een aantal Nederlandse collega's, uitsluitend om reden van afkomst of geloof."}}{{sfn|Utrecht University, Koningsbergerlezing}} In his interpersonal relations, Koningsberger was recognized for his compassion and sympathy. He and Tilly opened their home to Koningsberger's colleagues and students.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=330}} On 25 November 1940, shortly following the expulsion of Jewish academics in the ], Koningsberger spoke out, delivering a speech that began "My conscience compels me to commemorate here, with deep sorrow and disappointment, the dismissal from their office of a number of Dutch colleagues, solely on grounds of their origin or religion."{{efn|Original: "{{lang|nl|Mijn geweten gebiedt mij hier met diepe smart en teleurstelling te gedenken de ontheffing uit de uitoefening van hun ambt van een aantal Nederlandse collega's, uitsluitend om reden van afkomst of geloof}}."}}{{sfn|Utrecht University, Koningsbergerlezing}} According to the historian Henk van Rinsum, Koningsberger was the first to publicly oppose the expulsion; a similar speech was delivered by ] the following day. Koningsberger was later detained and sent to ]. He was released in December 1943 and returned to teaching in 1944.{{sfn|Rinsum|2023|p=154}}


] in 1965]] ] in 1965]]
Koningsberger was dispatched to the Indies in 1946 to survey the situation of sugar cultivation in the colony, which had ] the previous year following the ]. Two years after this three-month survey, he returned to the ] to work on restoring the ravaged sugar industry;{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=337}} the experiment station itself had few remaining workers and little material.{{sfn|Raalte|1966|p=2}} He remained in this position through 1950, the year after the Netherlands ] the sovereignty of the Indonesian nation.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=337}} Koningsberger was dispatched to the Indies in 1946 to survey the situation of sugar cultivation in the colony, which had ] the previous year following the ]. Two years after this three-month survey, he returned to the ] to work on restoring the ravaged sugar industry;{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=337}} the experimentation station, for instance, had few remaining workers and little material.{{sfn|Raalte|1966|p=2}} He remained in this position through 1950, the year after the Netherlands ] the sovereignty of the Indonesian nation.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=337}}


After his return to the Netherlands, Koningsberger assumed several leadership roles in academic institutions. From 1951 through 1965, he served as the Chairman of the ]; in recognition of his service in this capacity, he received a medal from ] in 1965. Between 1952 and 1953, he served the ] of ].{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=338}} Having become a member of the Mathematical and Physical Sciences division of the ] in June 1948, Koningsberger remained an active member of the academy for the rest of his life. He served as chairman of the Biological Council,{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=328}} in which capacity he promoted the continued use of biology in high school final examinations,{{sfn|Raalte|1966|p=2}} and as a member of the Central Bureau for Fungal Cultures. Between 1960 and 1965, he served as the Deputy Chairman of the academy's Mathematical and Physical Sciences division.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=328}} After his return to the Netherlands, Koningsberger assumed several leadership roles in academic institutions. From 1951 through 1965, he served as the Chairman of the ]; in recognition of his service in this capacity, he received a medal from ] in 1965. Between 1952 and 1953, he served as the ] of Utrecht University.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=338}} Having become a member of the Mathematical and Physical Sciences division of the ] in June 1948, Koningsberger remained an active member of the academy for the rest of his life. He served as chairman of the Biological Council,{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=328}} in which capacity he promoted the continued use of biology in high school final examinations,{{sfn|Raalte|1966|p=2}} and as a member of the Central Bureau for Fungal Cultures. Between 1960 and 1965, he served as the Deputy Chairman of the academy's Mathematical and Physical Sciences division.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=328}}


Koningsberger contracted a viral disease and underwent surgery in 1965.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=338}} On 1 September of that year he retired from Utrecht University.{{sfn|Utrecht University, Prof.dr. V.J. Koningsberger}} He died on 28 February 1966.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=328}} It was announced that he would be cremated in ].{{sfn|Twentsch dagblad Tubantia, Prof. Koningsberger}} Koningsberger contracted a viral disease and underwent surgery in 1965.{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=338}} On 1 September of that year, he retired from Utrecht University. He died on 28 February 1966 in ].{{sfn|Utrecht University, Prof.dr. V.J. Koningsberger}} It was announced that he would be cremated in ].{{sfn|Twentsch dagblad Tubantia, Prof. Koningsberger}}


==Honours== ==Honours==
Koningsberger was made a knight in the ], as well as a commander in the ].{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=338}} In 1968, a statue of him was unveiled by Prince Bernhard in the courtyard of the Royal Tropical Institute in Amsterdam.{{sfn|Algemeen Handelsblad, (untitled)}} In commemoration of Koningsberger's opposition to the expulsion of Jewish academics during World War II, between 2010 and 2014 Utrecht University sponsored the Koningsberg Lecture, which focused on human rights issues;{{sfn|Utrecht University, Koningsbergerlezing}} the final lecture, "Upstanders, Whistle-Blowers, and Rescuers", was delivered by Dean of Harvard Law School ].{{sfn|Minow|2017|p=1}} In 2015, the Victor J. Koningsberger Building was opened at Utrecht University. Designed by the architectural firm Ector Hoogstad, the {{convert|15000|m2}} building houses the faculties of Science, Geosciences and Medicine (Biomedical Sciences).{{sfn|Stevens van Dijck, Victor J. Koningsbergergebouw}} Koningsberger was made a knight in the ], as well as a commander in the ].{{sfn|Arisz|1967|p=338}} In 1968, a statue of him was unveiled by Prince Bernhard in the courtyard of the Royal Tropical Institute in Amsterdam.{{sfn|Algemeen Handelsblad, (untitled)}} In commemoration of Koningsberger's opposition to the expulsion of Jewish academics during the Second World War, between 2010 and 2014 Utrecht University sponsored the Koningsberg Lecture, which focused on human rights issues;{{sfn|Utrecht University, Koningsbergerlezing}} the final lecture, "Upstanders, Whistle-Blowers, and Rescuers", was delivered by Dean of Harvard Law School ].{{sfn|Minow|2017|p=1}} In 2015, the Victor J. Koningsberger Building was opened at the ] campus of Utrecht University. Designed by the architectural firm Ector Hoogstad, the {{convert|adj=on|15000|m2}} building is used by the faculties of science, geosciences and medicine.{{sfn|Stevens van Dijck, Victor J. Koningsbergergebouw}}


==Explanatory notes== ==Explanatory notes==
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|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20230601081100/https://dwc.knaw.nl/DL/levensberichten/PE00001345.pdf |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20230601081100/https://dwc.knaw.nl/DL/levensberichten/PE00001345.pdf
|archivedate=1 June 2023 |archivedate=1 June 2023
|url=https://dwc.knaw.nl/DL/levensberichten/PE00001345.pdf |url=https://dwc.knaw.nl/DL/levensberichten/PE00001345.pdf
|language=Dutch |language=Dutch
|location=Amsterdam |location=Amsterdam
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|date= |date=
|access-date = 7 May 2024 |access-date = 7 May 2024
|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190720101450/https://resources.huygens.knaw.nl/bwn1880-2000/lemmata/bwn5/koningsberger |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190720101450/https://resources.huygens.knaw.nl/bwn1880-2000/lemmata/bwn5/koningsberger
|archive-date=20 July 2019 |archive-date=20 July 2019
|last=Doel |last=Doel
|first=HW van den |first=HW van den
|title=Koningsberger, Jacob Christiaan (1867-1951) |title=Koningsberger, Jacob Christiaan (1867-1951)
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|title=Koningsbergerlezing |title=Koningsbergerlezing
|trans-title=Koningsberger Lecture |trans-title=Koningsberger Lecture
|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20240329000332/https://www.uu.nl/organisatie/profiel/traditie-en-historie/academische-tradities/koningsbergerlezing |accessdate=7 June 2024 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20240329000332/https://www.uu.nl/organisatie/profiel/traditie-en-historie/academische-tradities/koningsbergerlezing
|archivedate=29 March 2024 |archivedate=29 March 2024
|ref={{SfnRef|Utrecht University, Koningsbergerlezing}} |ref={{SfnRef|Utrecht University, Koningsbergerlezing}}
}} }}
* {{cite journal * {{cite journal
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|title=Prof.dr. V.J. Koningsberger (1895 - 1966) |title=Prof.dr. V.J. Koningsberger (1895 - 1966)
|language=Dutch |language=Dutch
|accessdate=8 June 2024
|url=https://profs.library.uu.nl/index.php/profrec/getprofdata/1156/4/6/0 |url=https://profs.library.uu.nl/index.php/profrec/getprofdata/1156/4/6/0
|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305034055/https://profs.library.uu.nl/index.php/profrec/getprofdata/1156/4/6/0 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305034055/https://profs.library.uu.nl/index.php/profrec/getprofdata/1156/4/6/0
|archivedate=5 March 2016 |archivedate=5 March 2016
|ref={{sfnRef|Utrecht University, Prof.dr. V.J. Koningsberger}} |ref={{sfnRef|Utrecht University, Prof.dr. V.J. Koningsberger}}
|publisher=Utrecht University |publisher=Utrecht University
|work=Catalogus Professorum |work=Catalogus Professorum
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|language=Dutch |language=Dutch
|trans-title=Prof. Koningsberger passes |trans-title=Prof. Koningsberger passes
|work=Twentsch dagblad Tubantia |work=]
|page=11 |page=11
|date=1 March 1966 |date=1 March 1966
|ref={{SfnRef|Twentsch dagblad Tubantia, Prof. Koningsberger}} |ref={{SfnRef|Twentsch dagblad Tubantia, Prof. Koningsberger}}
}} }}
* {{cite journal * {{cite journal
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|bibcode=1966PlSoi..25D...2V |bibcode=1966PlSoi..25D...2V
|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/42932632 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/42932632
}}
* {{cite book
|title=Universiteit Utrecht en koloniale kennis
|trans-title=Utrecht University and Colonial Knowledge
|language=Dutch
|last=Rinsum
|first=Henk J. van
|year=2023
|isbn=9789464562002
|publisher=Walburg Press
|location=Gelderland
}} }}
* {{cite news * {{cite news
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|page=3 |page=3
|date=21 December 1968 |date=21 December 1968
|ref={{SfnRef|Algemeen Handelsblad, (untitled)}} |ref={{SfnRef|Algemeen Handelsblad, (untitled)}}
}} }}
* {{cite web * {{cite web
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|publisher=Stevens van Dijck |publisher=Stevens van Dijck
|language=Dutch |language=Dutch
|accessdate=7 June 2024
|title=Victor J. Koningsbergergebouw Universiteit Utrecht |title=Victor J. Koningsbergergebouw Universiteit Utrecht
|trans-title=Victor J. Koningsbergerger Building, Utrecht University |trans-title=Victor J. Koningsbergerger Building, Utrecht University
|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20221207232823/https://www.stevensvandijck.nl/portfolio/owc-victor-j-koningsbergergebouw/ |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20221207232823/https://www.stevensvandijck.nl/portfolio/owc-victor-j-koningsbergergebouw/
|archivedate=7 December 2022 |archivedate=7 December 2022
|ref={{SfnRef|Stevens van Dijck, Victor J. Koningsbergergebouw}} |ref={{SfnRef|Stevens van Dijck, Victor J. Koningsbergergebouw}}
}} }}
{{refend}} {{refend}}
{{Authority control}} {{Authority control}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Koningsberger, Victor}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Koningsberger, Victor Jacob}}

] ]
] ]

Latest revision as of 07:51, 23 July 2024

Dutch botanist and academic (1895–1966)

Victor Jacob Koningsberger
Black-and-white image of a man in a suitKoningsberger in 1960
Born(1895-02-10)10 February 1895
Buitenzorg, Dutch East Indies
Died28 February 1966(1966-02-28) (aged 71)
Bilthoven, Utrecht, Netherlands
OccupationBotanist
SpouseTilly Dijkstra
FatherJacob Christiaan Koningsberger
RelativesJacob Christiaan Koningsberger [nl] (brother)
Academic background
EducationGymnasium Erasmianum
Alma materUtrecht University
ThesisTropismus und Wachstum (1922)
Doctoral advisorFrits Went
Signature

Victor Jacob Koningsberger (10 February 1895 – 28 February 1966) was a Dutch botanist and academic. Born in the Dutch East Indies, he completed his studies in Rotterdam and Utrecht, defending his doctoral dissertation – an exploration of the influence of light on plant growth – in 1922. He subsequently spent a decade in the Indies administering centres for sugar cane experimentation before returning to the Netherlands to replace his teacher Frits Went as Professor of Botany at Utrecht University. In this capacity, he continued to explore tropism. He served as the rector of Utrecht University between 1952 and 1953.

Koningsberger was Chairman of the Royal Tropical Institute from 1951 through 1965, as well as a member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences from 1948 until his death. For his contributions, he was inducted into the Orders of the Netherlands Lion and the Orange-Nassau. He has been commemorated with a series of lectures, as well as a namesake building in the Utrecht Science Park.

Early life and career

Koningsberger was born in Buitenzorg, Dutch East Indies (now Bogor, Indonesia), on 10 February 1895, to the biologist Jacob Christiaan Koningsberger and his wife Manuella Ursule Mariana Hellendoorn. In 1899, aged four, he travelled with his parents to the Netherlands; his mother died during the journey. Consequently, when the elder Koningsberger returned to the Indies in the early 1900s, Victor and his younger brother Jacob [nl] remained with relatives in the Netherlands. Victor studied at the Gymnasium Erasmianum in Rotterdam, graduating in 1914.

As the Netherlands faced the First World War, Koningsberger was kept as a reserve officer. He received a study leave of three days per week in 1917, using this time to study biology at Utrecht University; in May 1918, he completed his candidate's exam cum laude. Koningsberger continued his studies under the botanist Frits Went and the zoologist Hermann Jacques Jordan [nl], simultaneously attending privatissima held by the psychiatrist Cornelis Winkler [nl]. He passed his doctoral examination, again with honours, in 1920. During this period, he married Tilly Dijkstra, a fellow student and assistant at Went's botanical laboratory.

On 23 June 1922, Koningsberger completed his doctoral studies after defending his dissertation Tropismus und Wachstum (Tropism and Growth). Building on earlier studies by Anton Hendrik Blaauw, which hypothesized that the curvature of plants was affected by unequal lighting during growth, as well as more than a decade of laboratory work, Koningsberger designed and employed an innovative automatic precision auxanometer that allowed him to accurately measure the growth of oat seedlings in consistent lighting and temperatures without introducing geotropic curvature. He concluded that, although the evidence indicated a high level of complexity in light's influence on growth, Blaauw's hypothesis was strongly supported.

A black-and-white picture of a courtyard with white buildings
The Sugar Experimentation Station in Pasuruan, which Koningsberger led from 1926 through 1934

After graduating, Koningsberger spent a year in Utrecht as Went's head research assistant. In 1924, he travelled to the Dutch East Indies, taking control of a station for sugar cane experimentation in Cirebon, East Java. Two years later, following the resignation of Ph. van Harreveld, he was made the director of a larger station in Pasuruan. Although several senior researchers resigned in protest, over the course of eight years Koningsberger cultivated a sense of solidarity in the station, which employed 32 staff at the peak of the sugar boom. As production waned in the early 1930s, Koningsberger oversaw the downsizing of the station. Writing in Plant and Soil, M. H. van Raalte described the sugar cane industry under Koningsberger as "an example of scientifically guided agriculture in the tropics."

Professorship

After a decade in the Indies, Koningsberger returned to the Netherlands to replace Went as Professor of Botany at Utrecht University, effective 2 July 1934. Three months later, on 24 September, he delivered his inaugural speech, "Sunt certi denique fines" ("The Boundaries are Certain"). In the speech, he explored the apparent discrepancies between the certainties of physics and chemistry and the uncertainties of physiological research. He attributed these discrepancies to the continuity of life processes, which affect the results of physiological endeavours, whereas chemistry research was done in more constant settings. Throughout his academic career, Koningsberger retained an interest in studies of growth and tropism; his efforts to understand these processes included explorations of the effects of growth substance on cell membranes, as well as the mechanisms of auxin activity.

In his interpersonal relations, Koningsberger was recognized for his compassion and sympathy. He and Tilly opened their home to Koningsberger's colleagues and students. On 25 November 1940, shortly following the expulsion of Jewish academics in the Nazi-occupied Netherlands, Koningsberger spoke out, delivering a speech that began "My conscience compels me to commemorate here, with deep sorrow and disappointment, the dismissal from their office of a number of Dutch colleagues, solely on grounds of their origin or religion." According to the historian Henk van Rinsum, Koningsberger was the first to publicly oppose the expulsion; a similar speech was delivered by Rudolph Cleveringa the following day. Koningsberger was later detained and sent to Kamp Sint-Michielsgestel. He was released in December 1943 and returned to teaching in 1944.

Koningsberger (right) with Prince Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld in 1965

Koningsberger was dispatched to the Indies in 1946 to survey the situation of sugar cultivation in the colony, which had proclaimed its independence the previous year following the withdrawal of the Empire of Japan. Two years after this three-month survey, he returned to the archipelago to work on restoring the ravaged sugar industry; the experimentation station, for instance, had few remaining workers and little material. He remained in this position through 1950, the year after the Netherlands recognized the sovereignty of the Indonesian nation.

After his return to the Netherlands, Koningsberger assumed several leadership roles in academic institutions. From 1951 through 1965, he served as the Chairman of the Royal Tropical Institute; in recognition of his service in this capacity, he received a medal from Prince Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld in 1965. Between 1952 and 1953, he served as the rector of Utrecht University. Having become a member of the Mathematical and Physical Sciences division of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences in June 1948, Koningsberger remained an active member of the academy for the rest of his life. He served as chairman of the Biological Council, in which capacity he promoted the continued use of biology in high school final examinations, and as a member of the Central Bureau for Fungal Cultures. Between 1960 and 1965, he served as the Deputy Chairman of the academy's Mathematical and Physical Sciences division.

Koningsberger contracted a viral disease and underwent surgery in 1965. On 1 September of that year, he retired from Utrecht University. He died on 28 February 1966 in Bilthoven. It was announced that he would be cremated in Westerveld.

Honours

Koningsberger was made a knight in the Order of the Netherlands Lion, as well as a commander in the Order of Orange-Nassau. In 1968, a statue of him was unveiled by Prince Bernhard in the courtyard of the Royal Tropical Institute in Amsterdam. In commemoration of Koningsberger's opposition to the expulsion of Jewish academics during the Second World War, between 2010 and 2014 Utrecht University sponsored the Koningsberg Lecture, which focused on human rights issues; the final lecture, "Upstanders, Whistle-Blowers, and Rescuers", was delivered by Dean of Harvard Law School Martha Minow. In 2015, the Victor J. Koningsberger Building was opened at the Utrecht Science Park campus of Utrecht University. Designed by the architectural firm Ector Hoogstad, the 15,000-square-metre (160,000 sq ft) building is used by the faculties of science, geosciences and medicine.

Explanatory notes

  1. Original: "Mijn geweten gebiedt mij hier met diepe smart en teleurstelling te gedenken de ontheffing uit de uitoefening van hun ambt van een aantal Nederlandse collega's, uitsluitend om reden van afkomst of geloof."

References

  1. ^ Arisz 1967, p. 328.
  2. Doel, Koningsberger.
  3. ^ Arisz 1967, p. 330.
  4. ^ Raalte 1966, p. 1.
  5. ^ Arisz 1967, pp. 331–332.
  6. ^ Utrecht University, Prof.dr. V.J. Koningsberger.
  7. Arisz 1967, p. 333.
  8. Arisz 1967, p. 334.
  9. ^ Arisz 1967, p. 337.
  10. ^ Utrecht University, Koningsbergerlezing.
  11. Rinsum 2023, p. 154.
  12. ^ Raalte 1966, p. 2.
  13. ^ Arisz 1967, p. 338.
  14. Twentsch dagblad Tubantia, Prof. Koningsberger.
  15. Algemeen Handelsblad, (untitled).
  16. Minow 2017, p. 1.
  17. Stevens van Dijck, Victor J. Koningsbergergebouw.

Works cited

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