Dutch refugees fleeing the Spanish Inquisition, in 1567 England.

Gereart Janssen - Sculptor

Gereart (Gheerart, Gerard, Garet) Janssen (Johnson) (Gerard the Elder) left Amsterdam in 1567 to escape the Spanish religious war. He settled in the parish of St. Thomas the Apostle, Southwark, England; near the Shakespearean theatres. The family changed its' name to Johnson. Gereart and his sons (Bernard, John, Nicholas, and Gerard the Younger) were stone masons. They were commissioned to carve monuments, most notably Edward and John Manners (Earls of Rutland). Gereart was buried in London on July 30, 1611.

Gerard the Younger carved the monument of Shakespeare in the Holy Trinity Church in Stratford-upon-Avon in 1623. The bust was painted, re-plastered, and vandalized. This is the earliest representation of William Shakespeare.
Nicholas Johnson (Jonson) was commissioned to carve tombs with his father. The tomb of the 5th Earl of Rutland and his wife was created by Nicholas. Johnson was buried on November 16, 1624.
Bernard Johnson is the best known sculptor of this family. He was the head mason for Northumberland House in the Strand and Audley End, Essex.


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