Daniël de Clercq

Daniël "Daan" de Clercq (21 August 1854 in Heerde – 15 December 1931 in Haarlem) was a Dutch socialist and activist.

He was the grandson of Willem de Clercq and grew up in Haarlem where he became good friends with Frederik van Eeden at the HBS high school there.

[1] After continuing his education by studying technology in Delft and chemistry in Berlin he settled in Leiden, but in 1878 he returned to Haarlem to become the technical director of a paint factory there, where he lived the rest of his life.

He believed that by nationalizing the land and creating freestanding homes for everyone, more workers would have more energy for society due to better health.

He organized meetings where the painter-reformer Herman Heijenbrock and the writer-reformer Frederik van Eeden could air their social ideas.