Emanuel van Meteren

Van Meteren’s father, Jacob, played a key role in the publication of the first English Bible in the 1530s, and the family established itself as a pillar of the Protestant refugee community in London.

Reliable mail service was an essential component of any natural history network, since specimens ranging from tulip bulbs to rhinoceros horns needed to circulate between interested naturalists.

When the artist Marcus Gheeraerts wanted to send smoked herring to Antwerp, or Ortelius wanted gifts to arrive at his sister’s house in London, they inevitably went through Emmanuel van Meteren and his formidable network of middlemen, merchants, sailors, and travelers to ensure that precious messages and gifts reached their destination.In 1581 he was the Consul representing Dutch merchants in London.

In that year, William the Silent, Prince of Orange, enlisted van Meteren's help in a bit of subterfuge in a larger effort to undermine the plots of Bernardino de Mendoza, Spain's Ambassador at the Court of Queen Elizabeth.

Since trickery was indeed intended, William sent his fourth secretary, Christiaen, to sneak the boy out of the Spanish Embassy in London, at which point van Meteren concealed them and helped effect their escape.