Abraham Gabriel Raphael Winnig

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Abraham Gabriel Raphael Winnig, birth 1706 Amsterdam, died 9 Dec 1790 Amsterdam, Zeeburg cemetery: Abraham Raphael Wing., son of Gabriel Raphael David Winnig and Clara Gelle
Event: event 1741 Amsterdam Zeeburg cemetery: on 17 Teveth 5501 - child of Abraham Raphael Wing.
Event: event ONG 1760 Harderwijk see article by E.E. de Jong-Keesing: 'Abraham Gabriels, burger van Harderwijk en zijn in het Nederlands geschreven brieven'.
Summary: During the years 1762-1765, Amsterdam born Abraham Gabriels wrote several letters in not too bad but rather emotional Dutch to some of the highest authorities in the United Netherlands. These letters were considered to be important and we re kept in the archives.
The story begins with a chance meeting between Gabriels and the president-burgomaster of the city of Harderwijk in the "trekschuit"(towboat) and from their conversation arose the project of the construction of a harbour at Harderwijk which Gabriel s undertook to finance.
The magistrates of both Harderwijk and the county of Gelderland accepted Gabriels' plans, which he sent to them in rather doubtfully spelled Dutch, but with sound calculations. Gabriels moved to Harderwijk and organised a loan and a lottery to ge t the means for the construction of the harbour. Many well-born people subscribed to his loan and all kind of people tried their luck in the lottery. A stamp-cutter paid his ticket with newly coined guilders from the Harderwijk Mint; Gabriels wh o had been a money-changer, found these guilders to be far below regulation weight. He collected more light coins and rode on horseback to the Assay Master General of the United Netherlands in The Hague. This official, Mr. Marcellus Emants, descri bed in detail Gabriels' mysterious arrival and his producing the proofs of serious fraud at the Harderwijk Mint.
Mr. Emants did not doubt Gabriels' tale, but he had great difficulty in handling the provincial magistrates of Gelderland who refused to admit that the Mint Master practised fraud. The Mints were private enterprises in those days, the more work th ey had, the more creditt hey did to the county. The Harderwijk Mint had plenty of work. From a later investigation it appeared, that the Mint Master, C.C. Novisadi made too profitable conditions for his clients so that he had to reduce his losse s by cutting the weight of the coins. Mr. R.W.Brantsen, councillor of the Court of Gelderland was very keen on the seemingly flowering Harderwijk Mint. As soon as Emants' informer appeared to be a Jew, he kept hammering on the presumption tha t a Jew was fundamentally false and could never be trusted. He is the only one in the affair who used this "argument", but he did it thoroughly and persisted in attempts to get Gabriels tried and punished. But Gabriels had the confidence and th e support of some of the workers at the Mint.They kept him secretly informed and he reported to The Hague. Every Mint worker knew about the "small parcel" - the low weight coins - and they even used nicknames for it. But they feared their employe r and during the first investigation only some of them admitted the facts.The local controller found a hidden parcel of light guilders and ordered to have them melted, hoping thus to keep the Mint Master under control without public nuisance. Bu t Gabriels took one of his witnesses with him to The Hague, once more across muddy winter roads.
Mr. Emants sent the men to the highest authority in charge, one of the three Mint Masters General, who were in control of all provincial Mints. A judicial investigation was ordered and all reports of Gabriels proved to be true, down to the rows wi th the shouting and threatening Mint Master of Harderwijk. But in official letters Novisadi plays the indignant gentleman and denies all guilt. If there were light coins about, than they were due to accidents, somebody else's fault or merely ol d custom. The Mint Masters were furious, but could do little.
The authorities of Gelderland played for time, gave Novisadi opportunity to defend himself and asked for more proofs. They hoped to save the Mint by keeping their Mint Master in office. Novisadi was never punished, but he died bankrupt and left th e Mint in ruins.
At the first signs of delay, Gabriels wrote again to Emants. Emants listened to his warnings and so did the Mint Masters. But the Gelderland authorities took revenge. They managed to make Gabriels suspected in Harderwijk, and he had to call off hi s loan. Gabriels reported this to Emants in a shocked and despairing and yet hopeful way: "... but justice will emerge at last and they'll know there were Jews in Harderwijk" For him a Jew was the champion of justice.
Others took a different view. His enemies managed to detain him in Elburg, another small town in Gelderland, on the pretext of an old debt to the heirs of a long deceased creditor. They also detained one of the other witnesses against Novisad i on the charge of a debt for a cow. The Harderwijk magistrates tried to get their citizens back. Elburg's lawyer remonstrated that Gabriels had no act of citizenship. Harderwijk replied that one was a citizen when the Secretary of theTown said so . This was 1765 and since 1762 it was possible for a Jew to receive full citizenship in Harderwijk. The juridical game with the old laws to keep Gabriels detained went on and on, at last with Elburg's lawyer's argument that "Gabriels had slandere d his judges, now he who malignes one's judges, has no religion and he who has no religion, will stick at nothing".
After months, probably by some oral agreement, Gabriels was released and wrote a desillusioned letter to the Mint Masters Generals asking compensation for his expenses. They answered within three days and sent him 105 guilders the greater par t of the sum they had at their disposition to spend on the detection of frauds. He duly thanked them and disappeared in the crowds of Amsterdam were he belonged.
Married 1734 Amsterdam, dtb 721/4; witn.groom: f.Gabriel David; witn.bride: f.Michiel Joseph.
Tnaim acharonim on 6 Kislev 5495;
groom: Abraham ben Raphael Winnig m.h.l;
bride Sara bat Yechiel Michel Haas z.l.[?];
brothers groom: naaleh Berman, Simcha & Isaac. to:
Sara Michiel Yechiel-Michel Haas, birth 1707 Amsterdam, daughter of Michiel Yechiel Joseph Haas and Roosje Reizche Levie Leib Norden

1) Roosje Reizche Abraham Winnig, birth 1739 Amsterdam
Married 1756 Amsterdam, dtb 734/471; witn.groom: m.Ester Elias; witn.bride: f.Abraham Gabriel.
Tnaim acharonim in act 5516/75 on 18 Sivan 5516;
groom: torani khr"r David ben khr"r Moshe Abraham halevi;
bride: Reizche, accompanied by father aluf katsin Abraham ben Raphael z.l, who donates fl. 850,- to the dowry; he will also house and feed the couple during 2 yrs after their marriage;
mother bride: Sara bat Yechiel. to:
David Abraham Hollander-Levie, birth 1731 Altona, died 4 Jun 1804 Amsterdam, Muiderberg cemetery: mohr"r David ben mohr"r Abraham Hollander.
Event: event 13 Nov 1800 Amsterdam Muiderberg cemetery: unmarried daughter of David Abraham Hollander.
Event: event Jun 1764 Amsterdam In tnaim rishonim act 5524/95 on 25 Sivan 5524 katsin k"h David ben k"h Abraham halevi is committed for bride Kres bat Nachum Nisht z.l, accompanied by mother the widow Hindele bat Nechemya Kleef z.l; the tnaim are in attendance of the executive s of chevra kedosha Asifoth Bachurim shel Hachnasath Kalla, who will donate fl. 150,- to the dowry; groom: Zalman ben Nathan m.h.l; committed for groom:[br.-in-law] Nachman ben Joseph.
Civil marriage takes place in dtb 741/25.
Event: event Apr 1770 Amsterdam Zeeburg cemetery: on 8 Nissan 5530 - child of David, son-in-law of Abraham Raphael Wing.

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