THIJM, JOSEPHUS ALBERTUS. - Dutch publicist, b. in Amsterdam on 8 July 1820, d. there on 17 March 1889.
Having soon abandoned commerce for journalism, from 1842 he began to make a name for himself as an art and literary critic for the Spectator, until within a few years he became one of the most esteemed writers of his time. He founded and directed the periodical Dietsche Warande (1855-88) and from 1852 until his death he annually edited a very widely circulated popular Almanac, waging without pause a magnificent battle in defense of Dutch Catholicism, faithful to the motto he had chosen for himself: «Nihil nisi per Christum». Thanks to his work, Dutch Catholics regained awareness of their strength and of their rights, trampled upon since the times of the Protestant Reformation, and were able to see the Catholic hierarchy re-established through the work of Pius IX in March 1853. T. also obtained that the metropolitan see be restored to Utrecht, so that the historical traditions of the Dutch Church might be respected. Except for a historical-critical survey De la littérature néerlandaise, published in French, his other works appeared in German or in Dutch. Mention may be made of: Het Voorgeborchte, Polet en Harp, Verspreide Verhalen, Karolingische Verhalen, Kerstliederen and Die heilige Linie. He also edited the publication of the tragedies of Joost Van den Vondel (1587-1679), prefixing an essay on the great seventeenth-century writer (Portratten van J. Van den V.), perhaps his best piece of literary criticism.
PETRUS PAULUS, brother of the preceding, b. in Amsterdam on 21 Oct. 1827, d. in Louvain on 1 Feb. 1904. He devoted himself to historical studies and taught at the Lyceum of Maastricht until he went on to teach the history of Dutch literature at the University of Louvain. Here, after the death of Josephus Albertus, he transferred the direction of Dietsche Warande, which he then held until his last days, also promoting a rebirth of Catholic art in Belgium and in the Netherlands. Among his works should be remembered a monumental biography of St. Willibrord (De h. Willibrord Apostel der Nederlanden, 1867); a study on Charles the Fat and his age (Karel de Groote en zijne eeuw, 1866); an Outline of Universal History (in Dutch, 1870), inspired by a providential vision of events; a Summary of Dutch Literature (in Dutch, 1877), as well as a History of Industry in Belgium from the Age of Charles the Fat to the 16th Century (in Dutch, 1883).