It is understandable that Grotius thought that a return to the Republic might have been possible in 1631. Even though Remonstrants were only just tolerated, tensions had reduced considerably under Stadtholder Frederick Henry, Maurice’s successor. In the late 1620s, Grotius’ old friend Johannes Uytenbogaert, the Remonstrant leader, had been allowed to return from Antwerp, where he had fled after the arrests of Oldenbarnevelt and Grotius. This etching was made by Rembrandt van Rijn in 1635 and is possibly based on his sketches for the portrait of Uytenbogaert that is now in the Rijksmuseum. Grotius wrote the four-line verse that accompanies the image and refers to Uytenbogaert’s final return to The Hague – back where he belonged.
Rembrandt, Portrait of Johannes Uytenbogaert, print, 1635 [BWB 277]