Willem Drees was the Prime Minister of the Netherlands from 1948 to 1958. Drees was known for his austere lifestyle and had a major influence on the Netherlands, for example the introduction of the AOW.
Biography
Willem Drees was born on July 5, 1886. When he was 5 years old, his father died, leaving his mother alone with 4 children. She could barely make ends meet, with the help of a brother-in-law. This uncle of Willem Drees also ensured that Drees could go to a normal school, instead of the poor school. After finishing school, Drees worked briefly at a bank, but soon founded his own stenographic agency.
Stenography had been his hobby since high school and now provided his income. On his 18th birthday, Drees had already become a member of the SDAP, politics had always been his interest. Drees also came into real contact with politics for the first time through stenography; at the age of 21 he got a permanent job as a stenographer at the States General.
When Drees moved to The Hague, he became politically active himself. He was an alderman several times and became a member of parliament in 1933. After the Second World War, Drees became minister of social affairs in the Schermerhorn and Beel cabinets from 1945-1946 and from 1946-1948 , after which he was prime minister of four cabinets from 1948-1958. The fact that Drees became Prime Minister is special in itself, Drees was the first socialist Prime Minister of the Netherlands. After the fall of his fourth cabinet, Drees left politics when he was 72 years old.
Frugal lifestyle
Furthermore, Drees was particularly well known for his personality. Characteristic of his attitude to life are the words frugality, frugality and simplicity. For example, Drees did not have a car with a driver, he cycled to work, lived in a terraced house, did not smoke or drink and went home at lunchtime to eat a sandwich.
This life as an ordinary Dutchman was highly appreciated by the citizens at a time when they also had to be frugal, it gave Drees even more prestige than he already had. Although he seemed a bit boring, Drees was still an extremely popular politician.
Influence on the Netherlands
Willem Drees’ influence on the Netherlands has been enormous.
Under the leadership of Drees, the Netherlands was rebuilt after the war, the transfer of sovereignty to Indonesia took place, and the Greet-Hofmans affair also played a role during his reign. Drees ensured that the faith healer disappeared from the palace, thus averting a crisis in the royal family.
Where Drees’s influence is even more visible is in the structure of the welfare state. As early as 1947, he presented the emergency old-age provision law, the predecessor of the AOW. This law was extremely important for the elderly in the Netherlands, because from then on they were entitled to old-age benefits. During the time that Drees was Prime Minister, the AOW itself was also introduced.