Rembrandt by Wikipedia

Life

In 1635 Rembrandt and Saskia moved into their own house, renting in fashionable Nieuwe Doelenstraat. In 1639, they moved to a prominent house (now the Rembrandt House Museum) in the Jodenbreestraat in what was becoming the Jewish quarter; the mortgage to finance the 13,000 guilder purchase would be a primary cause for later financial difficulties.[11] He should easily have been able to pay it off with his large income, but it appears his spending always kept pace with his income, and he may have made some unsuccessful investments.[12] It was there that Rembrandt frequently sought his Jewish neighbors to model for his Old Testament scenes.[13] Although they were by now affluent, the couple suffered several personal setbacks; their son Rumbartus died two months after his birth in 1635 and their daughter Cornelia died at just 3 weeks of age in 1638. In 1640, they had a second daughter, also named Cornelia, who died after living barely over a month. Only their fourth child, Titus, who was born in 1641, survived into adulthood. Saskia died in 1642 soon after Titus's birth, probably from tuberculosis. Rembrandt's drawings of her on her sick and death bed are among his most moving works

During Saskia's illness, Geertje Dircx was hired as Titus' caretaker and nurse and probably also became Rembrandt's lover. She would later charge Rembrandt with breach of promise and was awarded alimony of 200 guilders a year.[11] Rembrandt worked to have her committed for twelve years to an asylum or poorhouse (called a "bridewell") at Gouda, after learning Geertje had pawned jewelry that had once belonged to Saskia, and which Rembrandt had given her.

In the late 1640s Rembrandt began a relationship with the much younger Hendrickje Stoffels, who had initially been his maid. In 1654 they had a daughter, Cornelia, bringing Hendrickje a summons from the Reformed church to answer the charge "that she had committed the acts of a whore with Rembrandt the painter". She admitted this and was banned from receiving communion. Rembrandt was not summoned to appear for the Church council because he was not a member of the Reformed church.[15] The two were considered legally wed under common law, but Rembrandt had not married Henrickje, so as not to lose access to a trust set up for Titus in his mother's will

Get Ready for Golden Rock Regatta 2010 in November All At Sea - 8 Sep 2010 at 8:12pm During the Dutch Golden Age the island of St. Eustatius played an important role as entrepôt between Europe and the Americas. During the War of Independence ...

Dutch masterpieces to leave Amsterdam for the first time Radio Netherlands - 8 Sep 2010 at 12:27pm Twelve militia paintings from the 17th century, the golden age of Dutch painting, have left Amsterdam for the first time ever. ...

LateRooms.com - Bilbao Guggenheim Hosts Golden Age of Dutch and Flemish Painting PR-CANADA.net (press release) - 30 Aug 2010 at 3:43am The Golden Age of Dutch and Flemish Painting from the Stadel Museum in Frankfurt is to be shown at the Bilbao Guggenheim Museum this year. ...