Schroeter family

The Schroeter family is the fifth family of De Vrienden. Its documented history begins in the early 19th century in Germany and the Netherlands, with a branch established in the United States by the 1940s. The family made its living through farming and later manufacturing, particularly through Schroeter Traktoren, which closed after the assassination of Ferdinand Schroeter in 1959. The family subsequently concentrated much of its business on marble and lime, while bones became an important part of its customs.

Origins

The oldest documented Schroeter branches were farmers and landowners in Germany and the Netherlands. Some members served in the Prussian military before German unification, and later generations continued to pursue military careers. Under Nazi Germany, a large proportion served in the armed forces, including in senior positions. Most withdrew from military service in 1945.

By the 1940s, relatives had also settled in the United States. They worked in agriculture and industrial support roles and maintained contact with the European branches.

Industrial development and family division

Lead was an early focus of Schroeter industry. The family operated the Schroeter Metaal en Lood Fabriek until its closure in 1902, when Ferdinand Schroeter founded Schroeter Traktoren in Stolwijk. He began manufacturing tractors for smaller farms before expanding into road vehicles. In 1912, he moved the company's main factory to Rotterdam, where it later produced military vehicles alongside its civilian machinery.

After 1945, relatives disagreed over the company's future. Ferdinand wanted to retain its agricultural work and keep the family farms. The Schroeters-West group, based around Rotterdam-West, wanted the family to leave farming and concentrate on urban industry. At the first Middenvader Commissie in Vriendendam in 1949, the two sides failed to reach an agreement. The western group established Schroeter-Traktoren West, and the dispute continued through the 1950s. Supporters of the rival sides fought in public, while farms were vandalised and Schroeter tractors were destroyed.

The second commission met in 1959. Ferdinand opposed proposals from Schroeters-West to dissolve the company and transfer farms out of family ownership. He sought a peaceful settlement, but the western delegates walked out. On 5 July 1959, Ferdinand and his wife Johanna Berendsen were shot dead at their farmhouse in Stolwijk. People associated with Schroeters-West came under suspicion, but the police did not identify the killers and no one was charged.

After the killings, Noord authorities and representatives of the other principal families urged the Schroeters to close the company before the dispute led to armed fighting. The family agreed. Schroeter Traktoren ceased operating later that July, and a formal truce prohibited its re-establishment.

Later history

The properties used by Schroeter-Traktoren West continued to support businesses in Rotterdam-West after the family split. Former workers and suppliers remained there, and their commercial contacts developed into the Rotterdam-West faction during the 1960s. By the 1970s, the faction no longer operated as a branch of a Schroeter business. Schroeters have continued to accuse Rotterdam-West and its predecessors of Ferdinand's assassination. The killing remains a cause of hostility towards the faction among present-day family members.

The family's industrial interests also changed after 1959. Lead lost its former place in Schroeter business, and from the 1960s the family concentrated on marble and lime. Bone processing became another focus. Interest in bones spread beyond commercial work, with Schroeters making objects from them and paying close attention to their own skeletal health.

One automotive company survived the split. Lourens Schroeter (father) began assembling road vehicles with his son Lourens Schroeter in 1945. They formally registered their business as Schroeter Romeo in Vriendendam in 1950, and it continued operating after Schroeter Traktoren closed.

Bloedmergen

The Bloedmergen are an extremist faction of the Schroeter family that emerged from the hostility following Ferdinand's assassination. Its members are fiercely loyal to him and regard him as the person who tried to save the family. Ferdinand had sought to settle the dispute peacefully, but the Bloedmergen adopted violent methods and directed their hostility towards Rotterdam-West.

The faction's members have vandalised cemeteries and stolen human bones from graves. They have used the remains to make statues of Ferdinand and elaborate contraptions intended to honour him, including objects with no practical purpose.

Family customs

Schroeters call their backs merg and reject the ordinary Dutch word rug. They particularly object when others use rug because they associate the word with Rotterdam-West. In family usage, merg can also refer to the spine, bones and rod-like structures. Rotterdam dialect insults and swear words are common in Schroeter speech.

Beige is the traditional family colour, alongside the shade known as Peru. Schroeters have a preference for sedans and tractors, sometimes favouring vehicles with unnecessarily complicated mechanical arrangements. They also build elaborate devices whose complexity serves little practical purpose.

Health

Hereditary spinal fragility has been documented among Schroeters. Other Vrienden families use the collective term Schroeterziekten (Schroeter diseases) for medical conditions found in the family. Scoliosis is one of these conditions. The term is also used for Parkinson's disease and dementia, although these are distinct medical diagnoses. The family pays particular attention to the condition of its members' backs and bones.

De Vrienden

Lourens Schroeter joined the group formed by Angelo Noord and Martin Paap in 1975, after Imro van Hetten had joined earlier that year. Eef Hoos joined in 1976. Around 1980, the group adopted a fixed numerical order that assigned the Schroeter family number five and the Hoos family number four, despite Lourens having joined before Eef.

Members

Documented members of the family are listed by era at Schroeter family members.

See also

• Schroeter Traktoren
• Schroeter-Traktoren West
• Middenvader Commissie
• Assassination of Ferdinand Schroeter
• Schroeter Romeo
• Rotterdam-West (faction)