Abraham van Karnebeek

Abraham Pieter Cornelis van Karnebeek (14 September 1836 – 9 October 1925) was a Dutch jurist, diplomat, and conservative liberal politician. He served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1885 to 1888 and was awarded the honorary title of Minister of State in 1909. After studying law at Utrecht University, where he focused on international law, Van Karnebeek began his diplomatic career in 1864, serving in Washington D.C., London, Berlin, Paris, and later Stockholm.

From 1871 to 1876, he was a top official at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He then served as King's Commissioner of Zeeland from 1879 to 1884. During his tenure as Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Jan Heemskerk cabinet (1885–1888), he played a key role in organizing the first Hague Peace Conference in 1899, where he also served as vice-chairman. In 1904, he became chairman of the Carnegie Foundation, contributing to the establishment of the Peace Palace. Alongside Tobias Asser, he advocated for the founding of The Hague Academy of International Law, established in 1914.

Van Karnebeek was a member of a prominent family; his father-in-law, uncle, and son also served as Ministers of State. He married Maria Petronella Rochussen in 1873, with whom he had two sons and three daughters. A monument in The Hague, the Van Karnebeekbron, erected in 1915, commemorates his contributions to the Peace Palace.