Sebastian Knowles

Sebastian Knowles (28 July 1927 - 28 January 2019) was a Brunanter politician. A member of the Christian Democratic Union, he was a representative and a senator from Drenthe Parish. After his political career, Knowles was the personal secretary to King Marten II.

Political career
Born into a Catholic family in Drenthe, Knowles started his political career as a Drenthe town councilor in 1952. In 1957, he was elected a representative and was re-elected in 1961. The most popular politician from Drenthe, he decided to run for Drenthe Parish senator in 1964, but lost the election. He subsequently returned to the Drenthe town council. In 1965, new elections were called, and Knowles was elected as the Drenthe Parish senator. He was re-elected in 1969 and 1973. From 1973-1977, as a member of the CDU, he was the leading senator under the Stenman government. In 1977, Knowles failed in his re-election and withdrew from active politics. He remained a member of the CDU's national party council until 1978.

Secretary to Marten II
In 1978, King Marten II appointed him as Secretary to the Royal Family. Knowles became the first person to hold that office who did not serve in the military.

In 1981, word leaked to the media that the king would have wanted a different Prime Minister than Johanna Elteman due to his distaste for her. Many members of the Congress were shocked that their king spoke of Elteman in those terms, and the media soon began reporting that he was looking to replace Elteman and see her removed. The media frenzy that ensued saw Marten considering leaving Brunant for a few days to his summer house in Tavira, Portugal, but Knowles, pressed him to do otherwise.

In 1993, the king formally accepted his resignation as the personal secretary. Knowles remains the longest-serving secretary since the introduction of the function in 1913.

Later life
Knowles later lived on an estate near Drenthe with his wife and children. He remained very involved in local politics, but never participated in any elections.

He wrote his memoirs in 2005 and wrote a new one in 2013, after the death of King Marten II.

He died in 2019.