Dutch author Hella Haasse, the grand old lady of Dutch literature has died aged 93. Her publisher said she died on Thursday after a brief illness.

Known primarily as a writer of historical fiction and autobiographical works, Ms Haasse also wrote for the stage. Relations between the Dutch and the Indonesians are a recurring theme in her work. Hella Haasse was born in 1918 in Batavia in the Dutch East Indies, now known as the Indonesian capital Jakarta.

After her 1948 debut Oeroeg, one of her best-known works is In a dark wood wandering, published in 1949. It describes the plight of French nobleman Charles d'Orléans who was taken prisoner by the English in 1415.

She published her last title, Transit, in 1994. Many of Hella Haasse's novels have been translated into English, including The scarlet city, Threshold of fire, A stranger in The Hague, and The tea lords.

Hella Haasse was awarded the Constantijn Huygens Prize in 1981 and the equally prestigious P.C. Hooft Award three years later.

(rk/hs)

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