The Private Papers of Artus Gijsels as Source for the History of East Asia

1969 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 540-559
Author(s):  
M. A. P. Meilink-Roelofsz
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
Colonial History ◽  
General State ◽  
East Indies ◽  
Comprehensive Collection ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Hague ◽  
Asian History ◽  
The Government ◽  
State Archives

The General State Archives in The Hague are gradually becoming famous, even outside Europe, for the wealth of documentary material on Asian history deposited there. Moreover, this institution endeavours to supplement the Company archives with microfilms of documents stored in less obvious places, whether public or private, at home or abroad. Now such documents, written in Dutch and pertaining to subjects which usually fall outside the scope of other groups of archives in such institutions, attract little attention locally and so are insufficiently utilised. It is therefore very gratifying that the General State Archives recently acquired the microfilms of a comprehensive collection of documents deposited in the Badische Landesbiliothek in Karlsruhe in the German Federal Republic. This collection derives from Artus or Arnoud Gijsels, official of the Dutch East Indies Company, and only at the end of the century became known in the Netherlands. Then the German Dr. E. F. Kossmann, Germanic scholar who later settled in the Netherlands, father and grandfather of renowned Dutch scholars, drew up a brief guide to its contents. He published this guide in “De Nederlandsche Spectator” (1888), a now almost forgotten cultural periodical published in the Netherlands. Colonial history was not Kossmann's special line, but the way he summarised this guide demands our respect. Thanks to his article, this collection received the attention both of the editors of the “Bouwstoffen voor de geschiedenis van de Maleise Archipel” (Material for the history of the Malayan Archipelago), P. A. Tiele and J. G. Heeres and of the editors of the journal of Batavia, H. T. Colenbrander, later professor of Colonial History at the University of Leyden. One gets the impression, however, that they did not personally investigate the entire collection in Karlsruhe. Tiele and Heeres mention it only in passing. Colenbrander's interest was directed mainly towards two reports drawn up by the Governor-General Van Diemen in 1636 and 1637. The report of 1636 was also deposited in the General State Archives, and this example differed only on minor details from that of Karlsruhe. But neither the General State Archives nor the Government Archives of Batavia had a copy of the 1637 report. This report, spanning merely the period from 1 January to 27 May 1637, was published by Colenbrander in his series of journals, supplemented by two other documents dating from after 27 May 1637. Van Diemen's journal of his voyage to Amboina was also lacking in The Hague and Batavia, and of it he had manuscript copies made — it was still the pre-technical age —. These copies are now preserved in the General State Archives' collection of accessions.

Enige onuitgegeven brieven van Willem Roelofs aan Carel vosmaer

1990 ◽  
Vol 104 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 293-304
Author(s):  
W.F. Rappard
Keyword(s):  
Modern Art ◽  
General State ◽  
Historical Science ◽  
Technical Aspects ◽  
Additional Information ◽  
The Hague ◽  
Artistic Work ◽  
The Government ◽  
Important Additional Information ◽  
State Archives

AbstractIn the Vosmaer family archives (General State Archives, The Hague) are a few letters written by the painter Willem Roelofs to the man of letters Carel Vosmaer between 1863 and 1882. The letters indicate that Roclofs and Vosmaer were already on friendly terms while the former was living in Brussels. Six of the letters are quoted in full in this article. A letter of 1863 refers to a report drawn up by Vosmaer for Minister Thorbecke concerning the purchase of works of modern art for the government. In the same letter Roelofs intimates that his sojourn in Brussels was disappointing. In 1869 he endorsed the views expressed by Jozef Israels under a pseudonym in a magazine article, putting forward his (Israels') ideas about the modern artist's task as opposed to former, outdated notions. In his article, Israels advocated the depiction of visible reality instead of subjects clictated by literature and historical science. The article appeared in De Nederlandshz Spectator, of which Vosmaer was an editor. For another issue of the same journal that year Roelofs sketched a megalithic tomb in Tinaarlo (fig. 2), with a caption protesting at the destruction of such monuments. The following year Roelofs asked Vosmaer's advice on the establishment of a society for the cultivation of etching'. After the appearance of Vosmaer's biography of Roelofs in the magazine Eigen Haard in 1879, the painter apprised him in a letter of a few errors, providing important additional information about his artistic work and detailed study of beetles. Vosmaer incorporated this information in an issue of Onze hedendaagsche schilders devoted to Roelofs in 1882, for which the artist supplied the illustrations. A letter prompted by the galley proofs contains Roelofs' observations on a few technical aspects of his watercolours.

II. Dutch Views and Uses of British Policy in India around 1800

Itinerario ◽  
1988 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-32
Author(s):  
Robert van Niel
Keyword(s):  
De Novo ◽  
The State ◽  
Final Report ◽  
Total Change ◽  
Group Of Seven ◽  
East Indies ◽  
The World ◽  
The Hague ◽  
The Republic ◽  
The Government

On August 31, 1803, a group of seven men, comprising the Commission for East Indies Affairs (Commissie tot de Oost-Indische Zaken), submitted the final report of its deliberations to the Government of the State of the Batavian Republic (Staatsbewind der Bataafsche Republiek) in The Hague. This Commission had been called into existence in November 1802 to make recommendations on how best to administer and conduct trade with the nation's possessions in the East Indies in a fashion that would render the greatest advantage to the nation's finances and profit to its commerce. Only a couple of years earlier Holland's monopolistic United East Indies Company (VOC) had been terminated by the Republic, and its assets and liabilities assumed by the State. The liabilities were immediately identifiable, for they consisted of debts which had to be paid in hard cash. The assets, on the other hand, consisted of territories – most of which had fallen under English control – and factories that somehow had to be made profitable, but seemed, given the then-existing conditions in the world, to be almost out of reach. The Commission was supposed to make recommendations as to how the remaining, territories of the VOC should be managed and how the trade with the East Indies and Asia in general was to be made profitable. This was no small task, so it may appear somewhat wondrous that the Commission was able to complete its work in less than ten months. The dispatch with which the Commission's work was completed, however, is more understandable if it is realised that the financial collapse of the VOC had been openly recognised since 1786, and various proposals for either reform or total change of the Company's system had been presented and discussed. These alternative proposals were well known to the members of the Commission. Their work, therefore, involved striking a balance among these proposals rather than creating a system de novo.

State Formation and the Role of Portfolio Investors in Cochin, 1663–1700

Itinerario ◽  
1994 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 65-85 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hugo K. S'Jacob
Keyword(s):  
Eighteenth Century ◽  
The Netherlands ◽  
Traditional Approach ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Arts And Sciences ◽  
East Indies ◽  
Netherlands East Indies ◽  
Fourth Volume ◽  
Asian History

J.C. van Leur was not very kind to his fellow historians in 1940 when he addressed the Historical Section of the Batavian Society of Arts and Sciences, reviewing the fourth volume of the Geschiedenis van Nederlandsch Indië by E.C. Godée Molsbergen. The gist of his talk, entitled ‘On the Eighteenth Century as a Category in Indonesian History’, was that colonial historical studies in the Netherlands and in the Netherlands East Indies were of a fairly parochial nature. For Van Leur, who was well acquainted with social and economic historical theory, it was not difficult to criticize the traditional approach of Godée's study of the eighteenth century. He pointed out that it made no sense to use the eighteenth century as a category in Asian history. The reverse in fact was true, he argued, as from the seventeenth to the nineteenth century, Asian civilizations were characterized by a steady continuity. Nowadays many historians would agree with Van Leur's point of view, except for his refutation of the eighteenth century as a category in Asian history. The eighteenth century is now generally regarded as a period of change in many parts of Asia.

The Netherlands and European Integration

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mathieu Segers
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
European Integration ◽  
Polished Surface ◽  
Constitutional Treaty ◽  
The Public ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Hague ◽  
Fortress Europe ◽  
The Veil ◽  
The Eu

Why did the Netherlands take part in the process of European integration from the beginning? How did that happen, and what consequences did it have? At present, questions like these linger immediately beneath the polished surface of the official narratives of economic rationalism and idealistic instrumentalism that dominate narratives about the Netherlands’ role as founding member of European integration. The clear no-vote in the 2005 referendum on the constitutional treaty for the EU and the outbreak of the Euro-crisis in 2010 have pulled the veil away from these underlying issues. As one of the founders of today’s European Union, the Netherlands has been a key player in the process of European integration. The Dutch like to think of themselves as shapers of European integration—matching their image in historiography—but the history of their participation in the European project often tells a very different story. Yes, as founders of the EU, the Dutch actively co-shaped European integration, but often in ways not unveiled in the official and rather consistent post facto narratives. In the past decades, governments in The Hague often steered an erratic course in European integration, trying to reconcile high hopes for instrumental free trade arrangements and transatlantic community with a deep-seated anxiety over the potential emergence of a small, continental, and politicized “fortress Europe.” This is a story that is both less known to the public and less prominent in the existing historiography.

Le codex Buslidianus des épopées de Stace

Mnemosyne ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 69 (3) ◽  
pp. 420-432
Author(s):  
Valéry Berlincourt
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
National Library ◽  
History Of ◽  
Recent Edition ◽  
The Hague ◽  
Shed Light

Several readings of the codex Buslidianus of Statius are quoted from Bernartius (1595) and Gronovius (1653) in the recent edition by Hall, Ritchie and Edwards (2007-2008). This manuscript has not yet been identified, and the question whether Bernartius and Gronovius refer to the same manuscript or not has not been answered yet. By examining a collation made by Gronovius, it proves possible both to establish that the codex Buslidianus he used is a manuscript preserved at the Royal Library in The Hague (National Library of the Netherlands), and to suggest that Bernartius used the same source. These findings shed light on the history of the manuscript of The Hague, and they reveal that some readings of those folios that are now lost have been preserved by Gronovius. Plusieurs leçons du codex Buslidianus de Stace sont citées d’après Bernartius (1595) et Gronovius (1653) dans la récente édition de Hall, Ritchie et Edwards (2007-2008). Ce manuscrit n’a pas encore été identifié, et la question de savoir si les éditeurs anciens se réfèrent ou non au même manuscrit n’a pas encore trouvé réponse. L’examen d’une collation effectuée par Gronovius permet de démontrer que le codex Buslidianus qu’il a utilisé est un manuscrit conservé à la Bibliothèque Royale de La Haye (Bibliothèque Nationale des Pays-Bas), et de suggérer que Bernartius a utilisé la même source. Ces découvertes éclairent l’histoire du manuscrit de La Haye, et elles révèlent que certaines leçons de ses feuillets aujourd’hui perdus ont été préservées par Gronovius. This article is in French.

Further Additions to Materials for West African History in the Archives of Belgium and Holland by Patricia Carson

1969 ◽  
Vol 12 (01) ◽  
pp. 81-89
Author(s):  
H. M. Feinberg
Keyword(s):  
Eighteenth Century ◽  
Seventeenth Century ◽  
The Netherlands ◽  
West African ◽  
African History ◽  
Guinea Coast ◽  
The West ◽  
Archival Material ◽  
The Hague ◽  
State Archives

This article is a supplement to a previous article on the same subject published in the African Studies Bulletin. Before I list further citations omitted from Materials for West African History in the Archives of Belgium and Holland, I will discuss, in some detail, the nature of the archival material deposited in the Algemeen Rijksarchief, The Hague. I will attempt to enhance the brief discussions of Miss Carson while avoiding repetition of statements which seem clear and/or are adequately discussed in her book. The General State Archives, The Hague, includes two major collections of interest to the West African historian: the Archives of the West India Companies and the Archives of the Netherlands Settlements on the Guinea Coast. Initially, one must realize that most of the seventeenth-century papers of both collections have been lost or destroyed, and that as a consequence there are many gaps among the existing manuscripts. For example, volume 81 (1658-1709) of the Archives of the Netherlands Settlements on the Guinea Coast includes only manuscripts for the following times: December 25, 1658-June 12, 1660; August, 1693; and October 12-December 31, 1709. Also, most of the seventeenth-century material is written in script, whereas the eighteenth-century manuscripts, with some exceptions, are in more conventional hand-writings.

The Seventh Year of the Permanent Court of International Justice

1929 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-29 ◽  
Author(s):  
Manley O. Hudson
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
International Justice ◽  
Administration Of Justice ◽  
The World ◽  
The Future ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Hague ◽  
Advisory Opinions ◽  
Standing Question

Several important events have marked the seventh year in the history of the Permanent Court of International Justice. The court was in session at The Hague from February 6, 1928, to April 26, 1928 (thirteenth session); from June 15, 1928, to September 13, 1928 (fourteenth session); and from November 12, 1928, to November 21, 1928 (fifteenth session). It handed down two advisory opinions (Nos. 15 and 16) and two judgments (Nos. 12 and 13), and several important orders. It lost the services of two eminent judges through the resignation of Judge John Bassett Moore and the death of Judge André Weiss. A settlement was reached with the Netherlands Government of the long-standing question as to the privileges and immunities of the judges and registry officials; and, what is perhaps more important for the court’s future, the signatories of the court’s protocol of signature began the consideration of changes in the court’s statute in the light of seven years’ experience. The seventh year marks progress in the establishment of the court’s position as the chief agency in the world for the international administration of justice, as it marks also changes which will affect the future of the court.

Early Yoruba Historiography

1976 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
pp. 69-89 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robin Law
Keyword(s):  
Oral Tradition ◽  
Historical Research ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Colonial History ◽  
Historical Writing ◽  
Local Tradition ◽  
History Of ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
The Government ◽  
Oral Evidence

The pre-colonial history of the Yoruba has attracted considerable attention from academically trained historians in recent years. This academic historiography–in Yorubaland as elsewhere in sub-Saharan Africa–does not antedate the 1950s, but it was preceded by a tradition of historical writing by local amateur historians which stretched back well into the nineteenth century. The modern academic historians owe a great deal to these amateur predecessors: much of the “oral tradition” utilized by the academic historians comes in fact at second hand from the writings of the amateurs, and the current generation of local historians has figured prominently among the informants from whom the academics have collected their oral evidence.This fusion of academic and amateur historiography was, indeed, given some institutional recognition in the Yoruba Historical Research Scheme launched by the government of the Western Region of Nigeria in 1956, in which both academics and local historians were employed as research associates to collect traditional material. Despite their importance, however, little serious work has been done on the early historians of Yorubaland. The existence of a local tradition of historiography in Yorubaland has been mentioned in general surveys of historical writing on Africa, and attention has been drawn to it as constituting an aspect of the development of “cultural nationalism” among western-educated Africans in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. These discussions of early Yoruba historiography, however, have dealt with only a few of the better known works and have given little idea of the wealth of the published material or of its character—nor is there any comprehensive bibliography of the writings of the early Yoruba historians. The present article, therefore, attempts to present as complete a survey as possible of historical writing on Yorubaland in the period before c. 1950 and seeks to make some contribution towards assessment of the value of the Yoruba local histories as sources by giving some information on the context in which the local historians wrote and the way in which they went about the task of reconstructing Yoruba history.

Nijhoff in America: Booksellers from the Netherlands and the Development of American Research Libraries – Part I

Quaerendo ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 40 (2) ◽  
pp. 166-226 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hendrik Edelman
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
European Continent ◽  
Research Libraries ◽  
Staff Members ◽  
Innovative Leadership ◽  
History Of ◽  
Chronological Sequence ◽  
International Publishing ◽  
American Research ◽  
The Hague

AbstractAmerican libraries began to be developed in the middle of the nineteenth century and were among the world's most prominent a century later. The remarkable history of the major libraries in North America, their European models and their strong and innovative leadership is reported here in more or less chronological sequence from the earliest efforts to about 1970, when the unprecedented growth came to an end. The building of the international library collections could not have been achieved without the enterprising efforts of many booksellers in England and on the European continent. Among those who made significant contributions, were three booksellers from the Netherlands: Frederik Muller, Martinus Nijhoff and Swets & Zeitlinger. This article describes their role, but concentrates on Martinus Nijhoff, publisher and bookseller of The Hague, who had by far the longest successful tenure in supplying American libraries with European books and periodicals. Between 1853 and 1971, three generations of the Nijhoff family – Martinus, Wouter and Wouter Pzn –, with their staff members, built one of the leading international publishing and bookselling houses in the Netherlands. Their legacy is permanently embedded in the collections of the great North American libraries.

Missions by the President

1992 ◽  
Vol 32 (289) ◽  
pp. 387-388
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
Foreign Affairs ◽  
Red Cross ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Multilateral Cooperation ◽  
Geographical Regions ◽  
The Hague ◽  
The Government ◽  
Foreign Ministry

In the second half of May 1992, ICRC President Cornelio Sommaruga went to The Hague to attend the IVth Regional Conference of European National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (18-22 May), which took as its theme “The New Europe needs The New Red Cross” (see pp. 391-393). While in The Hague, Mr. Sommaruga had talks with the Netherlands Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Minister for Cooperation Development on various current ICRC operations and on financial matters. The President thanked the government of the Kingdom of the Netherlands for its substantial support for the ICRC in the past and for its commitment to providing financial help in the future. During a working meeting at the Foreign Ministry with officials dealing with various geographical regions and with multilateral cooperation, the prospects for reconvening the 26th International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent were reviewed. The President also had the opportunity, at a lunch given by the Swiss Ambassador to the Netherlands, to talk to the President of the Second Chamber of the Netherlands Parliament and to the Secretary-General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs about humanitarian needs around the world and the degree of respect shown for international humanitarian law. Mr. Sommaruga was accompanied by Mr. Maurice Aubert, a member of the ICRC, Mr. Yves Sandoz, Director, and Mr. Michel Convers, Deputy Director.

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