More world history of the Netherlands

In 2018, we published the ‘Wereldgeschiedenis van Nederland’ (World History of the Netherlands). In recent decades, historians have become increasingly interested in global history. From this perspective, it appears that Dutch history is much more connected with that of the world around us than the public, but also many historians themselves, were aware of. Not only with neighbouring regions, but also with those further away, and more intensely than the standard histories tell. In politics and society, a rather simple and naive idea of the Dutch past is often propagated, as if the Netherlands and the Dutch have a given, through time unchanging identity. Not infrequently, all kinds of recent notions, such as emancipated women and tolerated homosexuals, are claimed as typically Dutch. The ‘World History of the Netherlands’ offers a scientifically sound counterargument.

The ‘Wereldgeschiedenis van Nederland’ provides a responsible, readable injection into the debate, showing how Dutch history has branched out into the world for numerous developments and events. Besides reciprocal influence, the comparison of Dutch developments with those abroad also receives attention. ‘Wereldgeschiedenis van Nederland’ is made up of short chapters, linked to a year, running from prehistory to the present. The book, published by AmboAnthos, was well received in the press. Meanwhile, more than 25,000 copies have been sold.

Now the time is ripe for a second volume. It will be titled ‘Nog meer wereldgeschiedenis van Nederland’ (Even More World History of the Netherlands). It will appear in the autumn of 2022 at AmboAnthos under the auspices of the Huygens Institute and the IISH. The structure of the contributions is the same as in part 1. The editors (Leo Lucassen, Lex Heerma van Voss, Marjolein ‘t Hart, Manon van der Heijden and Nadia Bouras) will try to meet what they considered the main criticism of the first volume, the lack of foreign voices among the authors.