History of the Netherlands

Republic of Amsterdam Radio
  • 4.8 (159)
  • HISTORY

The incredible journey of the world’s most influential swamp and those who call it home. Beginning at the end of the last ice age and trekking all the way through to the modern era, together we step through the centuries and meet some of the cast of characters who fashioned and forged a boggy marshland into a vibrant mercantile society and then further into a sea-trotting global super-power before becoming the centre for modern day liberalism.

  1. Waterland's Rampjaar Refugees with Loek Zoon

    AUG 5 · BONUS

    Waterland's Rampjaar Refugees with Loek Zoon

    On June 12, 1672 the Dutch republic was attacked on all sides by France, England and the bishoprics of Cologne and Münster. Within a month, three of the seven provinces had been conquered and the people of Gelderland, Utrecht and Overijssel brutally felt the pinch as foreign soldiers looted, raided and plundered at will. Many fled westward, sailing across the Zuiderzee, where they found refuge in the Waterland region of Holland. In this episode we speak to historian Loek Zoon of Waterlands Archief whose recent work has shone a light on how the towns of Waterland reacted to the sudden surge of strangers, about the people who fled and those who helped them and how the whole event can inform us better as we similarly face a world in which high-level politics distills into dislocation and strife. Do you want to know more about Flemish and Dutch history and culture? Visit ⁠⁠www.the-low-countries.com⁠⁠. Our theme music is created by Samuel P K Smith. Music clips provided by Storyblocks: "Minimal Documentary Background Music" by Volodymyr Piddubnyk ⁠https://www.storyblocks.com/audio/stock/minimal-documentary-background-music-skxjrbbvvketzhdzl.html "Documentary Corporate Marimba Background Music" by Media-Music Group ⁠https://www.storyblocks.com/audio/stock/documentary-corporate-marimba-background-music-rivttg71dkk2oc0dt.html "Escaping Forever" by Michael Vignola https://www.storyblocks.com/audio/stock/escaping-forever-hog3rptosk2xlgdd7.html "Jazz Bass And Drums Solo" by Volodymyr Piddubnyk https://www.storyblocks.com/audio/stock/jazz-bass-and-drums-solo-bjj7ev19vkhjpmbps.html Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    36 min
  2. BONUS: LGBTQ+ history of the Netherlands with Elyzabeth Gorman

    JUN 18

    BONUS: LGBTQ+ history of the Netherlands with Elyzabeth Gorman

    We sit down with Elyzabeth Gorman, storyteller-in-chief of Badass Tours, to talk about LGBTQ+ history of the Netherlands. Quite the badass herself, Elyzabeth aims to communicate ‘hidden histories’ - stories of women, people of colour and members of LGBTQ+ communities whose lives and experiences are so often overlooked or even wilfully ignored in the mainstream telling of Dutch history. She does public speaking events at museums around the country and has made it her mission to communicate lesser known histories of the Netherlands, in English. Sounds like our kind of person! While there’s a range of areas that Elyzabeth covers in her work, for this episode we wanted to particularly focus on LGBTQ+ history, since we personally feel like this is an area which we have also neglected in our podcasting so far and which we could learn a lot more about ourselves. Do you want to know more about Flemish and Dutch history and culture? Visit ⁠www.the-low-countries.com⁠. Episode art photo by Dana Marin / Amsterdamian. Our theme music is created by Samuel P K Smith. Music clips provided by Storyblocks: "Minimal Documentary Background Music" by Volodymyr Piddubnyk https://www.storyblocks.com/audio/stock/minimal-documentary-background-music-skxjrbbvvketzhdzl.html "Documentary Corporate Marimba Background Music" by Media-Music Group https://www.storyblocks.com/audio/stock/documentary-corporate-marimba-background-music-rivttg71dkk2oc0dt.html "Jazz Bass And Drums Solo" by Volodymyr Piddubnyk https://www.storyblocks.com/audio/stock/jazz-bass-and-drums-solo-bjj7ev19vkhjpmbps.html “Black Baugette” by Humans Win https://www.storyblocks.com/audio/stock/black-baugette-hy78n0qm_klr27ky7.html "Escaping Forever" by Michael Vignola https://www.storyblocks.com/audio/stock/escaping-forever-hog3rptosk2xlgdd7.html "Lofi Jazz Beat (Paris Caf Version)" by The Turquoise Moon https://www.storyblocks.com/audio/stock/lofi-jazz-beat-sdve38movkgogrl4f.html Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    1h 2m
  3. The Widowed Bride

    APR 28

    The Widowed Bride

    After Prince Juan’s death in 1497, Margaret of Austria spent almost two years in mourning in Spain, being treated with empathy and kindness by the Catholic Monarchs Isabella and Ferdinand. Margaret’s sudden singleness meant that, whether she liked it or not, her father Maximilian was going to update her profile on the Tinder for European royalty, and start swiping through every eligible prince or king throughout the continent to see how he could next use his daughter for his own political gains. We will sort through the prospective matches and, while Margaret travels through France on her way back home, we’ll make a detour there ourselves for a game of royal tennis which will end in a royal death, divorce and subsequent sex scandal. Salacious! Margaret of Austria arrived back in Ghent in March 1500, just in time to be present at the christening of her nephew, Charles, a grandiose celebration such as had not been seen in the Low Countries before, even including a fire breathing dragon. In the aftermath, Margaret’s future would once again be discussed within the various courts of Europe and she would be married off for a third and final time, this time to Philibert the Handsome, Duke of Savoy. With thanks to George, John Ricketson, Jackie Pearson, Geoffrey Egger and Jo Crease. SHOW NOTES: https://www.republicofamsterdamradio.com/episodes/historyofthenetherlands/episode-54-the-widowed-bride PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/historyofthenetherlands BLUESKY: https://historyofnl.bsky.social/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    59 min

  4. 12/23/2024 · BONUS

    Decolonising the AfricaMuseum with Bart Ouvry

    We sit down with Bart Ouvry, managing director of AfricaMuseum in Tervuren, Belgium, to speak about the challenges he faces attempting to decolonise a colonial museum. Established in 1898, the museum originally served as a propaganda tool to lend support to Belgium's King Leopold II's colonial ambitions in Congo and central Africa. By the late 20th century, the museum was being widely and critically called into question, leading to a five year renovation plan that started in 2013, intended to revamp it both physically and philosophically. Since reopening in late 2018, AfricaMuseum has continued to receive mixed opinions from many different perspectives. This testifies to the complexities and controversies that remain inherent within any discussion about historical narratives and what different and divisive consequences they can bear for people today. To hear more about the museum team’s journey in forging a path through this mire, we were lucky enough to sit down with Bart in his office to ask him about his own background, the importance of history, about his role at the museum and about what it’s like to lead a team that is faced with tackling such difficult and monumental task. Do you want to know more about Flemish and Dutch history and culture? Visit www.the-low-countries.com. Our theme music is created by Samuel P K Smith. Music clips provided by Storyblocks: "Minimal Documentary Background Music" by Volodymyr Piddubnyk https://www.storyblocks.com/audio/stock/minimal-documentary-background-music-skxjrbbvvketzhdzl.html "Documentary Corporate Marimba Background Music" by Media-Music Group https://www.storyblocks.com/audio/stock/documentary-corporate-marimba-background-music-rivttg71dkk2oc0dt.html "Jazz Bass And Drums Solo" by Volodymyr Piddubnyk https://www.storyblocks.com/audio/stock/jazz-bass-and-drums-solo-bjj7ev19vkhjpmbps.html "Escaping Forever" by Michael Vignola https://www.storyblocks.com/audio/stock/escaping-forever-hog3rptosk2xlgdd7.html Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    48 min
  5. Clinker to Carvel (and how to shove sphagnum into wood)

    12/09/2024

    Clinker to Carvel (and how to shove sphagnum into wood)

    We dumbly delve into the deep and desolate doldrums that define trying to understand the growth and development of Dutch shipbuilding in the late 15th and early 16th centuries, particularly in Holland. Conditions would conspire to allow this industry to flourish across the Low Countries. There is, however, a distinct lack of written information from the shipbuilding sector in the 15th century to speak about it definitively. Historians and archaeologists have put together and continue to put together as many pieces as possible, however much of the detail is forever lost. As such, speculation must play its part. In the second part of the episode, we are going to discuss some of the main sources that historians use to try and get a picture of this very opaque past. With thanks to David Bailey, Emma Kennedy, Elpeniki Lyberis, Lieke Sloot and Nicobellasims. SHOW NOTES: https://www.republicofamsterdamradio.com/episodes/historyofthenetherlands/episode-53-clinker-to-carvel-and-how-to-shove-sphagnum-into-wood PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/historyofthenetherlands BLUESKY: https://historyofnl.bsky.social/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    56 min

  6. 11/11/2024 · BONUS

    Amsterdam 750 with Erik Schmitz from Amsterdam City Archive

    On October 27, 1275, Count Floris V of Holland issued a toll exemption to the village of Amsterdam as compensation for damage caused by his troops. This document remains the oldest known written reference to Amsterdam and is kept in a dark depot in the Amsterdam City Archives. One of the curators and people responsible for keeping this document safe for the people of Amsterdam is Erik Schmitz. We had the privilege of speaking to him on October 28, 2024, as Amsterdam kicks off its 750th jubilee year. Our conversation spans from looking at the physical document itself, what it meant for Amsterdam's growth over the centuries and how its significance has changed in line with the development of the city itself. Do you want to know more about Flemish and Dutch history and culture? Visit www.the-low-countries.com. Music clips provided by Storyblocks: "Jazz Bass And Drums Solo" by Volodymyr Piddubnyk https://www.storyblocks.com/audio/stock/jazz-bass-and-drums-solo-bjj7ev19vkhjpmbps.html "Minimal Documentary Background Music" by Volodymyr Piddubnyk https://www.storyblocks.com/audio/stock/minimal-documentary-background-music-skxjrbbvvketzhdzl.html "Lofi Jazz Beat (Paris Caf Version)" by The Turquoise Moon https://www.storyblocks.com/audio/stock/lofi-jazz-beat-sdve38movkgogrl4f.html "Documentary Corporate Marimba Background Music" by Media-Music Group https://www.storyblocks.com/audio/stock/documentary-corporate-marimba-background-music-rivttg71dkk2oc0dt.html Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    43 min
  7. Draining the Swamp Part 2: Too Drained, Too Furious

    10/14/2024

    Draining the Swamp Part 2: Too Drained, Too Furious

    Between the years 1000 and 1500 CE the soggy, sphagnum filled bog lands of the western Low Countries were terraformed to support human habitation and, as such, the seeds of future prosperity and hardships were simultaneously, albeit unknowingly, sown. Draining the swamp meant that land was created for agriculture, farming and settlement. This land was crisscrossed by waterways over which products both domestic and foreign could be moved on boats from the sea to the rivers and vice versa. Draining the swamp also meant that those lands sank, due to oxygen seeping into the pierced mass of moss and rotting the previously petrified peat within. People had to invent things like pumping mills to move water out of the swamp and stave off that waterlogged sinking feeling they had been experiencing. By the start of the 16th century, towns in the Low Countries had become important hubs of commercial shipping, with boats sailing from Northern Germany and beyond to the Baltic Sea, preferring to use the relatively calm and peaceful waters “inside the dunes” of Holland to reach markets in Flanders, as opposed to risking the open waters of the North Sea. Although water management required cooperation between the peoples of different towns, all of this economic activity also naturally created competition and rivalry between these towns, particularly in Holland, as they literally fought over their rights to do things like dig new canals, build new locks and charge tolls. It’s Draining the Swamp Part II: Too Drained, Too Furious. With thanks to Fredrik, Kelly Magee, Laura Isräels, Kevin Bertram and Lars for their Patreon support. SHOW NOTES: https://www.republicofamsterdamradio.com/episodes/historyofthenetherlands/episode-52-draining-the-swamp-part-2-too-drained-too-furious PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/historyofthenetherlands TWITTER: https://www.twitter.com/historyofNL Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    59 min

  8. 08/05/2024 · BONUS

    Getting to Know The American Netherlander

    We chat with comedian and author Greg Shapiro a.k.a. The American Netherlander a.k.a. the voice of Donald Trump in the "America First, the Netherlands Second" video. Greg shares with us his uniquely American insight into the Netherlands' history and culture, especially as to how it relates to the United States, how the two cultures can learn from each other, and how kids books differ between the two countries. You can find Greg Shaprio's tour dates at https://gregshapiro.nl/greg-shapiro-upcoming-comedy-shows/ Music provided by Storyblocks: "Jazz Bass And Drums Solo" by Volodymyr Piddubnyk https://www.storyblocks.com/audio/stock/jazz-bass-and-drums-solo-bjj7ev19vkhjpmbps.html “Cousing Mischief” by Facundo Alvarez https://www.storyblocks.com/audio/stock/cousing-mischief-rpgn65n8dkfs85l7u.html "Minimal Documentary Background Music" by Volodymyr Piddubnyk https://www.storyblocks.com/audio/stock/minimal-documentary-background-music-skxjrbbvvketzhdzl.html “Comedy Background Detective Cartoon Version 4 20 Sec” by Volodymyr Piddubnyk https://www.storyblocks.com/audio/stock/comedy-background-detective-cartoon-version-4-20-sec-svoc3fdwpkgc9wmi0.html Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    58 min
See All (95)

4.8
out of 5
159 Ratings

About

The incredible journey of the world’s most influential swamp and those who call it home. Beginning at the end of the last ice age and trekking all the way through to the modern era, together we step through the centuries and meet some of the cast of characters who fashioned and forged a boggy marshland into a vibrant mercantile society and then further into a sea-trotting global super-power before becoming the centre for modern day liberalism.

Information

  • Creator
    Republic of Amsterdam Radio
  • Years Active
    2019 - 2025
  • Episodes
    95
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Republic of Amsterdam Radio
  • Show Website
    History of the Netherlands

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