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The Top 5 History Stories of the Year

13 December 2021 2 min. reading time Best of 2021

The Slave Trade of the Dutch West India Company

RP P 1935 819
© Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam

Founded four hundred years ago, the Dutch West India Company waged war at sea, and colonized territories in West Africa and the Caribbean until its dissolution in 1791. The Company not only traded in goods, but also in people.
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Duelling in the Dunes

Rowlandson
© Wellcome Collection

In the 19th century, a very particular kind of tourist came to Flanders: foreigners looking for a quiet place to fight. They came to settle debts of honour out of the public eye, and to avoid the increasing prohibitions on duelling in their home countries. Any trouble with the Belgian authorities could be avoided, hopefully, by a swift return home.
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The Swimmer Who Won Gold in the Wrong Place

Microsoft Teams image
© Wikipedia

An important name is missing from the collective Dutch sports memory. Rie Mastenbroek (1919-2003) was, in the 1930s, a lauded swimmer of whom the entire country was proud. But after the war, her name fell into oblivion. Mastenbroek won four medals at the 1936 Olympics, which went down in history as a propaganda event for the Nazis.
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This article is part of the series ‘Going for Gold’ on the history of the Olympic Games once hosted by Belgium and the Netherlands.
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You Are What You Smell

Anatomische les
© Museum Prinsenhof, Delft

What did the past smell like? And how does scent influence our culture? Questions like these are getting more attention in the field of (art) history research. Biologist and philosopher Geerdt Magiels took us along on a visit to Fleeting – Scents in Colour at the Mauritshuis, to the stinking seventeenth century and to the nearly scent-free Low Countries of today.
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Change the World? Dutch Inventors to the Rescue

Planet header 970x545

From maps and microscopes to fire hoses and artificial hearts, the Low Countries have been the breeding ground for many world-changing inventions. Inspired by superhero Captain Planet, in this podcast, we are presenting Dutch inventors and their impressive discoveries through the elements earth, fire, wind, water and heart.
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Tom Christiaens

editor the low countries and deputy editor-in-chief de lage landen

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