Boundaries and Their Meanings in the History of the Netherlands (Studies in Central European Histories, 48)

Traditionally, the term boundary applies to the demarcation between a physical place and another physical place, most commonly associated with lines on a map As the essays in this volume demonstrate, however, a boundary can also function in a more broadly conceptual manner. A boundary becomes not an "imaginary line" but a tool for thinking about how to separate any two elements, whether ideas, events, et cetera, into categories by which they become comprehensible and distinct. The scholar contributors seek not simply to discern the boundaries, but, and perhaps more importantly, to understand the process of delination, and its consequences. With its maverick history and grass-root political traditions, the Netherlands provides an auspicious setting to examine the historical function of boundaries both real and imagined CONTENTS......Page 6 List of Illustrations......Page 8 Acknowledgments......Page 10 Introduction: "Boundaries: Real and Imagined" (Laura Cruz and Hubert P. van Tuyll)......Page 12 PART ONE THE GOLDEN AGE......Page 24 Divided Loyalties: States-Brabant As a Border Country (C.O. van der Meij)......Page 26 Geography Unbound: Boundaries and the Exotic World in the Early Enlightenment (Benjamin Schmidt)......Page 46 Deciphering the Dutch in Deshima (Mia M. Mochizuki)......Page 74 The Transnational Dispersal of the Walloon Military Aristocracy in the Era of the Dutch Revolt: The Example of the Tserclaes of Tilly (John Theibault)......Page 106 The Geographic Extent of the Dutch Book Trade in the 17th Century: An Old Question Revisited (Laura Cruz)......Page 130 Pragmatic Agents of Empire: Dutch Intercultural Mediators among the Mohawks in Seventeenth-Century New Netherland (Mark Meuwese)......Page 150 PART TWO THE MODERN AGE......Page 166 Neutral Borders, Neutral Waters, Neutral Skies: Protecting the Territorial Neutrality of the Netherlands in the Great War, 1914–1918 (Maartje M. Abbenhuis)......Page 168 Last Chance: Belgium at Versailles (Hubert P. van Tuyll)......Page 188 The Dutch Border Areas 1933–1945: Inducement for Incidents or Object of Structural Historiographical Neglect? (Bob de Graaff)......Page 204 'Our National Community': The Dominance of Organic Thinking in the Post-War Netherlands (Martin Bossenbroek)......Page 224 Dwinegeri—Multiculturalism and the Colonial Past (Or: The Cultural Borders of Being Dutch) (Susan Legêne)......Page 234 Bibliography......Page 254 Brief Biographies of the Contributors......Page 262 Index......Page 264 Introduction: Boundaries : Real And Imagined / Laura Cruz And Hubert P. Van Tuyll -- Pt. 1. The Golden Age -- Divided Loyalties : States-brabant As A Border Country / C.o. Van Der Meij -- Geography Unbound : Boundaries And The Exotic World In The Early Enlightenment / Benjamin Schmidt -- Deciphering The Dutch In Deshima / Mia M. Mochizuki -- The Transnational Dispersal Of The Walloon Military Aristocracy In The Era Of The Dutch Revolt : The Example Of The Tserclaes Of Tilly / John Theibault -- The Geographic Extent Of The Dutch Book Trade In The 17th Century : An Old Question Revisited / Laura Cruz -- Pragmatic Agents Of Empire : Dutch Intercultural Mediators Among The Mohawks In Seventeenth-century New Netherland / Mark Meuwese -- Pt. 2. The Modern Age -- Neutral Borders, Neutral Waters, Neutral Skies : Protecting The Territorial Neutrality Of The Netherlands In The Great War, 1914-1918 / Maartje M. Abbenhuis -- Last Chance : Belgium At Versailles / Hubert P. Van Tuyll -- The Dutch Border Areas, 1933-1945 : Inducement For Incidents Or Object Of Structural Historiographical Neglect? / Bob De Graaff -- Our National Community : The Dominance Of Organic Thinking In The Post-war Netherlands / Martin Bossenbroek -- Dwinegeri-multiculturalism And The Colonial Past (or: The Cultural Borders Of Being Dutch, Part 1) / Susan Legene. Edited By Benjamin Kaplan, Marybeth Carlson, Laura Cruz. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Drawing on a growing interest in the theoretical concept of boundaries, the contributors to this volume seek to understand the process of drawing boundaries, both real and imagined, and the consequences of these processes in the history of the Low Countries.