 | This article needs to beupdated. The reason given is: Ten subjects have been replaced in June 2020.[1]. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(June 2020) |
TheCanon of the Netherlands (Dutch:Canon van Nederland; also known as theCanon of Dutch History) is a list of fifty topics that aims to provide achronological summary ofDutch history to be taught inprimary schools and the first two years ofsecondary school in theNetherlands.[2][3] Thefifty topics are divided intofourteen sections.
The Canon of Dutch History was prepared by a committee headed byFrits van Oostrom and presented to the Minister of Education, Culture and Science,Maria van der Hoeven, on 16 October 2006.
A revised version was presented to the Dutch government on 3 October 2007 and in October 2008 it was agreed to include the canon in the school curriculum by 1 August 2009. An updated version was presented in June 2020, with ten topics replaced, parts rewritten and other modifications made to make the canon more diverse and accessible.[4][5]
The canon was designed to provide an overview of "what everyone ought to know, at the very least, about the history and culture of the Netherlands", as well as providing a framework for the teaching of History in Dutch schools.[6] Schools are not obliged to teach the canon, in accordance with theFreedom of education principle incorporated in theDutch constitution (article 23) that guarantees the right of parents to have their children educated in accordance with their religious and other views.
The websiteentoen.nu is responsible for developing the canon for use in schools and in society in general.[7]
| Topic | Section | Date | Description | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dolmens | 3 | c.3000BCE | Early farmers |
| 2 | The Romanlimes | 2, 3 | 47 - c. 400 | On the borders of the Roman empire |
| 3 | Willibrord | 3 | 658 - 739 | Spread ofChristianity |
| 4 | Charlemagne | 2 | 742 - 814 | Emperor of theWestern world |
| 5 | Hebban olla vogala ... | 4 | c. 1100 | Earliest fragment ofOld Dutchscript |
| 6 | Floris V, Count of Holland | 6 | 1254 - 1296 | A DutchGraaf and a discontentednobility |
| 7 | TheHanseatic League | 5 | 1356 - c. 1450 | Trading cities in theLow Countries |
| The 'Printing press' was originally at No. 8 in the first version. In the revised version it was replaced by 'Christiaan Huygens', now at No. 21 in the list. | 4 | c. 1450 | Printing Revolution | |
| 8 | Erasmus | 3 | 1466? - 1536 | An internationalhumanist |
| 9 | Charles V | 2, 6 | 1500 - 1558 | The Low Countries as an administrative unit |
| 10 | TheBeeldenstorm | 3, 6 | 1566 | Religious conflict |
| 11 | William the Silent | 6 | 1533 - 1584 | From rebellious nobleman to 'Father of the Nation' |
| 12 | TheDutch Republic | 6 | 1588 - 1795 | An exceptionalfederal republic |
| 13 | TheDutch East India Company | 8 | 1602 - 1799 | Expansion overseas |
| 14 | TheBeemsterpolder | 1, 6 | 1612 | TheNetherlands andwater |
| 15 | TheGrachtengordel | 5, 6 | 1613 - 1662 | Urban expansion in theseventeenth century |
| 16 | Hugo Grotius | 6, 7 | 1583 - 1645 | Apioneer of moderninternational law |
| 17 | TheStatenbijbel | 3, 4 | 1637 | TheBook of Books |
| 18 | Rembrandt | 7 | 1606? - 1669 | The greatpainters |
| 19 | TheAtlas Maior ofJoan Blaeu | 7, 8 | 1662 | Mapping the world |
| 20 | Michiel de Ruyter | 7 | 1607 - 1676 | Naval heroes andDutch naval power |
| 21 | Christiaan Huygens | 7 | 1629-1695 | Science in theDutch Golden Age |
| 22 | Spinoza | 7 | 1632 - 1677 | Seeking thetruth |
| 23 | Slavery | 8 | c. 1637 - 1863 | Trafficking and forced labour in theNew World |
| 24 | Buitenplaatsen | 7, 9 | 17th and 18th century | Summer residences in the country |
| 25 | Eise Eisinga | 9 | 1744 - 1828 | The Enlightenment in the Netherlands |
| 26 | ThePatriots | 9 | 1780 - 1795 | Crisis in the Republic |
| 27 | Napoleon Bonaparte | 9 | 1769 - 1821 | TheKingdom of Holland |
| 28 | William I | 9 | 1772 - 1843 | TheUnited Kingdom of the Netherlands |
| 29 | Thefirst railway | 10 | 1839 | TheIndustrial Revolution |
| 30 | TheDutch constitution | 9 | 1848 | Astate's most importantlaw |
| 31 | Max Havelaar | 4, 8 | 1860 | Protest against colonial abuse in theDutch East Indies |
| 32 | Opposition to child labour | 10 | 19th century | Out of factories and into schools |
| 33 | Vincent van Gogh | 10 | 1853 - 1890 | Modern art |
| 34 | Aletta Jacobs | 10, 12 | 1854 - 1929 | Emancipation of women |
| 35 | TheFirst World War | 10, 11 | 1914 - 1918 | War andneutrality |
| 36 | De Stijl | 11 | 1917 - 1931 | Revolution inDesign |
| 37 | Crisis years | 11 | 1929 - 1940 | Society in theGreat Depression |
| 38 | TheSecond World War | 11 | 1940 - 1945 | Occupation,resistance andliberation |
| 39 | Anne Frank | 11 | 1929 - 1945 | TheHolocaust in the Netherlands |
| 40 | Indonesia | 11, 13 | 1945 - 1949 | Acolony wrests itself free |
| 41 | Willem Drees | 12 | 1886 - 1988 | Thewelfare state |
| 42 | Thewatersnood | 1, 12 | 1 February 1953 | Theperils of a low-lying country |
| 43 | Television | 12 | from 1948 | A breakthrough inmediatechnologies |
| 44 | Port of Rotterdam | 12 | from c. 1880 | Gateway to the world |
| 45 | Annie M.G. Schmidt | 4, 12 | 1911 - 1995 | Going against the grain in abourgeois society |
| 46 | Suriname and theNetherlands Antilles | 13 | from 1945 | The Westdecolonises |
| 47 | Srebrenica | 14 | 1995 | The dilemmas ofpeacekeeping |
| 48 | Veelkleurig Nederland | 13 | from 1945 | Amulticultural society |
| 49 | Natural gas | 12 | 1959 - 2030? | Adwindling resource |
| 50 | Europe | 14 | from 1945 | Netherlands and the European Union |