Anarchism in the Netherlands originated in the second half of the 19th century. Its roots lay in the radical and revolutionary ideologies of the labor movement, in anti-authoritarian socialism, the free thinkers and in numerous associations and organizations striving for a libertarian form of society. During the First World War, individuals and groups of syndicalists and anarchists of various currents worked together for conscientious objection and against government policies. The common resistance was directed against imperialism and militarism.
One of the country's first anarchists, Ferdinand Domela Nieuwenhuis, came from social-democratic circles and did much to organize the working class. As a social movement, anarchism had a great influence on the social change of society in the Netherlands, until the beginning of the Second World War. After the war, anarchism became active again in the 1960s and through the Provo movement became known to the wider public.
History Forerunners Anarchism in the Netherlands was initially referred to as communist-anarchisme, then as sociaal-anarchisme, revolutionair-socialisme and anarcho-syndicalisme.
People of the Christian and Jewish faith who brought Christianity and Judaism into connection with socialist and anarchist ideas, especially pastors and preachers, were generally given the name rode Dominee ("red pastor"). They preached "freedom of thought" and a "modern" theology. In the province of Friesland, for example, there were seventeen "socialist pastors" around 1932, fourteen of whom were members of the Social Democratic Workers' Party (, SDAP). The "red pastors" did a lot to bridge the gap between Christian and Jewish beliefs, the labor movement, and anarchism.
One of the pioneers of socialism and anarchism in the Netherlands was the Christian socialist Leendert de Baan, a pastor and advocate of conscientious objection. Politically he was a supporter of the Bond van Christian Socialists. The religious socialist and pastor Henri Wilhelm Philippus Elize van den Bergh van Eysinga, active in the Socialist Verbond. He propagated a "revolutionary socialism" (revolutionair-socialisme) and communism. Johannes Antonius Hendrikus van den Brink, a priest, the first socialist member of the Limburg parish council, member of the SDAP and socialist since 1904. He was criticized as a "renegade priest" (afvallige priester). In lectures he espoused socialist propaganda and saw church and worship as a danger to humanity and social progress. From 1910 he gave readings for the freethinkers association De Dageraad. The spokesman for the "red pastors" in the Dutch province of Friesland, Jan Anthonie Bruins Jr., came to socialism through Ferdinand Domela Nieuwenhuis. He was the founder of the Christian-socialist weekly De Blijde Wereld. Among other things, he was active in the "Arbeiter-Jugend" and the Nederlandsche Vereeniging tot Afschaffing van Alcoholhoudende Dranken ("Dutch Association for the Abolition of Spirits"). The "red dominee" Frederik Willem Nicolaas Hugenholtz expressed criticism of capitalism. He wanted to found an arbeiderskerk (literally: "workers' church"), but had difficulties with the population who wanted to dismiss him as pastor. In 1899 he became a propagandist for the Social Democratic Workers' Party. Jan Lambertus Faber, also a "red pastor", was a member of the House of Representatives for the SDAP. As a pacifist and member of the Christian anti-militarist association Kerk en Vrede ("Church and Peace"), he had a large following among socialist workers.
In 1889, the pastor and socialist pioneer Nieuwenhuis first professed anarchism. Hendrik Gerhard, a member of De Dageraad and a freethinker, was called de vader van het socialisme in Nederland (literally: "the father of socialism in the Netherlands"). His ideal was gelijkrecht voor allen ("equal rights for all"). He was active in the peace and labor movement and rejected violence to achieve a socialist society. Johan Jacob Ledewijk, advocate of communist anarchism (sociaal-anarchisme), was the founder of the Federatie van Vrijheidlievende Communisten ("Federation of Freedom-Loving Communists"), editor of the magazine De Vrije Communist and De Toekomst of the Federatie van Revolutionaire Socialisten ("Federation of Revolutionary Socialists") and active in the Sociaal-Anarchist Verbond. Abraham Mozes Reens, propagandist for revolutionary socialism and anarchism, was the founder of the anti-verbingvereniging and the magazine Opstand. Sjoerd Siebrens van Veen, one of the first Christian socialists, was a follower of Nieuwenhuis and especially active in the province of Friesland. In 1888 he founded of the Sociaal-Democratische Bond ("Social Democratic League") in Friesland. He proclaimed the revolutionaire van de bijbelse boodschap ("the revolutionary from the biblical message"). Later Christian socialists declared that through the work of van Veen, Christian socialism found a following in Friesland. Daniël van der Zee is considered a pioneer of Christian socialism. In 1907 he was co-founder of the Bond van Christen-Socialisten (BCS), editor of the Opwaarts magazine and board member of the Religieus-Socialistische Verbond ("Religious Socialist Association") and of the Instituut voor Arbeidersontwikkeling (literally: "Institute for Workers' Development"; IvAO).
19th century During the second half of the 19th century, with a few exceptions, the similarities between anti-authoritarian socialism and anarchism were greater than the differences. The boundaries between the two worldviews were fluid. By 1870 the social and economic conditions in the Netherlands were in crisis: high unemployment, low wages, child labor, child mortality and alcohol abuse. Housing and food were insufficient. At this time the mood of the proletariat became more and more radical, which was also expressed in the magazine Recht voor Allen. The first social legislation banned child labor in 1874: children under the age of twelve were forbidden to work.
William III ruled the Netherlands between 1849 and 1890. He contributed to the repression against the socialists and anarchists, as well as the labor movement. William III was known as a "brute", who had a great predilection for hunting, alcohol, women and public brothel visits. The "half-mad" king was known for his tantrums and unpredictability, and became a symbol of oppression and decadence. He is said to have called his people stupid oxen, mob and trash. He insulted even the most conservative ministers. Josef Alexander Cohen called out "the gorilla king" in public and was sentenced to six months in prison for lese majesty. Nieuwenhuis was also sentenced to one year in prison for lese majesty, on the basis of an April 1886 article in the magazine Recht voor Allen, which was directed against the monarchy. It was unclear whether Nieuwenhuis was the author, but as the main editor he had taken on responsibility.
The north of the Netherlands was one of the economically poorest areas in the second half of the 19th century, especially the province of Friesland. The economic crisis was fertile ground for socialism. Labor strikes had often happened in Friesland. As far as is known, the first strike occurred as early as 1810, and about 76 more followed by 1887. The best-known champions of the labor movement were Pieter Jelles Troelstra, head of the SDAP from 1894 to 1925, and Nieuwenhuis.
The socialists and anarchists were repressed by the state, in 1893, 53 of them were in prison. Nieuwenhuis was active as a speaker especially in Friesland and won many workers to his socialist ideas. The Frisian village of Appelscha was founded in 1827, with the influx of thousands of workers who were urgently needed for peatland colonization. The strikes of 1888 were the beginning of organized workers' uprisings in the Netherlands and the village was considered a stronghold of radical socialism and anarchism. During a strike in 1888, the first small trade union was founded in Friesland, De Eendracht, which worked regionally and had Bruin Tjibbes Bruinsma as its chairman. The striking workers demonstrated with a red flag and the words gelijkheid, vrijheid en broederschap. Subsequent labor strikes were coordinated, and workers fought for a written agreement on their working conditions.
In 1855 the magazine De Dageraad appeared. In October 1856, the editorial team founded the freethinkers association De Dageraad. This association arose out of an interest in founding an organized freethinker movement and, from 1879 onwards, focused on issues such as emancipation, universal suffrage, anti-militarism, homosexuality and the separation of church and state. De Dageraad wanted to be autonomous in thinking and acting in the scientific, ethical and political fields. It edited the magazines De Vrijdenker (from 1945 to 1958) and Bevrijdend Denk (from 1959 to 1963). From 1957, the association continued to work under the name Vrijdenkersvereniging De Vrije Gedachte. The name came from Franz Wilhelm Junghuhn. De Vrije Gedachte ("The Free Thought") has been working with the Humanistisch Verbond since 1957. De Dageraad members were mainly socialists, liberals and anarchists.
The Coöperatieve Broodbakkerij (bread baker's cooperative), known under the name Volharding was inspired by the first cooperatives in Ghent, the so-called volksbakkerijen, which were founded by Belgian socialists during the great famine. In a major article in Recht voor Allen in January 1880, written by Nieuwenhuis, reference was made to the cooperatives in Belgium. This led to the establishment of De Volharding in Groningen. Later these cooperative extended to The Hague, Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Heerlen, among other cities. Frans Drion and Bartholomeus van Ommeren worked in the bread baker's cooperative.
The initially revolutionary-socialist party the Social Democratic League (, SDB) was founded in 1881 as an amalgamation of some regional associations and was mainly active in Friesland. After 1890 the party also got supporters in the provinces of Groningen, Amsterdam and Zaandam. In 1893 the SDB was banned and changed its name to Socialistenbond. Initially the party was in favor of a Marxist-socialist society without private property. But after 1893, the party introduced an extra-parliamentary and anarchist course under the direction of Ferdinand Domela Nieuwenhuis.
In 1893 the first major trade union called the National Labor Secretariat (, NAS) was founded, along with its magazine De Arbeid. During the First World War, the libertarian movement in the Netherlands grew significantly. The NAS reached a membership of 50,000. However, the leadership of the NAS was won over to Marxism, whereupon the anarcho-syndicalists left the union and founded their own union, the Dutch Syndicalist Trade Union Federation (, NSV). The chairman of the NAS, Bernardus Lansink jr., founded the Regional Federation of Revolutionary Socialists (, FRS) together with communist anarchists in 1905. The anarchists within the NAS took it from Lansink Jr., propagandist and editor of the magazine De Syndicalist, after it was discovered that he was a member of the Socialist Party (SP). After the NSV joined the IWA, it formed the International Secretariat of the IWA together with Rudolf Rocker and Augustin Souchy. Christiaan Cornelissen was temporarily a member of the board of the NAS. The magazine De Vrije Socialist, published by Nieuwenhuis, and the NAS were closely linked.
After the Social Democratic Workers' Party (, SDAP) was founded in 1896, there was a split within the Socialist League. Some of the members, led by Nieuwenhuis, undertook an anarchist approach, while the other members joined the SDAP.
20th century In 1904, Nieuwenhuis founded the International Anti-Militarist Association (, IAMV).
In 1907 the International Anarchist Congress of Amsterdam took place.