Republicans : essays on eighteenth-century Dutch political thought / by Wyger R. E. Velema.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Velema, Wyger.

Series:

Brill's studies in intellectual history 0920-8607 ; v. 155.

Brill's studies in intellectual history, 0920-8607 ; v. 155

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Republicanism.

History.

Netherlands--Politics and government--1648-1795.

Netherlands.

Politics and government.

Netherlands--Politics and government--1795-1815.

Republicanism--Netherlands--History--18th century.

Constitutional history--Netherlands.

Constitutional history.

Genre:

Essays.

Physical Description:

xiii, 241 pages ; 25 cm.

Place of Publication:

Leiden ; Boston : Brill, 2007.

Summary:

The notion of being freeborn republicans bound the eighteenth-century Dutch together and constituted a significant part of their sense of national identity. Yet beneath this general label, many fundamental differences existed. Republicanism could stand for anti-monarchism, but it could also be a moral doctrine emphasizing the importance of the exercise of virtue, or refer to a certain way of life. During the revolutionary years of the late eighteenth century, it came to mean the permanent and active sovereignty of the people. This book explores the many varieties of eighteenth-century Dutch republicanism from a number of different methodological perspectives. It thereby significantly contributes to our understanding of a crucial period in the development of Dutch political thought.

Contents:

Chapter 1 Introduction: "The First Republic of Europe" 1

1 A Republican Identity 1

2 The Eighteenth-Century Republic Observed 11

3 Preliminary Remarks 24

Chapter 2 Anti-Monarchism in Early Modern Dutch Political Thought 31

1 The Study of Early Modern Dutch Political Thought 31

2 True Liberty and Anti-Monarchism 35

3 Early Eighteenth-Century Anti-Monarchism 43

4 Anti-Monarchism and Patriot Republicanism 49

Chapter 3 Early Eighteenth-Century Political Languages 53

1 The Neglect of the Early Eighteenth Century 53

2 Classical Republicanism 56

3 Godly Republicanism 64

4 Ancient Constitutionalism 69

5 The Debate Continues 75

Chapter 4 Polite Republicanism and the Problem of Decline 77

1 Republican Decline 77

2 Justus van Effen's Polite Republicanism 82

3 A New Orthodoxy 89

Chapter 5 Republican Readings of Montesquieu: The Esprit des Lois in the Dutch Republic 93

1 The Dutch Reception of the Esprit des Lois 94

2 Montesquieu's Republican Themes Interpreted 99

3 Republicanism Redefined 107

Chapter 6 Revolution, Counterrevolution and the Stadholderate, 1780-1795 115

1 A Deep Ideological Divide 115

2 The Patriot Revolution and the Stadholderate 121

3 In Defense of the Stadholderate 129

Chapter 7 The Concept of Liberty in the Dutch Republic, 1780-1787 139

1 "Different Meanings Given to the Word of Liberty" 140

2 The Patriot Transformation of Liberty 146

3 Old Liberty Maintained 155

Chapter 8 Contemporary Reactions to Patriot Political Discourse 159

1 On the Need for the Study of Political Discourse 159

2 The Blessings of the Established Order 163

3 Patriot Primitivism and Utopianism 168

4 The Horrors of Democracy 172

Chapter 9 Dutch Constitutionalism at the End of the Eighteenth Century 179

1 Eighteenth-Century Constitutionalism 181

2 The Patriots Discover that the Republic does not have a Constitution 185

3 Debates over a New Constitution 189

4 The Constitution of 1798 198

Chapter 10 The End of Republican Politics 201

1 Republicanism Defended, 1804-1806 202

2 The Establishment of the Monarchy 207.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [215]-238) and index.

ISBN:

9004161910

9789004161917

OCLC:

153579163