Cities and urban societies have many faces. In this study, the pre-modern cities of Holland are presented as arenas where power relations between social classes are expressed in a more or less permanent appropriation of physical space and through discursive strategies. The continuity of the power relations in the cities of Holland, spanning centuries, makes it urgent to look not only at the assumption of urban space as an expression of power relations within society, but also at the contribution of this appropriation to the acceptance and continuity of the existing power relations in pre-modern Holland. Within this broad area, extensive attention is paid to: the very prominent and enduring appropriation of urban space in the field of housing; the less permanent, but violent appropriation of urban space during the public execution of scaffold punishments; the maintenance of public order by civic militias; and appropriation during riots and revolts. In addition, city descriptions, maps and pictures of the pre-modern cities of Holland are scrutinised for what they can reveal about the appropriation of urban spaces. These themes each have an extensive historiography, but they have never been brought together in an interpretative framework that fits in with Pierre Bourdieu's model of society and the work – of especially John Allen – on power until now.

A celebration of the innovative, artisanal, and sustainable living exemplified by contemporary Dutch interiors. With a carefully curated collection of interiors, including historic canal houses, restored farms, and green homes, belonging to interior designers, product designers, architects, and artists, this book showcases creative and resourceful living. These properties have been created or renovated and brought into the twenty-first century with typical Dutch style and sensibility—environmentally friendly, imaginative uses of space filled with color and charm and never to be taken too seriously. Each home in the book reflects the personality and spirit of the people who inhabit it. From furniture designer Valentin Loellman’s handcrafted interiors in a traditional worker’s cottage on the Maas river to fiber artist Claudy Jongstra’s farmhouse in Friesland where indigo dye plants grow in the biodynamic garden, Coming Home illustrates fun ideas and easy ways to incorporate individual style into your surroundings. Whether it’s the traditional “lowlands” aesthetic of combining old and new, faded and inviting, into a casual chic or a quirky reinvention of a space that reveals a touch of eccentricity, this book illustrates why the Netherlands is truly loved by so many and can be an inspiration to us all.

A comprehensive history of bilateral relations between the Netherlands and the United States.

Estate Landscapes in Northern Europe is the first study of the role of the landed estate as an agent in the shaping of landscapes and societies across northern Europe over the past five centuries. Leading us into the fascinating variations of manorial worlds, the present volume seeks to open the field to include a broader perspective on estate landscapes. Estate - or manorial - landscapes were distinctive elements within the historic landscape and created their own character. Marked by larger scale fields associated with the home or demesne farm as well as a higher proportion of woodland and timber trees the landscapes reflected the scale of the resources available to the landowner and the control they exerted over the local communities. But they also represented the performative aspects of life for the elite, such as their engagement with hunting. While existing works have tended to emphasize the economic and agricultural aspect of estate landscapes, this volume draws out the social, cultural and political impact of manors and estates on landscapes throughout northern Europe. The chapters provide insights into a broad range of histories, such as the social worlds of burghers and nobility in the Dutch Republic, or the relationship between the distribution of land and the agitation for electoral reform in nineteenth-century England. Elsewhere in Scandinavia the impact of the reformation and conquest in Norway is balanced against the continuity of ownership in Sweden, where developing the natural resources for industrial enterprise such as ironworks and sawmills brought in new owners. Estate Landscapes in Northern Europe is the first product of the collaboration of researchers from Norway, Germany, Sweden, the United Kingdom, Denmark, and the Netherlands, joined together in the European Network for Country House and Estate Research (ENCOUNTER).