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Aletta Jacobs’ ‘passport’

During WWI, Aletta Jacobs (1854-1929) started her own peace tour through Germany, Belgium, Austria, France, Italy, England, Switzerland and the United States. On 6 May 1915, she received a visa enabling her to travel through Germany and what then was called Austria-Hungary. In May 2003 this document was among the thousands of the supposedly lost documents that were returned to the IAV from Moscow, where it had been since 1945. Aletta Jacobs wrote in her travel journal: ‘On Wednesday 19 May, Miss Jane Addams and Dr. Alice Hamilton from Chicago, Mrs Van Sulfften Palthe from The Hague and me, left for Berlin (…). The German women we met were very unpleasant because of the way they expressed their feelings of national pride, their complete lack of sympathy with the nations involved and their strong wish to continue the war until German gained victory.’
Source: Archive Aletta Jacobs inv.nr 426 and 439

Painting of Rosa Manus

Among the thousands of items that were retrieved in Moscow in 2003, was this extraordinarily painted portrait of Rosa Manus (1881-1943). The painter is unknown. At the bottom left it says: ‘J.H. Sp. 27’. A search through art-historical reference books by conservators of the Jewish Historical Museum in spring 2010, didn’t provide an explanation. Who can help us? Rosa Manus, 'a modern woman of stature', was one of the founders and first president of the International Archive of the Women’s movement in 1935.
Source: Image archive IAV

Bust by Wenckebach

This bust of W.H.Posthumus-van der Goot is made by the well-known sculptor Ludwig Oswald Wenckebach (1895-1962). The bust dates back as far as 1943 and was made in Noordwijk, the sculptor’s place of residence. The Posthumus-van der Goot family had moved there from Amsterdam. In 1930, Willemijn Posthumus-van der Goot (1897-1989) was the first female economist in the Netherlands who obtained her doctoral degree. A few years later, in 1935, she was one of three co-founders of the International Archive of the women’s movement (since 2013: Atria, institute on gender equality and women’s history).
Source: Image archive IAV

Banner

Image archive IAV and www.wilhelminadrucker.nl
Atria, institute on gender equality and women’s history, has various beautiful banners carried by women during women’s suffrage demonstrations. This particular banner from the Alkmaar section is the largest in the collection. It was not self-evident that banners were carried. Large groups of women felt hesitant to speak in public or to take to the streets to propagandize the good cause, let alone joining a demonstration visibly. In 1903, Wilhelmina Drucker (1847-1925) proposed the production of an own banner for the Vereeniging voor Vrouwenkiesrecht (organization for women’s suffrage). This provoked a true campaign. Each annual meeting, Drucker insisted on the acquisition of an own banner. She published reports of these meetings in the magazine ‘Evolutie’ (Evolution): adjourned in 1903, voted down in 1904, and thereupon year after year of keeping it from the agenda as if this piece of cloth was ‘a poisonous snake’. You can watch the restoration of this banner on YouTube:
Restauratie vaandel
Source: Image archive IAV

LP ‘Een rebelse meid is een parel in de vrouwenstrijd’ (a rebellious girl is a pearl in the women’s lib)

The well-known Dutch feminist Hedy d’Ancona stated: ‘It is possible to spend years on end giving lectures and introductions on the discrimination and suppression of women, like I did. But never will those words have the same effect as that of a good protest song: making you feel from your head to your toes exactly how unjust society is if you happen to be born on the wrong side of the gender barrier. The queen of second wave feminists protest songs was Cobi Schreijer (1922-2005), with songs like ‘Rebelse meid’(Rebellious girl), ‘Meisje op fabriek’ (Girl in factory)en het ‘Abortuslied’ (abortion song). Everybody who was active at the time, sang along!
Source: Image archive IAV

75 years of friendship

On 25 November 1935, the charter of foundation of the International Institute for Social History was signed. The IISH was founded by Prof Posthumus, husband of Willemijn Posthumus-van der Goot, one of the founders of the IAV. Both institutes started on the premises of Keizersgracht 264. The IISH made two rooms available for the sister organisation IAV. In the picture Madelon van Toulon van der Koog and Machteld Matthes.
Source: Archive IAV inv.nr 146 and Image archive IAV

Wilhelmina Drucker bronze by Gerrit van der Veen

A beautiful bronze relief of the head of Wilhelmina Drucker (1847-1925) was made by the famous artist and resistance hero Gerrit van der Veen in 1939. Drucker had been one of the co-founders of the Vrouwen Vereeniging (Women’s society) in 1889, an organization that was the motor behind many initiatives and societies. One of the most important organizations originating of this was the Vereeniging voor Vrouwenkiesrecht, (Organization for women’s suffrage) founded in 1894. Drucker also established, together with Theodore (Dora) Haver, the magazine Evolutie (Evolution) in 1893. The last number of this magazine appeared in February 1926 and is now available online on our website.
Source: Image archive IAV

'The right to live equally well as a man'

In 1897, a top Dutch feminist best-seller came out: Hilda van Suylenburg. It was a tendentious novel which shocked the nation. In 1919, the book has gone in its eighth edition. In 1984 a new edition was published by Feminist Publishing House Sara and the book was rediscovered by feminist historians in the years thereafter. The book contains a systematically and passionate account in favor of women’s lib.
Source: Library Atria

Archival work for our girls

The magazine De Hollandsche Lelie (the Dutch lily) first appeared in 1887. A magazine for girls between 12 and 16, it played alternately the roles of ‘Best Friend’ and ‘teacher’. In 1905, a captivating (at least for an archival institution)article ‘Archival work for our girls’ appeared, telling the story of the first female municipal archivist in the Netherlands, Rins Visscher (1868-1950). She was appointed in Leeuwarden in 1900. Samuel Muller, then chairman of the Vereniging van Archivarissen (society of archivists), predicted that the reputation of dryness and colorlessness would disappear ‘when ladies, natural enemies of dust, will join us and make a visit to the archive an outing and a pleasure’. However, the board of the VAN, unanimously and without objection or restriction excluded Rins Visscher from membership.
Source: Library Atria

Single Arabic women in the Netherlands

The Landelijke Vereniging van Alleenstaande Arabische Vrouwen- LVAAV (National Society for Single Arabic Women) was founded by a number of women in the provinces Limburg and Gelderland. Their aim was to improve the position of single Arabic women in the Netherlands without breaking ties with their own culture. The society provided legal and social aid and advice, organized trainings and meetings and established regional networks. In 1994, their tenth anniversary was celebrated with workshops, a meeting weekend and the publishing of brochures. As of 1996, the organization lost its subsidy and had to end her activities. In the meantime, the LVAAV had been able to improve the legal position and representation of divorced Moroccan women.
Source: Archive LVAAV inv.nr 17

Milk can as a record

Atria manages the complete archive of the Christelijke Plattelandsvrouwenbond (Union for Christian Countrywomen CPB). It is a source of information about women who lived and worked on farms and in the country. In 1932, the first national meeting for farm daughters took place. That would be the start of an organization of protestant country women. In 1998, the protestant country women organization merged with the Dutch Christian women union into the Christian women movement Passage. The CPB’s archive documents the fast-changing life of protestant country women in the Netherlands of the 20th-century. The archive consists of correspondence, minutes from board and working group meetings, documents on the foundation, regulations and merger, material about all CPB-activities and a complete series of the magazine Ons Plattelandsleven (Our Country life). And this milk can.
Source: CPB archive inv.nr 201

Ladies- committees

This is part of a heavily damaged charter, dated 1855, but almost certainly made later. The Ladies-committee mentioned in this charter, however, did exist. In the ‘Tijdschrift uitgegeven van wege de Nederlandsche Maatschappij ter bevordering van de afschaffing der slavernij’ (Magazine of the Dutch Union for the promotion of the abolishment of slavery) the ‘Ladies-committee for the promotion of spreading the gospel and for the abolishment of slavery in Surinam’ is mentioned. Anna A. Bergendahl was the Chairwoman. In 1855, a year earlier, she and her sister Charlotte had taken the initiative for ‘an appeal to the King to abolish slavery’. The petition was signed by 733 women. The charter refers to this fact. As of 1840, throughout the country Women’s – and Ladies – Committees were established with objectives such as visiting female prisoners, the abolishment of slavery or the ‘advancement of material and moral welfare of the poor’
Source: Archive IAV

National Bureau for Women’s Labor

In 1901, the Nationaal Bureau voor Vrouwenarbeid , NBV (National bureau for women’s labor) was founded from the 20,000 guilder profit that was realized by the National Exhibition on Women’s labor in 1898. The bureau’s main objective was ’ to explore, enlarge and improve the labor market for the Dutch woman’. Two important publications were the ‘Leidraden’ (Guidelines) aimed at career guidance for young girls and the ‘Vrouwenjaarboekje voor Nederland’ (Women’s yearbook for the Netherlands). The bureau collected information on women’s labor and, with that, played an important role in the women’s movement during her almost fifty year-long existence. In the picture, dating from 1914, is Marie Heinen (1881-1948, deputy-director) on the left and Anna Polak (1874-1943, director) on the left.
Source: Image archive IAV and NBV archive

Soroptimists

Anna Overduin (1877-1937) was a graduated medical doctor. She introduced the remedial therapy called Mensendieck in the Netherlands. In 1913, she married Charles Jacobs, a nephew of Aletta Jacobs. She was also a so-called ‘Sor’, according to this badge. The Soroptimist movement was founded in the United States in 1921. The name Soroptimist was coined from the Latin soror meaning sister, and optima meaning best. The well-known Dutch feminist Welmoet Wijnaendts Francken-Dyserinck introduced it in the Netherlands in 1928. Initially, improvement of the position of women was the central issue but gradually, during the 1960s, the focus of activities shifted to general social issues and became more internationally orientated. As a rule, membership was restricted to one representative from every vocation or position per club and one could only become member on invitation.
Source: Image archive IAV

Women’s studies

Contrary to the prevailing opinion, the term women studies had already existed for at least a hundred years in 2010. Since 1898, there had been sororities, mainly for social purposes. Two initiatives especially focused on female students changed this in 1910. The ‘Vereniging van Vrouwelijke Studenten te Leiden-VVSL (Society for female students in Leiden) was founded. From this society the ‘Centraal Bureau voor Vrouwenstudie’ (central bureau for women studies) evolved. And in Utrecht a magazine for female students was published: ‘het Utrechtsch Maandblad voor Vrouwelijke Studenten’ , which came out during two years. It took seventy years before a Magazine for Women’s studies reappeared in 1980.
Source: Library Atria and Image Archive IAV

My belly is my own

In 196, a number of young feminists founded the action group Dolle Mina (Mad Mina). The group became well-known by their spectacular actions: they wrapped pink ribbons around urinals to promote public toilets for women, they whistled after men and they stormed the Nijenrode University (which was only open to men at the time). One of their most important slogans was ‘abortus vrij’ (leglize abortion). Women demanded to have the power of decision over their own bodies and worked for the removal of abortion from the criminal code. Their slogan ‘Baas in Eigen Buik’ (My belly is my own) became winged words that are used even today. This poster was made for a demonstration in Utrecht on 19 February 1972.
Source: Archive Dolle Mina inv.nr 80

Emilie Knappert

In 1911, Emilie Knappert (1860-1952) founded a society for outdoor activities ‘de Vereniging Buitenbedrijf ‘ in Leiden. Her aim was to encourage young women from working-class families to go outside for the weekends. In 1917, enough money was raised to ask the young architect Berlage, who was a friend of Knappert, to design a house. Because he didn’t have the time, the architect J.J.P. Oud was hired. On 8 February 1919, holiday home ‘De Vonk’ in Noordwijkerhout was officially opened. After 1945, the institute mainly organized courses for 14 till 16 year-old girls from working-class families. The portrait above was hanging on the wall at the school for secondary education ‘Emilie Knappert’ in Leiden. At the backside it says: If this portrait is no longer appreciated, please send it to the International Archive for the Women’s movement. And thus happened.
Source: Image Archive IAV

Aletta Jacobs’ fan

Aletta Jacobs travelled around the world together with Carrie Chapman Catt. In 1912, they visited China, where Aletta Jacobs received this beautiful fan from Sophia Chang, the acting president of the organization for women’s suffrage in Shanghai. Chang had made the fan herself. There is a verse in Chinese characters written on it. Just before their arrival, Jacobs and Catt had heard that Chinese women had taken seats in the various national and regional meetings that Sun Yat-Sen had initiated. In her published ‘Travel letters from Africa and Asia’ Jacobs gives a captivating report of their experiences.
Source: Image Archive IAV

The first female officer in the Dutch armed forces

C.M.L. Pardede-baroness van Boetzelaer (1912-2011) had been an important woman during the Second World War. In 1942, she was co-founder of the Bond van Nederlandsche Vrouwen in Groot-Brittannië (Union of Dutch Women in Great-Britain). From 1940 till 1944 she had been connected to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which had its seat in London at the time. The years after the war she worked for the Royal Navy, also in London, till 1947. She was the first woman ever to be appointed officer in the Dutch armed forces. In the picture you can see her standing – in uniform – making packages with wool for the Netherlands. At the exhibition ‘De Nederlandse Vrouw 1898-1948’ (the Dutch Woman 1898-1948), held in the Hague in 1948, a section showed ‘the Dutch Woman abroad during the Second World War. Pictures and objects from the property of Corinne Pardede-baroness van Boetzelaer were shown there, among other things this watertight wallet.
Source: Archive C.M.L. Pardede-baroness van Boetzelaer inv.nr 27 and Image Archive IAV

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