From a small school to the Netherlands’ largest university: the University of Amsterdam turns 394
On Thursday, the UvA celebrates its 394th anniversary. But how did it all begin? The Folia podcast De Illustere Universiteit delves into the past, tracing how a small school founded in 1632 grew into the largest university in the Netherlands.
On Thursday, the Dies Natalis is celebrated: the UvA’s annual anniversary. Although the official date is 8 January, the celebration has since 2023 been held on the third Thursday of the month, as the original date often falls close to the Christmas recess.
On 8 January 1632, the Athenaeum Illustre was founded with the delivery of its first inaugural lectures, finally giving Amsterdam its own institution of higher learning. The first lecture was given in the Agnietenkapel on the Oudezijds Voorburgwal by newly appointed lecturer Gerardus Joannes Vossius. A day later, Amsterdam’s second professor, Casparus Barlaeus, took the floor. Although the teaching was intended for young people, the benches were also filled with adults curious to hear what the scholars had to say.
Folia retraces the very first steps of the Athenaeum Illustre. The first five episodes of the podcast are now available online.
Listen to how professors Barlaeus and Vossius were persuaded to move from Leiden to Amsterdam (much to Leiden’s displeasure), how professors at the time got away with practices reminiscent of today’s #MeToo debates, and how modern clinical placements have their roots in 17th-century hospital visits by a physician.
