Introduction. Batavin phlegm? The Dutch and their emotions in pre-modern times

In the autumn of 2011 the Royal Dutch Historical Society held its annual autumn conference. The theme was Cool, Calm and Collected: The Dutch and their Emotions in Pre-Modern Times. This introduction to the subsequent special issue of the BMGN -Low Countries Historical Review gives a brief historiographical overview of the history of emotions in general and its scant practice to date in the Northern Netherlands. Seven case-studies are introduced that show that the assumed phlegmatic character of the Dutch was a relatively late construction, coming into being in the course of the eighteenth century. Earlier descriptions of local and regional characteristics vary widely. Although most of the earlier authors mention the negative influence of the damp living conditions on the Dutch, just as frequently passionate behaviour, expressing vivacity, anger and heightened sentiments, was deemed typical of the freedom-loving barbarians from the north. The current national hero Desiderius Erasmus for example was known for his jealous, rash and overly emotional temper.