It is the aim of the Werkgroep to stimulate research into all aspects of
eighteenth-century history in Belgium and the Netherlands. As a society, it
is open to everybody who cares about the history of the eighteenth century;
from the interested layman to the professional researcher. The Werkgroep
wishes to be an intermediary in the distribution of knowledge of eighteenth
century history and a meeting place for members and interested others. The
Werkgroep tries to achieve its goals through the organization of annual
conferences and through the publication of the journal De Achttiende Eeuw.
Via the electronic newsletter, the Werkgroup keeps its members informed
about conferences, calls for papers, guest lectures by foreign experts and
current affairs.
The Werkgroep 18e Eeuw was founded in 1968 in a period when the French avant
garde of the eighteenth century the so-called Lumières or philosophes
was the model for the European Enlightenment. The activities of the Dutch
Werkgroep and its sister organizations abroad have contributed much to
putting the national versions of the Enlightenment on the agenda. From the
end of the seventeenth century on, the Dutch Enlightenment even appears to
have been an important export product. Over the years, the Werkgroep has
occupied itself more and more with the history of the eighteenth century in
the largest sense possible. The Enlightenment is part of that.
A second important development, both nationally and internationally, is the
increase of interdisciplinary research. Not only literary and ‘ordinary’
historians are attached to the Werkgroep, but also historians in the fields
of art, theatre, architecture, religion and law, as well as historians of
science and cultural anthology both amateurs and professionals. The
Werkgroep has organized a number of trendsetting conferences and symposia,
for instance on ‘Consumption and Culture’ (1997), on ‘Religion and
Enlightenment’ (1999) and on ‘Nature’ (2004) Often, the lectures held at the
symposia are published in the journal De Achttiende Eeuw.
It is the aim of the Werkgroep to stimulate research into all aspects of
eighteenth-century history in Belgium and the Netherlands. As a society, it
is open to everybody who cares about the history of the eighteenth century;
from the interested layman to the professional researcher. The Werkgroep
wishes to be an intermediary in the distribution of knowledge of eighteenth
century history and a meeting place for members and interested others. The
Werkgroep tries to achieve its goals through the organization of annual
conferences and through the publication of the journal De Achttiende Eeuw.
Via the electronic newsletter, the Werkgroup keeps its members informed
about conferences, calls for papers, guest lectures by foreign experts and
current affairs.
The Werkgroep 18e Eeuw was founded in 1968 in a period when the French avant
garde of the eighteenth century the so-called Lumières or philosophes
was the model for the European Enlightenment. The activities of the Dutch
Werkgroep and its sister organizations abroad have contributed much to
putting the national versions of the Enlightenment on the agenda. From the
end of the seventeenth century on, the Dutch Enlightenment even appears to
have been an important export product. Over the years, the Werkgroep has
occupied itself more and more with the history of the eighteenth century in
the largest sense possible. The Enlightenment is part of that. 
A second important development, both nationally and internationally, is the
increase of interdisciplinary research. Not only literary and ‘ordinary’
historians are attached to the Werkgroep, but also historians in the fields
of art, theatre, architecture, religion and law, as well as historians of
science and cultural anthology both amateurs and professionals. The
Werkgroep has organized a number of trendsetting conferences and symposia,
for instance on ‘Consumption and Culture’ (1997), on ‘Religion and
Enlightenment’ (1999) and on ‘Nature’ (2004) Often, the lectures held at the
symposia are published in the journal De Achttiende Eeuw.