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Religious Exiles | Washington State University | Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam The Project

Dutch Exiles in the Duchy of Cleves

This part of our program examines the Dutch exile communities in in the Rhineland duchy of Cleves, including Goch, Gennep, Rees, Kalkar, Emmerich, and Xanten. The aim is to understand the religious and political culture of these communities, the relationships that exiles developed with their host, as well as how the exiles’ experiences shaped their worldviews. These communities were small, hometowns with deep economic and cultural connections to the neighboring Netherlands, though they formally stood under the governance of the duke of Cleves and imperial law. This research will be based on city council records, church council and parish records, correspondence, as well as evidence of printing activities in these communities.

Blaeu_1645_-_Clivia_Ducatus_et_Ravenstein_Dominium