Founding of Leiden University

Leiden University is the oldest university in the Netherlands, founded by William of Orange, leader of the Dutch Revolt against Spain, as a reward to the city of Leiden for its heroic resistance during a long siege. It was also meant as a Protestant centre of learning for the new Dutch state. Over the following centuries it attracted scholars from across Europe, and in the seventeenth century it was among the leading universities in Europe, associated with figures such as the jurist Hugo Grotius and the physician Herman Boerhaave. The university has a botanical garden, one of the oldest in the world, and a large library. It remains a major research university and counts many Nobel laureates among its staff and alumni.

Open on the timeline