Het drama van 1918: Spaanse griep in Nederland

It was exactly 100 years ago in the summer of 1918 that the Spanish flu hit the Netherlands, where it accounted for approximately 30,000 deaths. The social ramifications of this pandemic have been greatly neglected in historiography. Despite the severity of the situation, the Dutch government remained remarkably inactive and a national state of emergency was never declared. Instead the government left all measures to local government, who were unable to do much more than close the schools. It is generally assumed that epidemics lead to social segregation and the scapegoating of certain sections of the community. However, this was not the case in the Netherlands; instead the Spanish flu led to feelings of unity and charity towards one’s neighbours. Daily life went on as normal, and the commotion around Spanish flu was nothing in comparison with the hype that surrounded the Mexican flu of 2009. It is important that we continue to remember past epidemics and to learn lessons from them.

Conflict of interest and financial support: none declared.