Our Work - Wim Leys
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Published: Sunday, 30 September 2012 00:40
Wim Leys – The Netherlands
The revival of the Theosophical Lodge of The Hague.
In 1897, thirteen Theosophists started the first lodge in The Netherlands, in The Hague. Within that year six other lodges in different Dutch cities were founded, and the Theosophical Society of The Netherlands was a fact. On May 14, 1897 the charter was signed by H.S. Olcott.
The number of members grew rapidly in the first decennium of the 20th century, and in The Hague the building which was purchased in 1905 soon had become too small and in 1916 an enlargement was realized, directed by the Theosophical architect Karel De Bazel. This remained to be the location till 1991, when due to rising costs of maintenance, another building was purchased.
Drawing of the Building in The Hague
After World War II the archipelago of the Dutch Indies in the Indian Ocean, which had been colonised by the Dutch for three and a half centuries, became the independent Republic Indonesia. The revolution caused thousands of civilians to flee to The Netherlands, of whom many settled in The Hague. A large number of these had been members of the Theosophical Society in the Dutch Indies, and now joined the Lodge in The Hague, which became the largest lodge in the country.
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