The Leiden University Institute for History is responsible for the main part of the historical research carried out at Leiden University. The institute has a wide-ranging academic scope.

Leiden University College (LUC) is proud to announce that it have been awarded the Special Feature Sustainable Higher Education by the Accreditation Organisation of the Netherlands and Flanders (NVAO). This recognition affirms the deep commitment to embedding sustainability across the curriculum, research,…

One of the baffling aspects of international power politics is the unexpectedly major influence exercised by particular small states. Professor of International Studies and Global History Isabelle Duijvesteijn discovered that peace missions and development aid help generate power. Inaugural lecture…

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What are the institutional dynamics of the adoption of internal market legislation?

Leila Zerrougui (born in Algeria 1956) is a legal expert on human rights, justice, and rule of law. She is the current Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO). Before she was Special Representative…

From 1967 to 1982, the United Nations undertook several peacekeeping operations in the Middle East. In his thesis from the Institute for History, Diego Salama examines how these operations were connected and their impact on the region.

The oldest university in the Netherlands was founded on 8 February 1575 in the Pieterskerk in Leiden. This was at the time of the Eighty Years’ War with the uprising of the northern provinces against domination by the Spanish.

Within the next five years, Leiden University wants its campus in The Hague to become a leading international academic centre with research and teaching that correspond with the city’s profile. All of the faculties will help achieve this, and the University has also signed a partnership agreement with…

Large telescopes can look so deep into the Universe that they can also look back billions of years in time. From 2018, the successor of the Hubble Space Telescope, the James Webb Space Telescope, will be able to see the period just after the Big Bang, when the first stars and galaxies formed. Astronomers…

On 17 February 2024, Leiden University's Scheltema building was abuzz with the energy of the annual MSc International Relations and Diplomacy (MIRD) Re-Connect Gala. This year's event marked a joyous return to in-person gatherings, bringing together 200 students, employees, and esteemed alumni of the…

The United Nations has chosen The Hague as the location for a new data centre for humanitarian aid. Leiden University is involved in developing the digital knowledge to be used by the centre.

On Thursday 11 November, Women in International Security Netherlands (WIIS-NL) held its inaugural webinar event on 11 November with four speakers in conjunction with the International Centre for Terrorism (ICCT) and the Chair UN Studies in Peace and Justice at Leiden University.

The Dutch universities are shocked by the Russian invasion of Ukraine and empathise with all those affected by this act of aggression. Leiden University also calls for solidarity with and support for all those affected by the war.

Anneleen van der Meer discusses Russia's alleged use of chemical weapons in Ukraine in an article for The Conversation.

De ruimte is van iedereen en alleen voor vreedzaam gebruik, maar militaire ambities, commerciële projecten en grondstofwinning zetten die principes onder druk. Tanja Masson-Swaan, universitair docent internationaal luncht en ruimterecht, zegt in het Parool dat het hoog tijd is het Verdrag uit 1967 te…

The ongoing conflicts between the United States and its allies and Russia and between the United States and its allies and China reflect both the anarchical nature of the international system and the uncertainty with which decision-makers and diplomats have to deal with in attempting to solve the conflicts…

The United Nations (UN) have been in existence for 75 years. It has definitely had time to become an established organisation. For Alanna O'Malley and Joris Larik the 75-year existence is no reason to sit back and relax. On the contrary, the UN should continue to reinvent itself.

How can we adapt the Dutch we use at the University so that everyone feels comfortable and included? This was the subject of debate during a panel discussion on 28 June at Leiden University.

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our director, Dr. Rudolf de Jong. We extend our deepest condolences to his loved ones. The Institute will be closed the coming week in mourning. Details of a memorial in Cairo will follow soon. Rest in peace, boss. We will miss you.

Associate Professor Salvador Santino Regilme discusses the recent launch of the Board for Peace by President Donald Trump in the Portuguese newspaper Expresso.

Professor Nico Schrijver is professor of public international law at Leiden University and currently the president of the Institut de Droit international /International Law Institute, the most prestigious international law institute which was established in 1873 and which for the quality of its work…