In spite of the remarkable distance and the expenses incurred in transportation through a number of go-betweens Hungarian (primary) commodities and products from the Low Countries found their way to each other’s markets. The present study makes an inquiry into these trade relations in which it was primarily Prussian and southern German traders, especially of Nuremberg, who played a dominant role. Copper and prescions metals were the most important commodities shipped to the markets ot Flanders from Hungary by Prussian tradesmen via Poland and the Baltic Sea. Hungary exported iron and zinc to the Low Countries and also beeswax and hides and furs. It was mainly cloth that was imported into Hungary from the markets in Flanders roughly along the same trade route as the one along which commodities from Hungary found their way to the Atlantic coastal areas, that is, via the Baltic Sea and Poland. The volume and value of the export goods from medieval Hungary surpassed that of the import goods from the Low Countries, for the latter was made up of finished products of high quality and high prices therefore targeted only a limited high-end range of customers and their volume was thus less remarkable. The products of the two areas reached their respective destinations by means of a chain of intermediaries.

The early history of the connections between Netherlands and Hungary is connected with the catholic restoration in the Kingdom Hungary in the middle of 16-th Century. In this time came the famous humanist Nicasius Ellebodius to Hungary. He studied in Louvain and Rome in the Collegium Germanicum, and at the invitation of Miklós Oláh, Archbishop of Esztergom he arrived to Nagyszombat (today: Trnava in Slovakia), to the centre of Hungarian Catholicism. He taught there Greek and Latin language and literature in the newly-established college of the Society of Jesus. Another Netherlander, Guilelmus Sulenius de Flandria, studied likewise in Rom, and then came to Hungary. Archbishop Oláh invited himto teach at Pozsony (today:Bratislava in Slovakia), and he was granted a prebend in recognition of his work. Besides they other Netherlandish teachers and professors (e.g. Arnoldus Gerardus Laurentianus Flandrus, Jacobus Somalius etc.) took part in the reorganisation of the Catholic school-training and they played an very significant and important role in the intellectual life in early modern Hungary

After the Fall and Destruction of Heidelberg (September 6, 1622) Protestant Students from Hungary and Transylvania came in a mass to the Northern Netherlands, in order to continue their studies there at the Dutch Universities, especially in Philosophy, Theology and Medicine. So the first group of Hungarian Students arrived at Franeker (in Frisia) at the end of August, 1623. Until the year 1811, as the University was closed, we can detect more than 1.200 Hungarian names in the Franeker Album Studiosorum, a much larger number of Hungarians than everywhere else in the Netherlands. In this article we offer some reasons, why the University at Franeker was such a favourite place for the Hungarians. Moreover we stress the direct interaction between these Students and the Franeker Professors, concerning the topics treated in their Lectures, f.e. in the case of Professor Nicolaus Vedelius (1596-1642), Professor Nicolaus Arnoldus (1618-1680) and especially Professor Johannes Cloppenburg (1592- 1652). Besides the Professors took often care for the publication of many books written by the Hungarians, to be used in the Schools and Colleges in Hungary and Transylvania itself, as f.e. Professor Johannes Coccejus (1603-1669) did, even by publishing his own Hebrew Psalter (1646) for that purpose. In this way the fame and the glory of the University at Franeker became a reality in the Hungarian Protestant World, even after the University was closed. Generally spoken the Hungarian Students took active part in the Lectures and the Disputations. Two of them got a Degree in Philosophy, five became a Doctor of Theology, and at least ten Students got their Degree in Medicine. The general academic circumstances resp. conditions under which the Hungarians had to study at Franeker, it means the rules for ‘Lectio’ and ‘Disputatio’, we sketch out in the final part of this article.

The University of Groningen played en important role in the Hungarian peregrinatio academica. 290 Hungarian and Transylvanian students enrolled the university between 1627 and 1795. The frequency of visiting this university was influenced by political and economic circumstances: the persecution of Protestants in Hungary, wars, and disallowance of studying abroad caused by economic restrictions. The Groningen University took care of its citizens; it had its own court, canteen etc. According to archival sources, Hungarians were summoned to the university court a couple of times. The most frequent reason was debt to the landlord or landlady. There is also one case known when a Hungarian was expelled from the university due to a rape attempt against a local girl. Luckily, the most Hungarians behaved properly and received financial support from the university for paying their meal in the canteen, publishing their disputations, and covering the costs of their journey back home.

Ferenc Pápai Páriz, Professor at the Reformed College of Nagyenyed in Transylvania published his work ‘Rudus redivium’ on church history in Hungary and Transylvania in 1684 in Nagyszeben. The Dutch physician and literary man, Abraham van Poot brought out another book entitled ‘Korte historie van de reformatie der kerken van Hongaryen en Sevenbergenʼ (Short history of the Reformation in Hungary and Transylvania) in 1701 in Amsterdam. Text analysis indicates that the Dutch book is a complete translation of the work of Pápai Páriz. A letter published at the end of the appendix of the Dutch work proves that the author and the translater knew each other. A unique copy of the Dutch book is preserved in the Metropolitan Ervin Szabó Library, Budapest.

Pál Pántzél (1755-1831) was a Hungarian Calvinist pastor and scholar in Transylvania. Following his years in the Reformed College of Kolozsvár (Cluj, present-day Romania), Pántzél was a student of the Staten College at the University of Leiden between 1782 and 1785. He kept a manuscript autobiography, and wrote down his life story in Hungarian. This autobiography is interesting from various perspectives, including regional history, the social and church history of Transylvania, the history of education and so forth. Pántzél wrote extensively about his Leiden university years, which he considers the most beautiful memories of his life, but also includes details of the conditions in which he travelled, as well as the organisation of the trip and the details of the outward journey. In the present study I primarily interpret Pántzél’s notes on his years at the University of Leiden, in the context of early modern travel literature and the history of studying in the Netherlands.

The ideas on history in Protestant Holland in 17-century had much more impact on ideology of Hungarian Peregrinants, than it was considered to be before, not only in ecclesiastical, but in secural area of research history also. It had to be emphasied that there was a turn at the beginning of the 17th century: beside the Barokk, the dominant art and cultural historcal viewpoint came up a general spiritual reform that had several label, and lived without determining its confession. There were in protestant (e.g. Nadere reformatie, Puritanism, Pietism, Herrnhutianism, Methodism) and in catholical denominations (e.g. Jansenism), but also in Jewish religion (e.g. hasidical misticism). In parallel with that phenomenon had changed theories on history. The Hungarian undergraduates had from 1622 in Franeker and in the other Universities in Holland studied, and perceived the alteration of world view. In that paper my scope was investigating the circumstances of that changing, and demonstrating the difficulty of the research.

István Radnai left his home country in 1914, hoping to achieve a brighter and richer future life. With his cousin, László Székely, he traveled to the then Dutch Indies, to Sumatra in order to become rich as a planter. After five weeks, however, he returned disappointed to Hungary, where he saw the beginning of the First World War. On the basis of his diary it is possible to reconstruct the reasons why he found it necessary to escape from the “self” and why he chose the tempting, unknown world. The binary opposition formed in this way undergoes a change in a different context; it becomes shifted and turned around. The interesting “other” becomes frightful and threatening which makes the “self” more valuable at the same time.

The present study tries to re-read Milán Füst’s novel with the help of theories of three contemporary Dutch scholars. Mieke Bal’s academic bestseller, The Travelling Concepts helps us to recognize that static notions of masculinity as well as national and gender stereotypes, which are challenged by the novel, have always been changing dynamically. On the basis of Johan Goudsblom’s theories on the relationship between fire and civilization, on time regimes and on the mystery of the origin of the masculine power one can also prove that Füst’s novel keeps on playing with virtues believed to be masculine, such as the self-control and power over the women. And finally, the essays of the socio-psychologist Douwe Draaisma provide explanation for how the autobiographical memory of the narrator-protagonist determines the special narrative structure of the novel, why he is dwelling on superfluous details and why he leaves out years of his life story.

In the 20th century the Dutch government and the Dutch people undertook the mission of helping socially deprived children on several occassions. The Hungarian and the Dutch Reformed churches have been tied by a close, brotherly bond for several centuries. The major organizer of the children’s holiday scheme was László Pap, Reformed minister, professor of theology in Budapest. 500 children on board of the first train traveled to the Netherlands on July 12th, 1948 and on January 19th, 1949 they arrived home. All the children are perfectly happy in their host families. The children are more than satisfied with their host families and vice versa. They had also found many friends, brothers and sisters, and had become family members.

The Netherlands, like other Western European countries, did its share in accepting the 1956 refugees. However, it is perhaps not generally known that it tried to choose the refugees on basis of its labour market needs. In light of this it preferred to recruit miners or workers suitable for mining from the Austrian refugee camps. The placement and resumption of studies of university students and the secondary students wishing to go on to universities happened quickly and smoothly, owing to the effective organizational work of the Dutch UAF (Universitair Asylfonds). There were not so bright prospects for young workers. Ede Flór, who was helping as an interpreter at the reception of the refugees, quickly noticed that the further education or professional placement of technical and industrial students did not fit into the plans of the higher circles. According to their plans, a good part of the workers would have been employed by the Limburg and Noordoostpolder mines. To avoid this, for the longer-term benefits and better living conditions of the boys, Ede Flór, confronting the political will, set up the The Relief Committee of Hungarian Industrial Apprentices (Hongaars Hulpcomité voor Bedrijfsopleiding). Among his goals were to let the boys give a try in their profession and/or place them to companies where they can learn a vocation. To intercede for these boys at authorities of the host countries to provide them vocational education. The Relief Committee also organized its own bridge, bilingual courses. In addition, it shouldered the interest representation of the workers, the liaisoning with plants employing Hungarians. The Committee considered its own duty to motivate the working youth to study, did not let these often very young teenagers go astray who, in many cases came without their parents to an unknown world. It did not wish to isolate them from the host society but to foster adaptation, success and better progress in the new and chosen homeland - even if it was initially thought to be temporary. Compared to the already existing and the newly formed Hungarian associations in the Netherlands, the Relief Committee served a very different purpose and thus fulfilled a significant role.