Author:

Keywords:

Vlaamse Beweging, katholieke studentenbeweging, negentiende eeuw

Abstract:

The life of the Priest Jan Frans Drijvers proves that working behind the scenes of the Flemish movement is just as intensive but far less glorious. Drijvers played a crucial role in the Catholic Flemish student movement of his time: as a seminarian in 1880 he – together with a few friends – founded De Student that became the first widely distributed Catholic pro-Flemish student magazine. The editors hid their identity behind pen names in order to avoid any antagonism from the ecclesiastical authorities. The most important achievement of De Student was that it ensured that the Catholic children of school age now were collectively exposed to one set of ideas, after the failure of a similar attempt originating in West-Flanders in the 1870’s. Drijvers was their "student leader" even if he led them with his pen, completely anonymously. He attempted to teach his readers not only a determined pro-Flemish attitude, but also a differentiated attitude towards the ecclesiastical authorities, whom Drijvers considered as the true leaders of the pro-Flemish Catholics. De Student propagated its message in the form of articles, short poems, stories, language lessons etc., alternating humour and seriousness. The unanimity created by De Student was substantiated in 1890 by the foundation of the Catholic Flemish Student Union. Two years later, however, De Student suffered a temporary Episcopal interdiction. It appeared that Drijvers was not able to overcome this disappointment. In 1902 he left the editorial board, after ideological differences of opinion with the newly appointed correspondents. Because Drijvers' anonymity as founder of De Student had been maintained, it had the regretful result that he passed into historical oblivion.