The Christian Historical Voters' League (in Dutch: ''Christelijk Historische Kiezersbond'', CHK) was a Dutch conservative protestant political party. The CHK is historically linked to the Christian Democratic Appeal which is currently one of the major parties of the Netherlands.

Party history

The CHK was founded in 1897. It was a continuation of the National Party, which was founded in 1888 but had never gained a seat in parliament. They were founded as one of several parties that were founded in the 1890s, which all turned again the leadership and ideology of

Abraham Kuyper Abraham Kuyper (; ; 29 October 1837 – 8 November 1920) was the Prime Minister of the Netherlands between 1901 and 1905, an influential neo-Calvinist theologian and a journalist. He established the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands, which upo ...

, the leader of the Protestant Anti Revolutionary Party. Kuyper had initiated a new political course for Protestantism in the Netherlands, which included cooperation with the

Catholics The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, in the

coalition A coalition is a group formed when two or more people or groups temporarily work together to achieve a common goal. The term is most frequently used to denote a formation of power in political or economical spaces. Formation According to ''A Gui ...

, strategical support for extension of suffrage a rejection of theocracy in favour of a specific conception of state neutrality, sphere sovereignty and a strong party organization and party discipline. The party was led by two

reformed Reform is beneficial change Reform may also refer to: Media * ''Reform'' (album), a 2011 album by Jane Zhang * Reform (band), a Swedish jazz fusion group * ''Reform'' (magazine), a Christian magazine *''Reforme'' ("Reforms"), initial name of the ...

ministers Bronsveld and de Visser. In the election of 1897 de Visser was elected to the House of Representatives for the district of Rotterdam, while Bronsveld became

chair A chair is a type of seat, typically designed for one person and consisting of one or more legs, a flat or slightly angled seat and a back-rest. They may be made of wood, metal, or synthetic materials, and may be padded or upholstered in vario ...

. A conflict between Bronsveld and de Visser develops, while de Visser wanted to cooperated with other Christian-Historical parties, such as the Frisian League and

Free Anti Revolutionary Party The Free Anti Revolutionary Party (in Dutch: ''Vrij-Antirevolutionaire Partij'', VAR) was a Dutch conservative Reformed political party, which existed from 1898 to 1903. The VAR is historically linked to the Christian Democratic Appeal which is c ...

(VAR), while Bronsveld did not. In

1901 Events January * January 1 – The Crown colony, British colonies of New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria (Australia), Victoria and Western Australia Federation of Australia, federate as the Australia, ...

de Visser was elected for one of the Amsterdam districts. In the same year de Visser succeeded Bronsveld as chair and opened talks with the VAR and in April 1903 the VAR and the CHK merged to form the Christian Historical Party (CHP); in 1908 the CHP would merge with the Frisian League to form the Christian Historical Union. In 1977 the CHU merged with the Anti Revolutionary Party and Catholic People's Party to form the Christian Democratic Appeal.

Name

The term "Christian Historical" was used before 1897 to denote supporters of the main Protestant party, the Anti Revolutionary Party, emphasizing the Protestant nature of the history of the Netherlands. Furthermore the CHK styled itself a voters' league, a

caucus A caucus is a meeting of supporters or members of a specific political party or movement. The exact definition varies between different countries and political cultures. The term originated in the United States, where it can refer to a meeting ...

, instead of a conventional political party.

Ideology & issues

The CHK was formed as a result of dissent within the main Protestant party the Anti Revolutionary Party, unlike that party the CHK did not recognize Catholicism as a legitimate religion. The party was strong

anti-papist Anti-Catholicism is hostility towards Catholics or opposition to the Catholic Church, its clergy, and/or its adherents. At various points after the Reformation, some majority Protestant states, including England, Prussia, Scotland, and the Uni ...

. Furthermore the party opposed

general suffrage Universal suffrage (also called universal franchise, general suffrage, and common suffrage of the common man) gives the right to vote to all adult citizens, regardless of wealth, income, gender, social status, race, ethnicity, or political stanc ...

. The party was divided over the issue of

religious education In secular usage, religious education is the teaching of a particular religion (although in the United Kingdom the term ''religious instruction'' would refer to the teaching of a particular religion, with ''religious education'' referring to te ...

, with Bronsveld advocating Protestant-inspired public education and de Visser advocating separate Protestant schools.

Representation

This table show the DHK's results in elections to the House of Representatives and

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

, as well as the party's political leadership: the fractievoorzitter, the chair of the parliamentary party . It also possible that the party leader is member of cabinet, if the CHK was part of the governing coalition, the "highest ranking" minister is listed.

Electorate

The electorate of the CHK was mainly constituted by adherents of the Dutch Reformed Church from the upper class.

International comparison

As a party for Protestant dissenters of a catholic-Protestant alliance the CHK is a unique phenomenon in international perspective. Its political course, which included support of limited government, rejection of universal suffrage and hostility against Catholicism, is comparable to the course of the British Conservative Party in the late 1800s and to some extent American Party of the United States.

References

{{Dutch Christian political parties Protestant political parties Defunct political parties in the Netherlands Confessional parties in the Netherlands Political parties established in 1897 Political parties disestablished in 1903 Defunct Christian political parties Conservative parties in the Netherlands