In 1575, Prince William governed one of the few regions in Europe without a university. At this time, the Renaissance had begun to highlight the importance of academic research; in order to reward the citizens of Leiden for their heroic performance in resisting the Spanish army in 1574, Prince William established a university here.
It is said that Prince William gave the citizens of Leiden two choices at that time, one was tax exemption and the other was university. The citizens believed that the tax exemption order could be revoked but the university could last for a hundred years, so they chose the latter.
Leiden University houses the Leiden Botanical Garden, the earliest botanical garden in the Netherlands.
Leiden University is still a leader in many research fields, including natural sciences, medicine, social and behavioral sciences, law, art and literature, etc., and cooperates with more than 40 national research institutions. Seven of the 28 winners of the Spinoza Prize, the Netherlands' highest academic honor, teach in Leiden. Portraits of famous professors since the school's founding hang in the Academiegebouw.
After gaining independence, the Netherlands' rapid economic and political rise also created the necessary conditions for the development of university education. However, if Leiden University at that time wanted to become one of the world's first-class universities, it must No expense was spared to recruit top-notch scholars to teach at the school.
In its early days, Leiden University recruited famous scholars in various disciplines from European countries and provided them with the most favorable treatment. It was these masters from different countries who came to teach at the school that established a series of disciplinary frameworks for the newly founded Leiden University, including linguistics, medicine, astronomy, and natural sciences.
Many foreigners come here to study. The school uniformly uses Latin for teaching, so students from Germany, France, Scotland, Austria and other countries can attend classes here.
Leiden University is the birthplace of astronomy and archaeology research in the Netherlands. In 1927, Professor Walter provided sufficient evidence that all the planets in the solar system revolve around the center of the Milky Way.
1. Integration of the city of Leiden and the university
Leiden has a population of about 100,000, and many of the buildings at Leiden University are also very important and modern buildings in Leiden. The city of Leiden and Leiden University have been integrated and become a veritable university town.
Leiden University has more than 130 building facilities located in every corner of Leiden. The main part of the Leiden University buildings is in or near the center of this historic city, with the university offices and information center building located to the east of Leiden Central Station, and the university library "Düren" complex (liberal arts) located to the south of the city center On the side of the scenic moat, there are Howles Laboratory (chemistry and medicine), Huygens Laboratory (biophysics, astronomy and astrophysics), Computing Center Institute, Institute of Mathematics, School of Medicine and affiliated hospitals, various Biochemistry laboratories are located in Xicheng District. The Heike Kamerling Onnes Laboratory, named after the famous Dutch physicist and founder of modern superconductivity research, is located in the city center. These architectural facilities add luster to the cityscape of Leiden, earning it the reputation of "University Town". Because Leiden University is integrated with the city of Leiden, a large number of students living and studying in this historic city have deeply affected life in Leiden.
There are also many museums in Leiden, such as the National Museum of Ancient Customs and the Museum of Anthropology. The Leiden University Botanical Garden is one of the oldest botanical gardens in Europe.
2. Leiden University Botanical Garden
There is another thing that can prove the ambition of Leiden people to run a university, that is, this botanical garden was built in 1592 by the botanist Corusis. The first botanical garden in the Kingdom of the Netherlands that he personally established for the school. At that time, people established a biological science system by studying the diversity of the biological world. The number of plants collected in the garden reached more than 1,700 at that time, and later grew to more than 3,000. At the end of the 16th century, only five universities in Italy and Germany had such botanical gardens for teaching.
Today people come here mainly for viewing and leisure. Thousands of still lush plants in the garden not only show people the beauty of nature, but also show the academic scene from centuries ago.
3. Humanity’s first cadaver anatomy class
The tradition of experimental physiology began in the 17th century. It regards the organism as a machine and explains its life functions by understanding its physiological structure. . Autopsies were an important breakthrough.
In 1589, Paulo conducted the first public dissection at Leiden University and gave an explanation at the same time. At that time, this was not only a great attempt in scientific research, but also a conceptual challenge to divine authority.
Three years later, according to Baofu’s design, the school built a circular lecture theater similar to the Roman Coliseum for anatomy. The purpose of this design was to make it clear to every student present Watch the entire process of human anatomy. At that time, other established universities in Europe did not have such facilities.
In the initial anatomy class, the students were not allowed to do it themselves. Due to conditions, this academic activity is limited to winter. The dissection of a cadaver was considered a major event, and all school classes were stopped every time an autopsy was performed.
The medical research at Leiden University moved closer to the natural sciences starting from Boerhafen. He was both a medical scientist and also engaged in research on mathematics, mechanics and statics. Students from all over the world flocked to Leiden to worship him as their teacher. The medical textbooks and chemistry textbooks written by Boerhafen have been adopted by universities in various European countries, and he therefore enjoys the reputation of "European Education Master".
4. The birth of the first electrocardiograph
Today’s Leiden University Medical Center has no trace of the clinical lecture halls of the 17th and 18th centuries in its architectural style. A world-class medical research center and the largest medical institution in the Netherlands, researchers here generally wear two hats, engaged in research and serving patients at the same time. They have been at the leading international level in the fields of immunology, organ transplantation, genetics and infectious disease research.
More than a hundred years ago, Enthoven, a professor of medicine at Leiden University, spent 30 years finally completing the research on the principles of electrocardiography and developing the first electrocardiograph in mankind. The invention provides an accurate basis for the diagnosis of heart disease. To this day, the electrocardiogram remains the most common and reliable means of diagnosing heart disease. Entthofen received the 1924 Nobel Prize in Medicine for his great contributions to human health.
5. The foundation of modern physics
At the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, the development of modern science began to show a turning point. Traditional mechanism was questioned, and people's world view and scientific outlook were doomed. To face another shock. After a century of silence, Leiden University has also ushered in its second golden age. Four professors have won the Nobel Prize, including Lorenz, who won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1902.
Lorentz’s outstanding contribution in physics was the creation of the classical electron theory. People call the force exerted by moving charges in a magnetic field the Lorentz force, and the magnetic resonance spectrum lines are called There is an important formula called Lorentz transformation in the special theory of relativity. These theories have laid a solid theoretical foundation for modern physics research.
Einstein once talked about his feelings listening to Lorenz's lectures in an article: These lectures were something Lorenz gave regularly to young researchers after his retirement. The scientific theories narrated from the mouth of this outstanding man are as clear and beautiful as excellent works of art, and are expressed so smoothly and easily. That's something I've never felt from anyone else.
In 1878, at the age of 25, Lorenz was unusually appointed professor of theoretical physics by the Royal Netherlands Society. After that, Lorenz coached at the University of Leeds for 45 years.
The contributions of Kamerin Onnes, another Nobel Prize winner, to low temperature and superconductivity were equally revolutionary.
Onnes established the world's first low-temperature physics laboratory for Leiden University. After his death, the laboratory was named after him and it is still the world's low-temperature physics research center. "Knowledge is obtained from experiments", this was Onnes's famous saying during his lifetime, and it still hangs high on the door of the laboratory today. Here, Onnes' career never stopped during his lifetime.
Every other Wednesday, the Department of Physics of Leiden University holds academic lectures. This tradition has been maintained for more than a hundred years without interruption.
For more than a century, almost every famous physicist has come to lecture at Leiden University. There is a signature wall at Leiden University, on which we can see the signatures of almost all famous physicists, including Yang Zhenning, who is well-known to the Chinese.
Here, after famous scholars give speeches, they do not leave the lecture hall coldly, but chat, dine and talk about their dreams with teachers and classmates. For generations of teachers and students at Leiden University, being able to witness the grace of these scientific giants and listen to their teachings is a rare treasure.
6. A sinological research center across Europe
There are many reasons why Leiden University develops research on Eastern languages. The first is the practical needs of foreign trade and politics. The Netherlands has established trade relations with more and more Eastern countries. In the second half of the 19th century, the navigation of the Suez Canal promoted the exchanges between the Netherlands and Far Eastern countries. It also promoted the prosperity of Oriental studies, the traditional discipline of Leiden University. Since 1851, the university has established Chinese and Japanese majors.
The Chinese books collected here are a treasure for Western scholars. It is with the help of these original books that Leiden University’s sinological research has always maintained its original flavor.
The library of Leiden University’s Chinese School is the only Chinese library in the Netherlands. It has a centralized collection of Chinese books from all over the world, so its collection ranks first among Chinese libraries in Europe. . This Chinese library makes Leiden University a veritable center of Sinology in Europe. Scholars from all over Europe came to consult the classics. The Chinese Institute of Leiden University is also the center for Chinese studies in Europe.
7. Unexpected gifts in the war
The image of Leiden was first created during the war. At the beginning of the 16th century, the Netherlands was under the rule of the Kingdom of Spain. In order to fight for independence, the Dutch launched the "Eighty Years' War" against the Spanish. In 1574, the city of Leiden was besieged by the Spanish army, and the residents refused to surrender. It was not until October 3 that the Dutch resistance troops came to help and brought bread and herrings to the hungry citizens. October 3 became the Liberation Day of Leiden. Every year on this day, the city held a celebration, and the city government gave each citizen a piece of bread and herrings. This ceremony continues to this day.
In December 1574, Prince Wilhelm von Oulanger, the leader of the War of Independence at the time, proposed to the government the establishment of a university in order to commend the citizens of Leiden for their performance in the struggle to defend national independence. Because of his heroic and tenacious spirit, the government first gave this honor to the city of Leiden. On February 8, 1575, the first institution of higher learning in the history of the Kingdom of the Netherlands was finally born in this small town. Although the war was still continuing in other areas, this day was a day worth celebrating for the citizens of Leiden.
Leiden University was born in an era of scientific revolution. Copernicus proposed the heliocentric theory, Galileo created a tradition of scientific experiments, and New Worlds were discovered one after another. These great achievements have made people's thinking shift from a closed world to a Infinite universe.
8. Generous remuneration attracts well-known scholars
After gaining independence, the Netherlands’ rapid economic and political rise also created the necessary conditions for the development of university education. However, at that time If Leiden University wants to join the ranks of the world's first-class universities, it must spend a lot of money to recruit first-class scholars to teach at the school.
In its early days, Leiden University recruited famous scholars in various disciplines from European countries and provided them with the most favorable treatment. It was these masters from different countries who came to teach at the school that established a series of disciplinary frameworks for the newly founded Leiden University, including linguistics, medicine, astronomy, and natural sciences.
Many foreigners come here to study. The school uniformly uses Latin for teaching, so students from Germany, France, Scotland, Austria and other countries can attend classes here without any difficulty.
In 1578, Justus Lipsius, an important European humanist, resigned from the University of Leuven in Belgium and taught at Leiden University. The arrival of Lipsis made Leiden University increasingly famous in the European intellectual circles. A year later, the French jurist Hugo Donellius came to Leiden University from Heidelberg, Germany. In 1582, R. Dodonaeus, the author of "Herbal Book", left the court of Vienna and came to lecture at Leiden University Medical School, which brought reputation and expanded influence to Leiden University Medical School. The supervisors of Leiden University attached great importance to the role of famous scholars. However, due to the influence of religion, Lipsis returned to the Catholic Church in 1591 and returned to teach at the University of Leuven. In order to hire another humanist and language master with as high prestige as Lipsis, the school supervisors worked hard, and even the then Dutch Governor-General Prince Mauritz personally intervened in the matter. They selected the famous linguist, Scaliger of France, and invited him to teach at Leiden University with generous treatment. In order to ensure Scaliger's safe arrival, the Netherlands sent a special fleet to Italy to greet him.
Historically, Leiden University has also achieved outstanding results in scientific research. Leiden University is the birthplace of Dutch astronomy and archaeological research. In 1927, Professor Walter provided sufficient evidence that all the planets in the solar system revolve around the center of the Milky Way.
The cryogenic laboratory of Leiden University has created low temperatures that are only one thousandth of a degree higher than absolute zero, so it can be called "the coldest place in the world." The laboratory also realized the liquefaction of helium for the first time and discovered superconductivity in metals.
According to incomplete statistics, at least 16 Nobel Prize winners have studied, researched, taught or lectured at Leiden University.
From 1920 to 1946, Albert Einstein taught at Leiden University for 26 years. Einstein's manuscript on the statistical distribution of bosons (later Bose-Einstein condensates) was discovered in the Leiden University library in 2005.