My favourite story is about this plaque. It depicts William of Orange holding the founding document of Leiden University in his right hand. In February 1575, he handed it to Jan van Hout and Jan van der Does, standing to his right: the university’s first board members. In his left hand, the Prince holds a statuette of Minerva, the goddess of wisdom. The lower half of the plaque shows two citizens of Leiden driving a Spaniard out of the city. With this, artist Theo van de Vathorst sought to illustrate: ‘the enemy expelled – a university gained.’ Beautiful, isn’t it?
In the original design, two men were shown beating the Spaniard out of the city. However, the university insisted that a woman should be included—after all, women also played a crucial role in 1574. The first version of the plaque can still be seen in the cloakroom of the Academy Building.
The first female student was admitted only in 1878, the first female professor in 1929, and the first female rector magnificus in 2021. And yet, a woman appears on this plaque. Bravo!
