La fabrication d'honnêtes hommes. Of hoe Maria-Theresia voorbeeldige burgers wilde boetseren in de colleges van de Oostenrijkse Nederlanden (1777-1789)

Abstract

La fabrication d’honnêtes homes. Or how Maria-Theresia tried to create model citizens in the colleges of Austrian Netherlands (1777-1789)During the second half of the 18th century, education became a political issue in large areas of Europe. The Austrian Netherlands whole-heartedly took part in this movement. Here, the government shared the optimistic believe of enlightened philosophers that education was able to mould youth and to change society in a specific way. In this article, we take a closer look at the moral and the religious education that young people received in the colleges. Focussing both on normative documents and on sources that unveil day-to-day reality in the schools, we sketch the ideal of the honest men the government wanted to fabricate, and we evaluate the results of this undertaking at different levels.