Proximity without propinquity? De verschuivende relatie tussen de stad Delft en het polytechnisch onderwijs in de negentiende en twintigste eeuw

Abstract

Proximity without propinquity? The changing relationship between the city of Delft and its Polytechnic in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries In the 19th and a large part of the 20th century the city of Delft had the monopoly on Dutch advanced polytechnic education. Urban Studies' coryphée Richard V. Knight characterised the relationship between the city and its polytechnic academy as 'proximity without propinquity'. Yet in the 19th century city and academy were closely interrelated - economically, industrially, culturally as well as politically. The alienation between city and academy goes back only to the early 20th century. The national mission of Delft, changing concepts in technology, an expanding student body and a growing influence of Big Business (Shell, Philips) on the polytechnic academy all played their part in this process. In de late 20th century Knight's concept of the knowledge-based city was embraced by the city council and the academy in an attempt to restore the lost propinquity.