The Primacy of Parliamentary Proceedings: The Members of the First Dutch National Assembly and the Dagverhaal

Abstract

In the age of the Dutch Republic, both political authors and the public lacked detailed information on the behaviour of political figures, because decision-making took place on a level to which neither groups had direct access. This often led writers who aimed at a national audi­ence to represent political figures in a stereotypical manner. During the first years of the Bata­vian Republic, the proceedings of the sessions of the National Assembly (the Dagverhaal) granted direct access to the political process. As long as the Dagverhaal was read by a large part of the population, the media and the electorate had the same knowledge of the public acts of their deputies. As a result, political commentators could take an important step towards a multidimensional and individualized representation.