Bergh in de jaren dertig: Een Gelderse plattelandsgemeente tijdens de Grote Depressie

Paul van Dun’s dissertation focuses on the rural community of “Bergh” in Gelderland during the Great Depression of the 1930s. Two central questions are addressed, firstly how did the crisis victims in Bergh – the workers, farmers and small business owners – experience and survive this crisis and secondly, were there any factors that made the experience and survival in Bergh different from elsewhere in the Netherlands. The crisis victims are given a voice, as far as the sources allow. Comparable research has, up until now, merely focused on workers in a few major cities, but never focused on a rural area such as Bergh’s. Bergh is situated on the border between “De Achterhoek’ and “De Liemers” right next to the German border, not far from Emmerik. In the 1930s, in the municipality, 40% of the population worked in agriculture while 20% were employed in trades and services. The 40% working in the industrial sector primarily relied on the industrial employment in surrounding towns, including the German town of Emmerik. Having a 93% Catholic population, Bergh was deeply Catholic. The influence of Catholicism was visible everywhere and Catholicism played a significant role in shaping the collective moral values. Theories on relative deprivation, the emergence of collective action, gender and discrimination are used to explain the individual and collective responses to the crisis phenomena, as well as the survival strategies of the crisis victims. This PhD research shows that the region’s proximity to the border had a clear influence on the socio-economic developments in Bergh. Additionally, there was also a political interplay with the neighbouring country. However, the influence of the Catholic church, played a crucial role in the response to this crisis. The research findings indicate that the crisis victims in Bergh were neither better nor worse off than elsewhere in the Netherlands. This can largely be attributed to the lack of scope that the national legislation offered to the municipal government and the strict control exerted by the central government over the crisis policies of the municipality.