KEES BOEKE

'Cornelis Boeke' (September 25, 1884 - July 3, 1966) studied at the University of London.
He tried to renovate education by letting children in on decisions concerning school. He let decisions be made unanimously. He called this ''sociocracy''. He designated school as a workshop, teachers as employees and pupils as workers. The goal of this form of education was to teach children a sense of democracy. It was also based on Quaker ideas. He founded one such school in 1926 in Bilthoven, which he led until 1954. The later Dutch queen Beatrix enjoyed an early education at this school.
Boeke was inspired by the pacifist Pierre Ceresole whom he had met in 1919 in Bilthoven during a meeting. Together with Helene Stöcker, Friedrich August Wolf (?) and Wilfred Wellock they founded the Service Civil International.
Kees Boeke grew up in a Christian family in Holland. As a student he spent a year in England where he met the Quakers. He became a Quaker and attended Woodbrooke, the Quaker college near Birmingham. There he was inspired by Bournville, the garden town which the Cadburys, owner of the chocolate factory, had built for their workers. He married Beatrice (Betty) Cadbury. The couple went to Syria in 1912 as Quaker missionaries. In 1914, after the outbreak of World War I, they returned to England. They became active in peace work, the Fellowship of Reconciliation having come into being through Henry Hodgkin. In 1915 Kees traveled to Berlin where he met Friedrich Siegmund-Schultze, with whom Hodgkin had been working at the outbreak of war. Kees began to speak publicly in England: "The Germans are our brothers; God did not create man that he might kill; the war will find its quickest end when all soldiers lay down their weapons." He was expelled from England and returned to Holland. His family followed; there they lived in Bilthoven, near Utrecht. Their home became soon a pacifist center.
After the war, Boeke built a larger conference center which he called "Brotherhood House." The first international peace conference took place there October, 4-11, 1919 . Henry Hodgkins, Friedrich Siegmund Schultze, Leon Revoyne, Mathilde Wrede, Leonard Ragaz, Pierre Cérésole were present. Kees Boeke and Pierre Cérésole became the secretaries of this movement, which called itself a “Christian International”.
Kees and Betty Boeke considered capitalism to be the root of war. As Betty was a Cadbury, she received large shares. She transferred this money to various charitable organizations such as the Quaker-Help Organization in Russia in 1920. Later they gave the shares to the workers in the Cadbury factory. For a while the Boekes refused to use money; they wouldn't pay postage, tolls, or taxes. They were imprisoned several times, and one of their seven children was born in prison. Kees supported his family by working in Utrecht in a building association which he had founded; he did not work as an architect (which was his training), but as a simple worker.
In the late 1920s Kees Boeke withdrew more and more from the international peace movements. He now believed he could build a better society through educating children, and he started a school, called “De werkplaats” (the working place). His school, which used Maria Montessori's methods, became famous; even the Dutch queen sent her daughters there.
He died in 1966, surrounded by his family. He had written a large book on education. One of his last works was ''Cosmic View'' (New York 1957).

Contents

External links

External links

★ Official Website of the Werkplaats Kindergemeenschap

★ Archief Kees Boeke

★ online copy of the book "Cosmic View"