A Dozen Banners from Early Dutch Trade Unions

Introduction

The early Dutch trade unions spent a great deal of money on their business cards.
That was a banner, a costly jewel of velvet, silk, or satin with gold wire. It was a matter of prestige for local trade unions to have one. During festive processions and meetings the banner was unfurled and held by a proud bearer. This was also what the guilds did in the middle ages.

Around 1900 a banner made in a specialized workshop cost a hundred guilders, which was a thousand times as much as the hourly wage for the average worker in those times. It was cheaper to buy a second-hand banner, advertised in the trade union press, which meant that only the department name and founding date had to be changed. It was possible to enlist the services of the trade union administrators' wives to do that.
The tools of the appropriate trade were embroidered, painted, or appliqued on the banner. After 1895 Jugenstil floral patterns such as oak leaves and laurel wreaths were used. The symbolism of the rising sun and crowing cock were used by both Christian and socialist unions. The Catholic unions portrayed their patrons. The saints did not work, they read the bible or prayed. Differences between Protestant, Catholic, and socialist banners were only very minor.
The IISH has the largest collection of trade union banners in Holland. In a few cases the author of a banner is known. The famous architect H.P. Berlage designed the diamond cutters' banner of the General Diamond Workers Union in 1894. This banner and eleven others from different trade unions, groups, and forms are shown here.

Descriptions of all banners, flags, and vanes can be found in our online catalogue. For more information see the article Het vaandel voorop, by Marien van der Heijden (in Dutch).