Exploring Dutch Participation in the American Revolution Fellowship

Applications due: February 1, 2026

With the generous support of the National Society of Colonial Dames of the Seventeenth Century, the New Netherland Institute announces a new fellowship to fund research that sheds light on Dutch participation in the American Revolution.

Advanced graduate students, PhD holders in history and allied fields, scholars of any rank, and independent scholars are invited to apply. The fellow will carry out original research on any aspect of the Dutch and the American Revolution. Possible topics include, but are not limited to, Dutch descendants in New York and their allegiances during the Revolution, financial support for the American Revolution from the Netherlands, and connections between Dutch colonies and the American colonies or the new American Republic.

The fellow will create a digital exhibition for the New Netherland Institute’s website based on their research, as well as a database of documents related to the Dutch and the American Revolution.

• This is a four-month fellowship. The fellow is required to work full time on the research project during the fellowship term. The fellow may choose any consecutive four months between March 1, 2026, and October 31, 2026. Please indicate in your application which four months you are applying for.
• Total fellowship compensation is $18,000.
• Applicants must be proficient in early modern Dutch and use Dutch in their research.
• Remote work with digitized documents is permitted. No additional funds are available for travel to archives. Potential archives include, but are not limited to, the Nationaal Archief in The Hague, the City Archives in Amsterdam, the Prize Papers at Kew, the New York State Library, and the New York City Municipal Archives.
• The fellowship is open to American and Dutch scholars.
• The fellow will create a digital exhibition for the New Netherland Institute’s website on the broad theme of the Dutch in the American Revolution. You can view the digital exhibition archive here. The fellow will provide the text, images, and image captions. The New Netherland Institute will lay out the exhibition and publish it online.
• The fellow will document the archives and printed primary sources consulted in a database to share with the New Netherland Institute.
• To apply, email nni@newnetherlandinstitute.org a CV and a project proposal of no more than five double-spaced pages, detailing the proposed research and digital exhibition. Submit both documents together in one PDF. Two letters of recommendation are also required and must be sent separately. Applicants and recommenders should use the subject line “Exploring Dutch Participation in the American Revolution” for their submissions.
• Candidates who advance to the interview stage will be asked to provide a 10–20-page writing sample.

Questions? Email nni@newnetherlandinstitute.org. We are happy to help.