The International Geographical Congress at Amsterdam, July 1938

Abstract

The Fifteenth International Geographical Congress was held at Amsterdam, on the invitation of the Dutch National Committee for Geography, from 18 to 28 July 1938 inclusive. The first of these congresses was held at Antwerp in 1871, and before the war successive congresses were held at Paris, Venice, Paris, Berne, London, Berlin, the U .S. A., Geneva, and Rome; also after the war, at Cairo, Cambridge, Paris, Warsaw, and now at Amsterdam. The Amsterdam Congress was the largest of the post-war congresses, and approached in size the giant congresses of London in 1895 and Berlin in 1899; at each of these the number of ‘ inscriptions’ was more than 1500. At Amsterdam the ‘ inscriptions’ came to 1234, and the number of geographers actually attending was over 1000. The organization of the Congress by the Dutch Organizing Committee was most efficient. In one respect they attempted, and admirably succeeded in carrying out a plan never before adopted at any of these geographical congresses. They printed all the communications intended for reading at the meetings of the various sections of the Congress, before the opening; so that each intending congressist had in his possession, some weeks before the Congress, a series of volumes dealing with his special subjects, The total number of such volumes was eleven, and the number of pages printed was more than 3000. This was a heavy task which must have involved much preparatory labour, and, it may be added, a great deal of expense.