VII World Esperanto Congress

Cathedral of Our Lady of Antwerp.

The VII World Esperanto Congress was held in the Belgian city of Antwerp from August 20 to 27, 1911, and 1,733 Esperantists from 42 countries participated in it ^[1] . The congress was first organized according to a new scheme: its participants were authorized delegates from national Esperanto organizations, the selection of which was personally attended by L. Zamenhof .

The Local Congress Steering Committee ( Esper. Loka Kongresa Komitato , LKK) included:

• President: Amathus van der Bist-Andelhof
• Vice President: Oscar van Schur
• Secretary-Treasurer: Dr. Willem van der Beast
• Committee members: Lieutenant F. Dupont, M. Posener, L. Ritsche, F. Schufs

The cultural program of the congress included the presentation of plays in Esperanto :

• “Caatier,” translated by W. van der Beaist
• The Duty of the King (Nestor de Thiers)
• “For Quiet People” (E. van Dresche)
• "Review of the Seventh" (W. van der Beast)
• “She did not read it” (W. van der Beast).

In addition, 40 scientists participating in the congress, headed by Hippolytus Seber , president of the International Association of Esperanto Scientists, visited Brussels , where they met with the Belgian writer, scientist and thinker Paul Otle ^[2] .