The introduction introduces the key puzzle of the research: how and why did the European Convention turn in the Kingdom of the Netherlands from a barely used instrument, with an inactive Court tucked away in Strasbourg, into the primary means of legal protection for individuals seeking to protect their fundamental rights?

It posits how the Kingdom of the Netherlands forms a vital case study, as through its constitutional system and colonial history, it allows not just for a strong engagement with the Convention, but also to bring into focus the often forgotten colonial dimension of European human rights. As such, it offers a fresh narrative to the story of the history of the Convention.

Second, it lays out how the study goes about telling that story, namely through a reception history. It establishes what is meant by the ‘reception of law’, who are active in this process of receiving and how those actors have been studied.

Finally, it lays out the choices made in telling this story, from archival materials to periodization.