The librarated part means free from government control. Until the VU all Dutch universities belonged (indirectly) to the Dutch government.
The librarated part means free from government control. Until the VU all Dutch universities belonged (indirectly) to the Dutch government.
Some universities, especially in Latin America, use the term "autonomous". Is that the same thing is "free" in this context?
Yes. Absence of direct control by the government. The VU was founded for religious reasons, so the main goal was to be able to teach theology according to the particular type of protestant Christianity that the founders of the VU believed in.