In Germany and France naturism started in the beginning of the century, as a reaction to the Victorian morality and industrialisation. In Germany, Heinrich Pudor, Richard Ungewitter and Magnus Weidemann were founders of the FKK. They found lots of participates in the organisation of the Wandervögel. In France, Kienné de Mongeot, Jacques Demarquette and the Durville brothers stimulated naturism.

Before world war II, two naturist clubs in the Netherlands were important, the Bond van Lichtvrienden (1931-1935) and the Vrije Lichaams-Kultuurbeweging (1926-1934). The Bvl was counting more than 50 members on their highest level, they were mostly inhabitants of the city of Amsterdam with a social context, and achieved its own area close to Hollandse Rading in the year of 1932.
The VLK existed by the guidance of the theosophic Fokko van Till and for example of the German Treubund of Ungewitter, they only allowed men and women 'from Aryan birth'; the group brought out his own illustrated magazine, 'Integraal Leven', and from 1929, they were concerning an own area near to Laren. The VLK thought that inner life reform, brought by the release of the body by means of the nude running, 'a Coming or new Culture' would bring closer. Around 1930, the association had large influence on the left youth movement. After 1932, they aimed more and more at the convalescence of the 'Germaanse volksleven' and the environment of their writings became anti-Semitic. In 1934, personal conflicts put an end to the association. After the group Vernieuwing (1937-1943) (wich was set up in the city of Utrecht) had kept the natural ideals warmly, in Den Haag Zon en Leven was set up in the year of 1946. Since then, the naturism got more and more participants. In 1991, there were about fifty naturists clubs in the Netherlands, in wich about 43,000 members and paticipants of the Dutch NFN had been connected. The coordinating organisation, the naturists federation of the Netherlands (NFN), wich is established in Nieuwegein, they brings out the illustrated magazine Naturism about five times a year.

Belgium is counting about twenty associations over about 12,000 members. The Belgian naturist club Athena is the largest of Europe. The federation of Belgian naturists (FBN) has established in Antwerpen. The Dutch and Belgian federation has been connected to INF/FNI (International Naturist Federation/Féderation Naturistes international) wich is established in Antwerpen.

Although the old Greeks and Romen did not have any problems with the naked body, the roots of the modern European naturism can be found from the beginning of the twentieth century. Even though at the beginning of the nineteenth century, there was already an official nudist beach in the French Sable d'Olonnes. On 16 July 1816 the mayor destinated a piece range, because the municipality was faced with the immorality of men who were taking a bath dressed and undressed by each other.

The Victorian episode has come to an end. Strict standards and values, chastity and fear for everything what deviated from the standard stipulated the character of an episode. Because of the excessively prudish people in that time, an excessively response had to come. In some countries individual freedom started getting a fixed form. The pioneers of the naturism were setting the freedom of nude compared with the strict rules of that time. Also they propagated simplicity and harmony with nature against the rising prosperity and the wasting wich was involved.

In Germany, the naturism has arise around the beginning of the twentieth century. Particularly the German Pudor played an important role at the beginning of what we call present naturism. In 1903, near the German place called Lubeck, worldly first nudist camp was decided set up: "Freilichtpark Klingberg". Around 1985, this park had to be sold because a bungalow district was rising up. At the end of the twenties the organised naturism got foot to the ground in the Netherlands by Harry Dissen (1898-1986) and Ise Lang (1908-2000). Both were also active within the group Vernieuwing (1937-1943), the preamble of Zon en Leven. Whereas the second world war ensured a temporary discontinuance, in the years forty and fifty naturism was groing bigger in Europe. Especially in the sixties en seventies the naturism in the Netherlands was groing. Initially the religious Dutch people stood divided compared with this phenomenon and there was much resistance against the "rising nude". But stopping the rise of naturism was impossible. Whereas according to a research of the Nipo one on the three Dutch people indicates to want to recreate nude, meanwhile the Netherlands counts one and a half million people who want to recreate nude, and they are an important group, both in political and social point of view.

Beside the mostly ideology floated naturists, there is still a group who has the intention having pleasure of being nude: the nudists. Since 1991, a branch of this group has just formed an association link group called "smoothies", that characterise themselves by shaving the body all over the place. Just like the Egyptians, the Greeks and the Romen as well, they sees a body without wearing hair as a sign of beauty and as a symbol of youth and a pure body. For those who think this is all crazy: there are still cultures who think sexual hair is ugly. When they feel hair upon their body rises up, little Islamic girls hurry to the Hamam (bathhouse), where they strip themselves of this in special depilation chambers. And also the Western vogue prescribes that our women strip themselves of leg -, armpit - and other "marring" pilosity!

Source: Zo puur in de natuur