Vincent Chang
Assistant professor
- Name
- Dr.mr. V.K.L. Chang
- Telephone
- +31 71 527 2151
- v.k.chang@hum.leidenuniv.nl
- ORCID iD
- 0000-0001-9056-152x

Vincent K.L. Chang is a university lecturer in history and international relations and a senior fellow at the Leiden Asia Centre. He focuses on historical experiences and contemporary approaches to nation building, conflict, diplomacy and law in the East Asian and Indo-Pacific contexts. His main areas of interests include transnational memory politics and historical statecraft (war remembrance, martyrdom construction, memory alliances), region building and contestation in East Asia, China–EU relations, and bilateral ties between China and the Netherlands.
More information about Vincent Chang
My academic interests lie at the intersection of political and diplomatic history, memory studies, and international relations. What connects these interests is the understanding that the present is only the most recent, transitory phase of the past. Studying contemporary Asia means studying its history and global interactions. In turn, a deeper understanding of ‘global China’ and East Asia will advance the study of regional and global order.
Drawing on an academic background in law and modern history, I focus on historical and contemporary questions of nation-building, nationalism and identity, and regional and global interactions in times of international conflict and power shifts. I am particularly interested in the formation and contestation of norms and narratives, including those on war and imperialism, morality and law, and governance and diplomacy.
Research
My research spans and connects various scholarly disciplines and genres, moving between questions of Chinese history in the 20th century, contemporary politics and international relations, and the impact of the past on China’s globalization and its consequences. In recent years, I have developed my research along three main lines:
1. Political and diplomatic history of modern China:
- Imperialism, nation-building, and diplomacy during the late Qing, the Republican era, World War I, World War II, the Chinese Civil War, and the Cold War
- Historical relations between China and the Netherlands (ca. 1850–2000), including Chinese involvement in the Dutch East Indies / Indonesia (1900–1956) and Dutch-Taiwan relations (1950–1980s)
I am currently working on a new book in which I examine how the PRC and Dutch governments invoked, interpreted, and disputed international legal principles and norms during a series of diplomatic incidents from 1950 to 2000. Drawing on hitherto unexplored Chinese and Dutch state archives, including classified records of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, I seek to provide new insights into the historical drivers, dilemmas and frictions of Chinese-Dutch ties and thereby also revive a Leiden Sinological tradition.
2. ‘Global China’, East Asia and IR:
- Chinese notions of world order, global governance, and (neighbourhood) diplomacy
- Region building and contestation in East Asia and the Indo-Pacific (China, Japan, South Korea, ASEAN, Australia, US, etc.)
- China–EU and China–Netherlands relations
I am currently researching the shifting dynamics, norms and notions of region building and economic connectivity in East Asia. Central to this research is a comparison between China’s neighbourhood diplomacy and region-building approaches and those of Japan, its Indo-Pacific partners, and other regional players, including South Korea and ASEAN. Through nuanced yet sharp analyses of regional contrasts and convergences, I hope to not only strengthen an underexposed field in IR and Western political discourse, but also to advance research-driven education within our (pan-)Asian curricula.
3. Historical statecraft, memory politics and transnational memory:
- War remembrance and memory alliances (China, Russia, Serbia, France, Belgium)
- Formation and suppression of narratives: identity, nationalism, authoritarianism
- Reconstruction and mobilization of martyrdom and heroism
I am currently leading a team of over 20 junior and senior researchers from the LIAS and beyond in a multidisciplinary research project on the legal, digital, and global dimensions of China’s authoritarian memory governance (‘Global China’s New Heroes’). Our projected output includes a joint volume on this topic for the Heritage and Memory Studies series of Amsterdam University Press (2026). The aim of this team production is to connect ground-breaking academic research on ‘global China’ from our unique mix of expertise and perspectives with current debates in memory studies, political science and law.
Teaching
For our Chinese Studies, Japanese Studies, Asian Studies, International Studies and International Relations programs, I have designed, developed and taught a wide range of BA and MA course modules, including:
- Modern Chinese History
- Nation Building en Memory Politics in Modern China
- China–Netherlands Relations: Past and Present
- China–Japan Relations
- East Asia: Regional Order and Connectivity
- China and the Global Political Economy
- Global Power: China’s Foreign Policy and International Relations
- Thesis Research Methods
Supervision
I supervise research on a variety of topics of modern Chinese history, memory studies and international relations, and especially at the intersection of these fields. In particular, I welcome projects on historical relations between China (Taiwan) and the Netherlands; the history of war and imperialism in East Asia; Chinese perceptions and notions of global governance, diplomacy and law; and transnational memory and memory alliances.
Assistant professor
- Faculty of Humanities
- Leiden Institute for Area Studies
- SAS China
- Chang V.K.L. (2025), Unsung heroes of world war I bring together Chinese and Europeans, The Diplomat : .
- Chang V.K.L. (2025), The political messaging of China and Serbia’s Belgrade bombing commemoration, The Diplomat : .
- Chang V.K.L. (27 June 2025), China is constructing a new hero cult: here’s why that matters: The conversation. [web article].
- Chang V.K.L. (2 May 2024), China’s memory laws: the global reach of Beijing’s push to juridify memory. Verfassungsblog. Berlin. [blog entry].
- Chang V.K.L. (2024), China’s quest for new heroes, The Diplomat : .
- Chang V.K.L. (8 June 2024), The frail foundations of the China-Russia friendship. E-International Relations: E-International Relations. [web article].
- Chang V.K.L. (2023), Remembering friends, not allies: World War II memory in contemporary China, Teaching History 57(1): 8-11.
- Chang V.K.L, Kingma D. & Pieke F.N. (2023), Het één-Chinabeleid en Taiwan. Den Haag: Parlement & Wetenschap.
- Chang V.K.L., Kingma D. & Blussé J.L. (2023), Historische betrekkingen Nederland-Taiwan. Den Haag: Parlement & Wetenschap.
- Chang V.K.L. & Zhang S. (2023), What World War II narratives reveal about China-Russia relations, The Diplomat : .
- Chang V.K.L. & Zhang E.S. (2023), Shared histories, distinct memories: a comparison of Chinese and Russian official media discourses on World War II. Leiden: LeidenAsiaCentre.
- Chang V.K.L. (2023), Dictating the past: what a 'correct' view of history teaches us. In: Dams T., d’Hooghe I. & Sprangers A.F.M. (Eds.), Undercurrents: essays below the surface of China's geopolitics. The Hague: The Netherlands Institute of International Relations ‘Clingendael’. 19-28.
- Chang V.K.L. (2022), Exemplifying national unity and victory in local state museums: Chongqing and the new paradigm of official World War II memory in China, Journal of Contemporary China 31(138): 977-992.
- Chang V.K.L. (2022), China's new historical statecraft: reviving the Second World War for national rejuvenation, International Affairs 98(3): 1053–1069.
- Chang V.K.L. (28 April 2022), Van den Bergen en water: historische banden tussen Nederland en China. China2025.nl. [blog entry].
- Chang V.K.L. (2022), World War II Memory Aims to Unite Chinese People, Deepen China–Russia Bond (LeidenAsiaCentre). [other].
- Chang V.K.L. (2022), Shifting World War II Memory in East Asia Signals Newly Emerging Global Alliances, The Diplomat : .
- Chang V.K.L. (2022), Review of: Rühlig T.N. (2022), China's foreign policy contradictions: lessons from China's R2P, Hong Kong, and WTO policy. Oxford: Oxford University Press. International Affairs 98(6): 2193-2194.
- Chang V.K.L. (2021), Revolution and recognition in post-war Asia: restoring missing links in the establishment of Indonesia–people’s republic of China relations, 1949–1950, Journal of Contemporary Asia 51(4): 591-615.
- Chang V.K.L. (2021), Allies as adversaries: China, the Netherlands and clashing nationalisms in the emergence of the post-war order, 1942–1945, Nations and Nationalism 27(4): 1253-1267.
- Chang V.K.L. (2021), Recalling victory, recounting greatness: Second World War remembrance in Xi Jinping's China, The China Quarterly (248): 1152-1173.
- Chang V.K.L. (24 June 2021), Nederland en de CCP: nadagen in Nanjing. China2025.nl. [blog entry].
- Chang V.K.L. (1 July 2021), Nederland en de CCP: de gelederen gebroken. China2025.nl. [blog entry].
- Chang V.K.L. (8 July 2021), Nederland en de CCP: het verleden in het heden. China2025.nl. [blog entry].
- Chang V.K.L. (2021), Partijstaat zoekt erkenning: oorlogsherdenking in China, Onderzoek uitgelicht 10(4): .
- Chang V.K.L. (2021) Vergeten ontmoetingen tussen Nederland en China. Review of: Andrade T. (2021), The last embassy: the Dutch mission of 1795 and the forgotten history of Western encounters with China: Princeton University Press .
- Chang V.K.L. (19 May 2020), Putting Europe Last? The New Dutch China Strategy. Heidelberg: Heidelberg University (Project Echowall). [web article].
- Chang V.K.L. (29 May 2020), Welke oorlog? Herdenken en vergeten in China. China2025.nl. [blog entry].
- Chang V.K.L. (2019), Forgotten Diplomacy: The Modern Remaking of Dutch-Chinese Relations, 1927–1950. Leiden: Brill.
- Chang V.K.L. & Pieke F.N. (2018), Europe's engagement with China: Shifting Chinese Views of the EU and the EU-China Relationship, Asia Europe Journal: Studies on Common Policy Challenges 16(4): 317-331.
- Chang V.K.L. & Pieke F.N. (2017), China, the EU and the Netherlands - A Chinese Perspective.
- Chang V.K.L. & Pieke F.N. (2017), Realiteit en Perceptie: Een frisse kijk op de toekomst met China, Internationale Spectator : .
- Chang V.K.L., Sprangers A.F.M. & Pieke F.N. (14 April 2017), Europa moet China meer als partner zien, niet als rivaal. NRC Handelsblad, Opinie.
- Chang V.K.L. & Zhou Y. (2017), Redefining Wartime Chongqing: International Capital of a Global Power in the Making, 1938–46, Modern Asian Studies 51(3): 577-621.
- Zhou Y. & Chang V.K.L. (2017), Zouxiang pingdeng: Zhanshi Chongqing de waijiao jie yu Zhongguo xiandai waijiao de liming shuguang [Toward Equality: Wartime Chongqing’s Foreign Circles and the Dawn of Modern Chinese Diplomacy]: Chongqing Publishing House.
- Chang V.K.L. (2016), Helan hanxuejia Gao Luopei yu zhanshi Zhong-He waijiao guanxi (1938–1946) [The Dutch sinologist Robert van Gulik and Sino-Dutch diplomacy, 1938–1946]. In: Cheng W.C. & Li X.L. (Eds.), Gao Luopei zai Zhongguo [Robert van Gulik in China]: Chongqing University Press. 17-29.
- Chang V.K.L. (2016), Douya shang de chengshi: waiguo ren yanzhong de Chongqing, 1846–1946 [A City Built on Rock: Chongqing Seen through Foreign Eyes, 1846–1946]. In: Du J.H. & Chang V.K.L. (Eds.), Chongqing shiguang [Chongqing Times]: Chongqing Publishing House. 180-205.
- Chang V.K.L. (2016) Hedendaags China ontbloot van westers wensdenken. Review of: Pieke F.N. (2016), China, een gids voor de 21e eeuw: Amsterdam University Press. Clingendael Spectator .
- Chang V.K.L. (2016), De betekenis van China’s Zijderoute-plannen voor Nederland, Internationale Spectator : .
- Du J.H. & Chang V.K.L. (Eds.) (2016), Chongqing shiguang [Chongqing Times]. Chongqing: Chongqing Publishing House.
- Zhou Y., Chang V.K.L. & Gong X.H. (2014), Recalling the War in China: The Dahoufang Project in Chongqing and the Restoration of a Legacy, Frontiers of History in China 9(4): 611-627.
- Chang V.K.L. (2014), Kangzhan shiqi zai Chongqing de Helan waijiaoguan [Dutch diplomats in wartime Chongqing], Hongyan Chunqiu 26(1): 41-43.
- Chang V.K.L. (2013), Dutch Traces, Places, and Faces in Chongqing, 1938–’46. Beijing: Dutch Embassy to China.
- Perrick S. & Chang V.K.L. (2008), Tipverbod en preventieve maatregelen. In: Doorenbos D.R. & Kortmann S.C.J.J. (Eds.), Handboek Marktmisbruik no. 34. Deventer: Kluwer. 89-125.
- Perrick S. & Chang V.K.L. (2002), Polsen van (groot)aandeelhouders en aangaan van (voorwaardelijke) transacties in het kader van kapitaalmarkttransacties. In: Beek B.M. van (Ed.), Een Bewezen Bestaansrecht: Lustrumbundel Vereniging voor Effectenrecht no. 71. Deventer: Kluwer. 285-298.