Familypedi… Editing Netherlands 0 You are not logged in. The rich text editor does not work with JavaScript switched off. Please either enable it in your browser options, or visit your preferences to switch to the old MediaWiki editor {{bdm}} {{Infobox country |conventional_long_name = Netherlands<!--Do not change from "Netherlands"; the Netherlands is only part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (which has its own article).--> |native_name = {{native name|nl|Nederland|icon=no}}<!--Do not change from "Nederland"; the Netherlands is only part of the Kingdom of The Netherlands (which has its own article).--> |common_name = the Netherlands |image_flag = Flag of the Netherlands.svg |image_coat = Royal Coat of Arms of the Netherlands.svg |image_map = EU-Netherlands.svg |map_width = 250px |map_caption = {{map caption |countryprefix=the |country=[[European Netherlands]] |location_color=dark green |region=Europe |region_color=dark grey |subregion=the [[European Union]] |subregion_color=green }} |image_map2 = BES islands location map.svg |map2_width = 250px |map_caption2 = {{map caption |countryprefix=the |country= [[Caribbean Netherlands|Dutch special municipalities]] |location_color=green}} |national_motto = {{native phrase|fr|"Je maintiendrai"|italics=off}}<br/><!-- -->{{native phrase|nl|"Ik zal handhaven"|italics=off}}<br/><!-- -->{{small|"I will uphold"}}{{#tag:ref|The official motto is in French. The literal translation into English is "I will maintain"; a better translation, however, is "I will hold firm" or "I will uphold" (namely, the integrity and independence of the territory).{{or|date=January 2013}}|group="nb"}} |national_anthem = {{native name|nl|"[[Wilhelmus]]"|nolink=yes|italics=off}}<br/>{{small|"'William"}}<br/><center>[[File:Wilhemus koor.ogg|noicon|center]]</center> |official_languages = [[Dutch language|Dutch]] | regional_languages = {{unbulleted list | {{nowrap|[[West Frisian language|West Frisian]] {{small|([[Friesland]])}}}} | {{nowrap|[[Limburgish language|Limburgish]] {{small|([[Limburg (Netherlands)|Limburg]])}}}} | {{nowrap|[[Dutch Low Saxon]] {{Small|(North-east)}}}} | {{nowrap|[[English language|English]] {{small|([[Sint Eustatius]]/[[Saba]])}}}} | {{nowrap|[[Papiamento]] {{small|([[Bonaire]])}}{{#tag:ref|[[West Frisian language|Frisian]] ([[Friesland]]),<big><ref>{{cite web |url=http://wetten.overheid.nl/BWBR0002219/tekst_bevat_Fries/geldigheidsdatum_25-10-2010 |title=Wet gebruik Friese taal in het rechtsverkeer |publisher=wetten.nl |accessdate=25 October 2010 |language=Dutch}}</ref></big> [[Papiamento]] ([[Bonaire]])<big><ref name=languages>{{cite web|url=http://wetten.overheid.nl/BWBR0028063/tekst_bevat_taal%2Bin%2Bhet%2Bbestuurlijk%2Bverkeer/geldigheidsdatum_01-01-2011 |title=Invoeringswet openbare lichamen Bonaire, Sint Eustatius en Saba |language=Dutch |publisher=wetten.nl |accessdate=1 January 2011}}</ref></big> and English ([[Sint Eustatius]] and [[Saba]])<big><ref name=languages/></big> have a formal status in certain parts of the country. [[Dutch Low Saxon]] and [[Limburgish language|Limburgish]] are recognised as [[European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages|regional languages]] by the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages.|group="nb"}}}} }} |ethnic_groups = {{unbulleted list | 80.7% [[Dutch people|Dutch]] | 5% other [[European Union|EU]] | 2.4% [[Overseas Indonesian|Indonesians]] | 2.2% [[Turks in the Netherlands|Turks]] | 2% [[Dutch-Moroccans|Moroccans]] | 2% [[Surinamese people in the Netherlands|Surinamese]] | 0.8% [[Dutch Caribbean|Caribbean]] | 4.8% others }} |ethnic_groups_year = 2008<ref name="cia-worldfactbook-nl"/> |demonym = Dutch |capital = [[Amsterdam]]<!--Do not change this without broad consensus-->{{#tag:ref|While [[Amsterdam]] is the constitutional capital, [[The Hague]] is the seat of the government.|group="nb"}} |largest_city = capital |latd=52 |latm=22 |latNS=N |longd=4 |longm=53 |longEW=E |government_type = [[Unitary state|Unitary]] [[Parliamentary system|parliamentary]] [[democracy]] under [[constitutional monarchy]] |leader_title1 = [[Monarchy of the Netherlands|Monarch]] |leader_name1 = [[Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands|Willem-Alexander]] |leader_title2 = [[Prime Minister of the Netherlands|Prime Minister]] |leader_name2 = [[Mark Rutte]] |membership_type = Sovereign state |membership = {{flag|Kingdom of the Netherlands}} |legislature = [[States General of the Netherlands|States General]] |upper_house = [[Senate of the Netherlands|Senate]] |lower_house = [[House of Representatives of the Netherlands|House of Representatives]] |area_rank = 134th |area_magnitude = 1 E10 |area_km2 = 41,543 |area_sq_mi = 16,039 <!--Do not remove per [[WP:MOSNUM]]--> |percent_water = 18.41 |population_estimate = 16,819,595<ref name="pop-cbs">{{cite web |url=http://statline.cbs.nl/StatWeb/publication/?VW=T&DM=SLEN&PA=37943eng&LA=EN |title=Population and population dynamics; month, quarter and year |work=Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek |accessdate=31 October 2013}}</ref> |population_estimate_year = {{CURRENTYEAR}} |population_estimate_rank = 63rd |population_census = |population_census_year = |population_density_km2 = {{#expr:{{Data Netherlands|poptoday}} / 41526 round 1}} |population_density_sq_mi = {{#expr:{{Data Netherlands|poptoday}} / 16033 round 1}} <!--Do not remove per [[WP:MOSNUM]]--> |population_density_rank = 24th |GDP_PPP_year = 2014 |GDP_PPP = $717.146 billion<ref name=imf2>{{cite web |url=http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2014/01/weodata/weorept.aspx?pr.x=22&pr.y=9&sy=2014&ey=2014&scsm=1&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&c=138&s=NGDPD%2CNGDPDPC%2CPPPGDP%2CPPPPC&grp=0&a=|title=Netherlands |publisher=International Monetary Fund |accessdate=26 April 2014}}</ref> |GDP_PPP_rank = 23rd |GDP_PPP_per_capita = $42,586 |GDP_PPP_per_capita_rank = 12th |GDP_nominal = $838.036 billion<ref name=imf2/> |GDP_nominal_rank = 17th |GDP_nominal_year = 2014 |GDP_nominal_per_capita = $49,765 |GDP_nominal_per_capita_rank = 13th |sovereignty_type = [[Independence]] {{nobold|from the [[Spanish Empire]]}} |established_event1 = [[Act of Abjuration|Declared]] |established_date1 = <!--Euro style dates per [[WP:MOSNUM]]:-->26 July 1581 |established_event2 = [[Peace of Westphalia|Recognised]] |established_date2 = 30 January 1648 |established_event3 = [[Kingdom of the Netherlands]] |established_date3 = 16 March 1815 |established_event4 = [[Charter for the Kingdom of the Netherlands|Formation of constituent country]] |established_date4 = 15 December 1954 |established_event5 = {{nowrap|[[Enlargement of the European Union#Founding members|Founded]] the [[European Economic Community|EEC]]}} {{nowrap|(now the [[European Union|EU]])}} |established_date5 = 1 January 1958 |Gini_year = 2011 |Gini_change = <!--increase/decrease/steady--> |Gini = 25.8 <!--number only--> |Gini_ref = <ref name=eurogini>{{cite web|title=Gini coefficient of equivalised disposable income (source: SILC)|url=http://appsso.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/nui/show.do?dataset=ilc_di12|publisher=Eurostat Data Explorer|accessdate=13 August 2013}}</ref> |Gini_rank = 111th |HDI_year = 2012 |HDI_change = steady <!--increase/decrease/steady--> |HDI = 0.921 <!--number only--> |HDI_ref = <ref name="HDI">{{cite web |url=http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/HDR2013_EN_Statistics.pdf |title=Human Development Report 2013 |year=2013 |publisher=United Nations |accessdate=15 March 2013}}</ref> |HDI_rank = 4th |currency = {{unbulleted list |[[Euro]] ([[ISO 4217|EUR]]) |{{nowrap|[[US dollar]] (USD){{#tag:ref|The euro is used in the [[European Netherlands]] and replaced the [[Dutch guilder]] in 2002. The US dollar is used in the [[Caribbean Netherlands]] and replaced the [[Netherlands Antillean guilder]] in 2011.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://wetten.overheid.nl/BWBR0028551 |title=Wet geldstelsel BES |publisher=Dutch government |date=30 September 2010 |accessdate=11 January 2014}}</ref>|group="nb"}}}}}} |country_code = [[NLD]] |time_zone = [[Central European Time|CET]] ([[UTC]]+1){{#tag:ref|CET and CEST are used in the European Netherlands, and AST is used in the Caribbean Netherlands.|group="nb"}}<br>[[Atlantic Standard Time|AST]] |utc_offset =-4 |time_zone_DST = [[Central European Summer Time|CEST]] ([[UTC]]+2)<br>[[Atlantic Standard Time|AST]] |utc_offset_DST =-4 |drives_on = right |calling_code = {{unbulleted list |[[Telephone numbers in the Netherlands|+31]] |[[Telephone numbers in Curaçao and the Caribbean Netherlands|+599]]{{#tag:ref|599 was the country code designated for the now dissolved [[Netherlands Antilles]]. The Caribbean Netherlands still use 599-7 (Bonaire), 599-3 (Sint Eustatius) and 599-4 (Saba).|group="nb"}}}} |iso3166code = NL |date_format = dd-mm-yyyy |cctld = [[.nl]]{{#tag:ref|The [[.eu]] domain is also used, as it is shared with other [[European Union]] member states. [[.bq]] is designated, but not in use, for the [[Caribbean Netherlands]].|group="nb"}} }} The '''Netherlands''' ({{IPAc-en|audio=en-us-Netherlands.ogg|ˈ|n|ɛ|ð|ər|l|ə|n|d|z}}; {{lang-nl|Nederland}} {{IPA-nl|ˈneːdərˌlɑnt||Nl-Nederland.ogg}}) is the main [[constituent country]] of the <!--Do NOT make bold:-->[[Kingdom of the Netherlands]], consisting of [[Provinces of the Netherlands|twelve provinces]] in [[western Europe]] and [[Caribbean Netherlands|three islands]] in the [[Caribbean]]. The [[European Netherlands|European part of the Netherlands]] borders the [[North Sea]] to the north and west, [[Belgium]] to the south, and [[Germany]] to the east; and shares [[Maritime boundary|maritime border]]s with Belgium, the United Kingdom and Germany.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.defensie.nl/english/navy/hydrographic_service/geodesy_and_tides/maritime_limits/north_sea |title=North Sea |publisher=Ministry of Defence |accessdate=6 March 2012}}{{dead link|date=April 2014}}</ref> The Netherlands was one of the first countries in the world to have an elected [[parliament]], and is governed as a [[parliamentary system|parliamentary]] [[democracy]] organised as a [[unitary state]]. The [[capital of the Netherlands|capital city]] of the Netherlands, mandated by the [[Constitution of the Netherlands|constitution]], is [[Amsterdam]]; however, the seat of government is located in [[The Hague]].<!--Do not change this without broad consensus--><ref>{{cite web |url=http://netherlandsmission.org/article.asp?articleref=AR00000154EN&categoryvalue=netherlands&subcategoryvalue=nlgeneralinfo |author=Permanent Mission of the Netherlands to the UN |title=General Information |accessdate=26 June 2013}}</ref> The Netherlands is a geographically low-lying country, with about 26% of its area<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Schiermeier|first1=Quirin|title=Few fishy facts found in climate report|journal=Nature|date=5 July 2010|volume=466|issue=170|doi=10.1038/466170a|url=http://www.nature.com/news/2010/100705/full/466170a.html}}</ref> and 21% of its population located below sea level, and 50% of its land lying less than one metre [[Above mean sea level|above sea level]].<ref name=milrek>{{cite web |title = Milieurekeningen 2008 |publisher=[[Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek]] |url = http://www.cbs.nl/NR/rdonlyres/D2CE63F9-D210-4006-B68B-98BE079EA9B6/0/2008c167pub.pdf |accessdate =4 February 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eupedia.com/netherlands/trivia.shtml |title=Netherlands Guide – Interesting facts about the Netherlands |publisher=Eupedia |date=19 April 1994 |accessdate=29 April 2010}}</ref> This distinct feature contributes to the country's name: in Dutch (''Nederland''), English, and many other European languages, its name literally means "Low Land" or "[[Low Countries|Low Country]]." Most of the areas below sea level are man-made, caused by centuries of extensive and poorly controlled [[peat]] extraction that lowered the surface by several metres. Even in flooded areas, peat extraction continued through turf dredging. Beginning in the late 16th century, [[land reclamation]] started and large [[polder]] areas are now preserved through elaborate drainage systems that include [[dike (construction)|dikes]], canals and pumping stations. Nearly 17% of the country's land area is reclaimed from the sea. Much of the Netherlands is formed by the [[estuary]] of three important European rivers, which together with their [[distributary|distributaries]] form the [[Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta]]. Most of the country is very flat, with the exception of foothills in the far southeast and several low hill ranges in the central parts. The Netherlands is a founding member of the [[European Union|EU]], [[Group of Ten (economic)|G-10]], [[NATO]], [[Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development|OECD]], [[World Trade Organization|WTO]] and a part of the trilateral [[Benelux]] economic union. The country is host to the [[Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons]] and five international courts: the [[Permanent Court of Arbitration]], the [[International Court of Justice]], the [[International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia]], the [[International Criminal Court]] and the [[Special Tribunal for Lebanon]]. The first four are situated in The Hague, as is the EU's criminal intelligence agency [[Europol]] and judicial co-operation agency [[Eurojust]]. This has led to the city being dubbed "the world's legal capital".<ref>{{Cite book|last = van Krieken|first = Peter J.|coauthors = David McKay|title = The Hague: Legal Capital of the World|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year= 2005|isbn = 90-6704-185-8}}, specifically, ''"In the 1990s, during his term as United Nations Secretary-General, Boutros Boutros-Ghali started calling The Hague the world's legal capital."''</ref> The Netherlands has a market-based mixed economy, ranking 17th of 177 countries according to the [[Index of Economic Freedom]].<ref>{{Wayback |date=20130510115657 |url=http://www.heritage.org/index/country/netherlands |title=Netherlands }}, [[Index of Economic Freedom]]. heritage.org</ref> It had the [[list of countries by GDP (PPP) per capita|tenth-highest]] per capita income in the world in 2011. In May 2011, the Netherlands was ranked as the "happiest" country in the world according to the OECD, reflecting its high standard of living.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.searchofficespace.com/blog/blog/where-is-the-happiest-place-on-earth/ |title=Where is the happiest place on Earth? | The Search Office Space Blog | Searchofficespace |publisher=News.searchofficespace.com |date=25 May 2011 |accessdate=28 October 2011}}</ref> == Names == The Netherlands in its entirety is often referred to as "[[Holland]]", which in strict usage, refers only to [[North Holland|North]] and [[South Holland]], two of its provinces. Since these two provinces are the most populous and famous of the Netherlands, they often serve as a [[metonym]] for the entire country. Referring to the Netherlands as Holland is technically incorrect<ref>{{cite news|url=http://handbook.reuters.com/index.php?title=H#Holland|title=The Reuters Style Guide|accessdate=31 March 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www2.media.uoa.gr/lectures/linguistic_archives/academic_papers0506/notes/stylesheets_3.pdf|title=The BBC News Styleguide|accessdate=31 March 2014}}</ref> or informal,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/topics/about-us/style-book/1435302/Telegraph-style-book-places-and-peoples.html|title=Telegraph style book: places and peoples|accessdate=31 March 2014 | location=London|work=The Daily Telegraph|date=12 April 2008}}</ref> depending on the context, but is more acceptable when referring to the [[Netherlands national football team|national football team]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://image.guardian.co.uk/sys-files/Guardian/documents/2004/07/15/styleguidepdfjuly2004.pdf|title=The Guardian style guide|accessdate=31 March 2014 | location=London}}</ref> While ''De Lage landen'' (The Low Countries) is a geographical designation of the general area of [[Belgium]], the Netherlands, and [[Luxembourg]], [[Benelux]], and depending on the context, sometimes extended with parts of northern [[France]] ([[French Flanders]], [[French Hainaut]], [[Artois]], [[Picardy]] to the [[Somme]]) and the former [[Luxembourg]] region around [[Thionville|Diedenhoven]] and West [[Germany]] (east [[Frisia]], [[Julich]], [[Cleves]], [[Bentheim]], [[Lingen]], the region around [[Geldern]], around [[Bitburg]], some municipalities east of the eastern provinces which were annexed by [[Prussia]] in 1815, etc.). Netherlands has about the same meaning as the Low Countries, but of a more historiographical and political nature. In the fifteenth century the name Netherlands (Nederlanden) came into use. Unlike [[France]] and [[England]] it had no ethnic origin, but it was originally a geographical term which denoted only the difference with a higher ground. Place names with ''Nieder'' are used in various places in the German language area. Also terms like lower [[Rhine]] and lower [[Meuse (river)|Meuse]] were commonly used (vs. middle Rhine or upper Rhine). ''Niderlant'' was in the late Middle Ages the region between the [[Meuse (river)|Meuse]] and the [[Rhine]], the Lower Rhine Area now be included. The area known as ''Oberland'' (High country) was considered to begin approximately at the nearby higher located [[Cologne]]. By extension, the term could also be applied to the delta of the [[Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta|Schelde, Meuse and Rhine]], and then would occur in the plural form. Due to the great importance of the Low Countries, the name was increasingly used specifically for this area. From about 1490 the Burgundian-Habsburg provinces thus also were indicated. Besides [[Flanders]], "the Netherlands " was, from the mid- sixteenth century on, probably the most common used name. ==History== {{Main|History of the Netherlands}} ===Habsburg Netherlands (1519–1581)=== [[File:Jan Steen - Adolf en Catharina Croeser aan de Oude Delft 1655.jpg|thumb|left|upright|Daily life during the [[Dutch Golden Age]] captured in a painting by [[Jan Steen]].]] [[File:WilliamOfOrange1580.jpg|thumb|left|upright|[[William I, Prince of Orange]], also called [[Willem de Zwijger]] (''William the Silent''), leader of the Netherlands during the [[Dutch Revolt]].]] [[File:Van Soest, Four Days Battle.jpg|thumb|left|upright|''The [[Four Days' Battle]], 1–4 June 1666'', during the [[Second Anglo–Dutch War]].]] Under [[Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor|Charles V]], ruler of the [[Holy Roman Empire]] and King of [[Spanish Empire|Spain]], the current Netherlands region was part of the [[Seventeen Provinces]] of the [[Low Countries]], which also included most of present-day [[Belgium]], Luxembourg, and some land in France and Germany. In 1568, the [[Eighty Years' War]] between the Provinces and Spain began. In 1579, the northern half of the Seventeen Provinces forged the [[Union of Utrecht]], a treaty in which they committed to support each other in their defence against the Spanish army.<ref>Motley, John Lothrop (1855). [http://books.google.com/books?id=8isNLCXfNycC&pg=PA411 ''The Rise of the Dutch Republic''] Vol. III, Harper Bros.: New York, p. 411.</ref> The Union of Utrecht is seen as the foundation of the modern Netherlands. In 1581, the northern provinces adopted the [[Act of Abjuration]], the declaration of independence in which the provinces officially deposed [[Philip II of Spain]] as reigning monarch in the northern provinces.<ref>Motley, John Lothrop (1855). [http://books.google.com/books?id=8isNLCXfNycC&pg=PA508 ''The Rise of the Dutch Republic''] Vol. III, Harper Bros.: New York, p. 508.</ref> Queen [[Elizabeth I of England]] sympathised with the Dutch struggle against the Spanish, and in 1585 she concluded a treaty with the Dutch whereby she promised to send an English army to the Netherlands to aid the Dutch in their war with the Spanish.<ref>Willson, David Harris (1972). ''History of England'', Holt, Rinehart & Winston: New York, p. 294.</ref> In December 1585, 7,600 soldiers were sent to the Netherlands from England under the command of [[Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester]]. In spite of the significant size for that time, the English army was of no real benefit to the Dutch rebellion.<ref>Motley, John Lothrop (1855). [http://books.google.com/books?id=8isNLCXfNycC&pg=PA411 ''The Rise of the Dutch Republic''] Vol. III, Harper Bros.: New York</ref> Although Robert Dudley returned to the Netherlands in November 1586 with another army, the army still had little effect in the rebellion.<ref>Mattingly, Garrett (1959) ''The Armada'', Houghton Mifflin: Boston, p. 48.</ref> Philip II, the son of Charles V, was not prepared to let them go easily, and war continued until 1648, when Spain under King [[Philip IV of Spain|Philip IV]] finally recognised the independence of the seven north-western provinces in the [[Peace of Münster]]. Parts of the southern provinces became ''de facto'' colonies of the new republican-mercantile empire. ===Dutch Republic (1581–1795)=== {{Main|Dutch Republic}} [[File:Hendrick Avercamp - Winterlandschap met schaatsers bij de stad Kampen.jpg|thumb|Winter landscape with skaters c. 1625]] [[File:Johannes Lingelbach 001.jpg|thumb|[[Amsterdam]]'s [[Dam Square]] in 1656]] After declaring their independence, the provinces of [[Holland]], [[Zeeland]], [[Groningen (province)|Groningen]], [[Friesland]], [[Utrecht (province)|Utrecht]], [[Overijssel]], and [[Gelderland]] formed a [[confederation]]. All these provinces were autonomous and had their own government, the "States of the Province". The [[States General of the Netherlands|States General]], the confederal government, were seated in The Hague and consisted of representatives from each of the seven provinces. The sparsely populated region of [[Drenthe]], mainly consisting of poor [[peat]]land, was part of the republic too, although Drenthe was not considered one of the provinces; it had its own States, but the [[landdrost]] of Drenthe was appointed by the States General. Moreover, the Republic had come to occupy during the [[Eighty Years' War]] a number of so-called [[Generality Lands]] (''Generaliteitslanden'' in Dutch). These territories were governed directly by the States General. They did not have a governmental structure of their own and did not have representatives in the States General. Their population was mainly Roman Catholic, and these areas were used as a buffer zone between the Republic and the [[Southern Netherlands]].{{Citation needed|date=April 2011}} The [[Dutch Empire]] grew to become one of the major seafaring and economic powers of the 17th century. In the [[Dutch Golden Age]] ("Gouden Eeuw"), colonies and [[trading post]]s were established all over the world. Dutch settlement in North America began with the founding of [[New Amsterdam]], on the southern part of [[Manhattan]] in 1614. In South Africa, the Dutch settled the [[Cape Colony]] in 1652. By 1650, the Dutch owned 16,000 merchant ships.<ref>{{Wayback |date=20120114182245 |url=http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/database/article_display_printable.cfm?HHID=682 |title="The Middle Colonies: New York"}}{{dead link|date=April 2014}}. Digital History.</ref> During the 17th century, the Dutch population increased from an estimated 1.5 million to almost 2 million.<ref>The preponderance of the Dutch population lived in two provinces, Holland and Zeeland. This area experienced a population explosion between 1500 and 1650, with a growth from 350,000 to 1,000,000 inhabitants. Thereafter the growth leveled off, so that the population of the whole country remained at the 2 million level throughout the 18th century; De Vries and Van der Woude, pp. 51–52</ref> {{For|a comprehensive list of the territories that formed the Dutch Empire|Evolution of the Dutch Empire}} {{pp-move-indef|small=yes}} Many economic historians regard the Netherlands as the first thoroughly capitalist country in the world. In early modern Europe it had the wealthiest trading city ([[Amsterdam]]) and the first full-time [[Amsterdam Stock Exchange|stock exchange]]. The inventiveness of the traders led to insurance and retirement funds as well as phenomena such as the boom-bust cycle, the world's first asset-inflation bubble, the [[tulip mania]] of 1636–1637, and the world's first [[bear raid]]er, [[Isaac le Maire]], who forced prices down by dumping stock and then buying it back at a discount.<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://www.lrb.co.uk/v23/n07/murray-sayle/japan-goes-dutch|title=Japan Goes Dutch|journal=London Review of Books|date=5 April 2001|author=Sayle, Murray |volume=23|issue=7|pages=3–7}}</ref> The republic went into a state of general decline in the later 18th century, with economic competition from England and long standing rivalries between the two main factions in Dutch society, the ''Staatsgezinden'' (Republicans) and the ''Prinsgezinden'' (Royalists or Orangists), as main factors.{{Citation needed|date=April 2011}} In the 17th century, [[plantation]] colonies were established by the Dutch and English along the many rivers in the fertile [[Guyana]] plains. The earliest documented colony in [[Suriname|Guiana]] was along the [[Suriname River]] and called Marshall's Creek. The area was named after an Englishman.<ref name="Marshall">{{Cite book|accessdate=4 May 2008 |url=http://books.google.com/?id=paQMAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA253|title=Encyclopædia Britannica: A Dictionary of ARTS, SCIENCES, and General LITERATURE, Volume XI |edition=Ninth Edition—Popular Reprint |quote=In 1614 the states of Holland granted to any Dutch citizen a four years' monopoly of any harbour or place of commerce which he might discover in that region (Guiana). The first settlement, however, in Suriname (in 1630) was made by an Englishman, whose name is still preserved by Marshall's Creek. |publisher=H.G. Allen |author1=Baynes, Thomas Spencer |year=1888}}</ref> Disputes arose between the Dutch and the English. In 1667, the Dutch decided to keep the nascent plantation colony of Suriname conquered from the English, resulting from the [[Treaty of Breda (1667)|Treaty of Breda]]. The English were left with New Amsterdam, a small trading post in North America, which is now known as New York City. ===French influence (1795–1814)=== {{Further2|[[Batavian Republic]]|[[Kingdom of Holland]]}} On 19 January 1795, one day after the [[stadtholder]], [[William V of Orange]], fled to England, the ''Bataafse Republiek'' ([[Batavian Republic]]) was proclaimed, rendering the Netherlands a [[unitary state]]. From 1795 to 1806, the Batavian Republic designated the Netherlands as a republic modelled after the [[French First Republic|French Republic]]. From 1806 to 1810, the ''Koninkrijk Holland'' ([[Kingdom of Holland]]) was set up by [[Napoleon Bonaparte]] as a puppet kingdom governed by his brother [[Louis Bonaparte]] in order to control the Netherlands more effectively. The name of the leading province, Holland, was used for the whole country. The Kingdom of Holland covered the area of the present day Netherlands, with the exception of Limburg and parts of Zeeland, which were French territory. In 1807, Prussian [[East Frisia]] and [[Jever]] were added to the kingdom. In 1809, however, after a [[Walcheren Campaign|failed British invasion]], Holland had to surrender all territories south of the [[Rhine]] to France. King Louis Bonaparte did not meet Napoleon's expectations – he tried to serve Dutch interests instead of his brother's, allowed trade with the British in spite of the [[Continental System]] and even tried to learn Dutch – and he was forced to abdicate on 1 July 1810. He was succeeded by his five-year-old son [[Napoleon Louis Bonaparte]]. Napoleon Louis reigned as Louis II for just ten days as Napoleon ignored his young nephew's accession to the throne. The Emperor sent in an army to invade the country and dissolved the Kingdom of Holland. The Netherlands then became part of the [[First French Empire|French Empire]]. The Netherlands remained part of the French Empire until the autumn of 1813, when Napoleon was defeated in the [[Battle of Leipzig]] and forced to withdraw his troops from the country. ===Kingdom of the Netherlands (1815–1940)=== {{Main|United Kingdom of the Netherlands|Kingdom of the Netherlands}} [[File:Dutch Empire35.PNG|thumb|A map of the [[Dutch Empire|Dutch colonial empire]]. Light green: territories administered by or originating from territories administered by the [[Dutch East India Company]]; dark green: the [[Dutch West India Company]]. In yellow the territories occupied later, during the 19th century.]] William Frederick, son of the last stadtholder, returned to the Netherlands in 1813 at the invitation of the provisional government formed after the withdrawal of the French. Although it comprised mostly the same men who had driven out his father 18 years earlier, all parties agreed that William was the only choice to head any new government. On 6 December, he proclaimed himself Sovereign Prince of the Netherlands. On 16 March 1815, the Sovereign Prince raised the Netherlands to the status of a kingdom and proclaimed himself [[William I of the Netherlands|William I]] (''Willem I'' in Dutch). In 1815, the [[Congress of Vienna]] formed the [[United Kingdom of the Netherlands]] by adding the southern Netherlands to the north in order to create a strong country on the northern border of France. In addition, William became hereditary [[Grand Ducal Family of Luxembourg|Grand Duke of Luxembourg]]. The Congress of Vienna gave Luxembourg to William as personal property in exchange for his German possessions, [[Nassau-Dillenburg]], [[Siegen]], [[Hadamar]], and [[Diez, Germany|Diez]]. The Southern Netherlands had been culturally separate from the north since 1581, and rebelled against William's attempt to create a single culture. The south rebelled and gained independence in 1830 as [[Belgium]], while the [[personal union]] between Luxembourg and the Netherlands was severed in 1890, when [[William III of the Netherlands|William III]] died with no surviving male heirs. [[Salic Law|Ascendancy laws]] prevented his daughter [[Wilhelmina of the Netherlands|Queen Wilhelmina]] from becoming the next Grand Duchess. Therefore the throne of Luxembourg passed over from the [[House of Orange-Nassau]] to the [[House of Nassau-Weilburg]], a junior branch of the [[House of Nassau]]. The largest Dutch settlement abroad was the [[Cape Colony]]. It was established by [[Jan van Riebeeck]] on behalf of the [[Dutch East India Company]] at [[Cape Town]] ({{lang-nl|Kaapstad}}) in 1652. The Prince of Orange acquiesced to [[Kingdom of Great Britain|British]] occupation and control of the Cape Colony in 1788. The Netherlands also possessed several other colonies, but Dutch settlement in these lands was limited. Most notable were the vast [[Dutch East Indies]] (now [[Indonesia]]) and the [[Surinam (Dutch colony)|Colony of Surinam]] (now [[Suriname]]). These 'colonies' were first administered by the Dutch East India Company and the [[Dutch West India Company]], both collective private enterprises. Three centuries later these companies got into financial trouble, and the territories in which they operated were taken over by the Dutch government (in 1815 and 1791 respectively). Only then did they become official colonies. During its colonial period, the Netherlands was heavily involved in the [[slave trade]]. The Dutch [[plantation|planters]] relied heavily on [[Atlantic slave trade|African slaves]] to cultivate the coffee, cocoa, [[sugarcane]] and cotton plantations along the rivers. Treatment of the slaves by their owners was notoriously bad, and many slaves escaped the plantations. Slavery was abolished by the Netherlands in [[Surinam (Dutch colony)|Dutch Guiana]] and [[Curaçao and Dependencies]] in 1863, but the slaves were not fully released until 1873, after a mandatory 10-year transition period during which time they were required to work on the plantations for minimal pay and without state sanctioned torture. As soon as they became truly free, the slaves largely abandoned the plantations where they had suffered for several generations in favour of the city [[Paramaribo]]. Every year this is remembered during [[Keti Koti]], 1 July, Emancipation Day (end of slavery). During the 19th century, the Netherlands was slow to industrialise compared to neighbouring countries, mainly because of the great complexity involved in modernising the infrastructure, consisting largely of waterways, and the great reliance its industry had on windpower. Although the Netherlands remained [[Neutrality (international relations)|neutral]] during the [[World War I|First World War]], it was heavily involved in the war.<ref name="Abbenhuis">Abbenhuis, Maartje M. (2006) [http://books.google.com/books?id=5gMCfhUR6Y0C&printsec=frontcover The Art of Staying Neutral]. Amsterdam University Press, ISBN 90-5356-818-2.</ref> The German general [[Alfred von Schlieffen|Count Schlieffen]], who was Chief of the Imperial [[German General Staff]], had originally planned to invade the Netherlands while advancing into France in the original [[Schlieffen Plan]]. This was changed by Schlieffen's successor, [[Helmuth von Moltke the Younger]], in order to maintain Dutch neutrality. Later during the war Dutch neutrality proved essential to German survival until the blockade by the British Royal Navy in 1916, when the import of goods through the Netherlands was no longer possible. The Dutch were nevertheless able to continue to remain neutral during the war using their diplomacy and their ability to trade.<ref name="Abbenhuis"/> ===World War II (1940–1945)=== {{Main|Netherlands in World War II}} [[File:Rotterdam.jpg|thumb|[[Rotterdam]] after German air raids in 1940.]] The Netherlands intended to remain neutral during [[World War II]], although contingency plans involving the armies of Belgium, France and the United Kingdom were drawn up in case of German aggression. Despite this neutrality, [[Nazi Germany]] [[Battle of the Netherlands|invaded the Netherlands]] on 10 May 1940 as part of their campaign against the Allied forces. French forces in the south and British ships in the west came to help but turned around quickly, evacuating many civilians and several thousand German prisoners of war from the German elite airborne divisions. The country was overrun in five days. Only after (but not because of) the [[Rotterdam Blitz]] did the main element of the Dutch army surrender on 14 May 1940; although a Dutch and French force held the western part of Zeeland for some time after the surrender. The Kingdom as such, continued the war from the colonial empire; the [[government in exile]] resided in London. During the [[military occupation|occupation]], over 100,000 [[History of the Jews in the Netherlands|Dutch Jews]]<ref>{{Wayback |date=20041207064440 |url=http://www.kampwesterbork.nl/site1.2/English/KAMP/k08.html |title=93 trains }}. kampwesterbork.nl</ref> were rounded up to be transported to Nazi German [[extermination camp]]s in Germany, [[General Government|German-occupied Poland]] and German-occupied [[Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia|Czechoslovakia]]. By the time these camps were liberated, few Dutch Jews survived. Dutch workers were conscripted for forced labour in German factories, civilians were killed in reprisal for attacks on German soldiers, and the countryside was plundered for food for German soldiers in the Netherlands and for shipment to Germany. Although there were thousands of Dutch who risked their lives by hiding Jews from the Germans, as recounted in ''[[The Hiding Place (book)|The Hiding Place]]'' by [[Corrie ten Boom]] and ''The Heart Has Reasons'' by [[Mark Klempner]],<ref>Klempner, Mark (2006) ''The Heart Has Reasons: Holocaust Rescuers and Their Stories of Courage''. Cleveland: The Pilgrim Press, pp. 15–17 ISBN 0-8298-1699-2.</ref> there were also Dutch who collaborated with the occupying force in hunting down hiding Jews.<ref>Klempner, Mark (2006) ''The Heart Has Reasons: Holocaust Rescuers and Their Stories of Courage''. Cleveland: The Pilgrim Press, p. 5 ISBN 0-8298-1699-2.</ref> [[File:101st with members of dutch resistance.jpg|thumb|[[Dutch resistance]] members with troops of the [[101st Airborne Division (United States)|US 101st Airborne]] in Eindhoven during [[Operation Market Garden]] in September 1944.]] Local fascists and anti-Bolsheviks joined the [[Waffen-SS]] in the [[4th SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Brigade Netherlands]], fighting on the [[Eastern Front (World War II)|Eastern Front]] as well as other units. Racial restrictions were relaxed to the extent that even Asians from Dutch East Indies (Indonesia) units were recruited.<ref>{{cite web|author=MOOXE from Close Combat Series |url=http://www.closecombatseries.net/CCS/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=7686&highlight= |title=Indonesian SS Volunteers |publisher=Closecombatseries.net |accessdate=28 October 2011}}</ref> Political collaborators were members of the [[Fascism|fascist]] [[National Socialist Movement in the Netherlands|NSB]], the only legal political party in the occupied Netherlands. On 8 December 1941, the Netherlands declared war on Japan.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ibiblio.org/pha/policy/1941/411208c.html |title=The Kingdom of the Netherlands declares war with Japan |publisher=ibiblio |accessdate=2 October 2009}}</ref> The government-in-exile then lost control of its major colonial stronghold, the [[Netherlands East Indies]] (Indonesia), to [[Empire of Japan|Japanese]] forces in March 1942. "[[American-British-Dutch-Australian Command|American-British-Dutch-Australian]]" (ABDA) forces [[Netherlands East Indies campaign|fought hard in some instances]] but were overwhelmed. During the [[Japanese occupation of Indonesia]], the Japanese interned Dutch civilians and used Dutch and [[Indo people|Indos]] (Eurasians of Dutch and Indonesian descent) alike as [[forced labour]], both in the Netherlands East Indies and in neighbouring countries.<ref>[http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field(DOCID+id0029) Library of Congress, 1992, "Indonesia: World War II and the Struggle For Independence, 1942–50; The Japanese Occupation, 1942–45"] Access date: 9 February 2007.</ref> [[File:Liberation of Eindhoven 02.jpg|thumb|Crowds during the liberation of [[Eindhoven]], September 1944.]] The Dutch Red Cross reported the deaths in Japanese custody of 14,800 European civilians out of 80,000 interned and 12,500 of the 34,000 POW captured.<ref>Aziz, M. Z. (1955) ''Japan's Colonialism and Indonesia.'' The Hague.</ref> A later UN report stated that 4 million people died in Indonesia as a result of famine and forced labour (known as [[romusha]]) during the Japanese occupation.<ref>Cited in: Dower, John W. ''War Without Mercy: Race and Power in the Pacific War'' (1986; Pantheon; ISBN 0-394-75172-8)</ref> Some military personnel escaped to Australia and other Allied countries from where they carried on the fight against Japan. Soon after [[VE day]], the Dutch fought a [[Indonesian National Revolution|colonial war against the new republic of Indonesia]]. Princess Juliana of the Netherlands, the only child of Queen Wilhelmina and heir to the throne, sought refuge in [[Ottawa]], Canada, with her two daughters, Beatrix and Irene, during the war. During Princess Juliana's stay in Canada, preparations were made for the birth of her third child. To ensure the Dutch citizenship of this royal baby, the Canadian Parliament passed a special law declaring Princess Juliana's suite at the Ottawa Civic Hospital "extraterritorial". <!-- Commented out: [[File:Signing of the Maastricht Treaty.jpg|thumb|upright|The Netherlands became a founding member of the [[European Union]] in 1993. (Signing of the [[Maastricht Treaty]])]] --> On 19 January 1943, [[Princess Margriet of the Netherlands|Princess Margriet]] was born. The day after Princess Margriet's birth, the Dutch flag was flown on the [[Peace Tower]]. This was the only time in history a foreign flag has waved above [[Parliament Hill|Canada's parliament buildings]]. In 1944–45, the [[First Canadian Army]], which included Canadian, [[I Corps (United Kingdom)|British]] and [[1st Armoured Division (Poland)|Polish]] troops, was responsible for liberating much of the Netherlands<ref>{{cite video | year =1944 | title =Video: Allies Set For Offensive | url =http://www.archive.org/details/gov.archives.arc.39141 | publisher =[[Universal Newsreel]] | accessdate =21 February 2012 }}</ref> from German occupation. The joyous "Canadian summer" that ensued after the liberation, forged deep and long-lasting bonds of friendship between the Netherlands and Canada<ref>[http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=A1ARTA0004672 Liberation of Holland] from ''The Canadian Encyclopedia.''</ref> (See [[Canada–Netherlands relations]]). In 1949, [[Dutch annexation of German territory after World War II|Dutch troops occupied]] an area of {{convert|69|km²|0|abbr=out}} of the [[Allied-occupied Germany|British zone of occupied Germany]], including [[Elten]] and [[Selfkant]], and annexed it. At that time, these areas were inhabited by almost 10,000 people. As the result of a Dutch-German agreement, signed on 8 April 1960 in The Hague, the territory was returned to Germany on 1 August 1963, except one small hill (about 3 km²) called Duivelsberg which was annexed by the Netherlands. {{Citation needed|date=February 2010}} ===Post-war history (1945–present)=== [[File:Tratado de Lisboa 13 12 2007 (081).jpg|thumb|right|The Netherlands is a founding member of the [[European Union]].]] After the war, the [[Economy of the Netherlands|Dutch economy]] prospered by leaving behind an era of neutrality and gaining closer ties with neighbouring states. Government-encouraged emigration efforts to reduce [[population density]] prompted some 500,000 [[Dutch people]] to leave the country after the war.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/409956/Netherlands |title=Netherlands |author= |work=[[Encyclopædia Britannica Online]] |publisher=[[Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.]] |accessdate=8 September 2012}}</ref> The Netherlands was one of the founding members of the [[Benelux]] ('''Be'''lgium, the '''Ne'''therlands and '''Lux'''embourg) grouping, was among the twelve founding members of the [[NATO|North Atlantic Treaty Organisation]] (NATO), and was among the six founding members of the [[European Coal and Steel Community]], which would evolve into the [[European Economic Community|EEC]] ([[Common Market]]) and later the [[European Union]]. In 1954, the political structure of the Kingdom of the Netherlands was reformed when [[Juliana of the Netherlands|Queen Juliana]] signed the [[Charter for the Kingdom of the Netherlands]]. The Dutch colonies of [[Surinam (Dutch colony)|Suriname]] and [[Curaçao and Dependencies]] became integral parts of the Kingdom as the [[constituent countries]] of [[Suriname (Kingdom of the Netherlands)|Suriname]] and the [[Netherlands Antilles]]. At the same time, the European country known until then as the ''Kingdom of the Netherlands'' became the constituent country of the ''Netherlands'' within the now expanded Kingdom, on a basis of equality with the other constituent countries. The reformed [[Kingdom of the Netherlands]] was a result of the desire to review the relations between the Netherlands and its colonies (especially the [[Dutch East Indies]], now [[Indonesia]]). International pressure to carry out [[decolonisation]] was an important motivator for the reforms. Before the reform was completed, Indonesia declared its independence in August 1945, which was recognised in 1949, and thus has never been part of the Kingdom. The 1960s and 1970s were a time of great social and cultural change, such as rapid ''[[pillarization|ontzuiling]]'' (literally: depillarisation), a term that describes the decay of the old divisions along political and religious lines. Youths, and students in particular, rejected traditional mores and pushed for change in matters such as [[women's rights]], [[Human sexuality|sexuality]], [[disarmament]] and [[environmental issues]]. On 10 October 2010, the [[Netherlands Antilles]] was [[Dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles|dissolved]]. Referendums were held on each island of the Netherlands Antilles between June 2000 and April 2005 to determine their future status. As a result the islands of [[Bonaire]], [[Sint Eustatius]] and [[Saba]] (the BES islands) were to obtain closer ties with the Netherlands. This led to the incorporation of these three islands into the country of the Netherlands as ''[[Special municipality (Netherlands)|special municipalities]]'' upon the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles. The special municipalities are collectively known as the [[Caribbean Netherlands]]. ==Geography of the Netherlands== {{Main|Geography of the Netherlands}} ===European Netherlands=== {{Further|European Netherlands}} [[File:Satellite image of the Netherlands in May 2000.jpg|thumb|A satellite overview of the Netherlands.]] The European area of the Netherlands lies between [[latitudes]] [[50th parallel north|50°]] and [[54th parallel north|54° N]], and longitudes [[3rd meridian east|3°]] and [[8th meridian east|8° E]]. The country is divided into two main parts by three large rivers, the [[Rhine]] (''Rijn''), the [[Waal (river)|Waal]], its main distributary branch, and the [[Meuse River|Meuse]] (''Maas''), which originates in France. These rivers functioned as a natural barrier between earlier [[fief]]doms and hence created traditionally a cultural divide, as is evident in some phonetic traits that are recognisable north and south of these "Great Rivers" (''de Grote Rivieren''). The south-western part of the Netherlands is a [[river delta]] of the [[Rhine-Meuse-Scheldt delta|Rhine, Meuse and Scheldt]] rivers. Another significant branch of the Rhine, the [[IJssel]] river, discharges into the [[IJsselmeer]], the former [[Zuiderzee]] ('southern sea'). This river also forms a linguistic divide: people to the east of this river speak [[Dutch Low Saxon]] dialects (except for the province of [[Friesland]], which has its own language).<ref name="international2000">Welschen, Ad: Course ''Dutch Society and Culture'', International School for Humanities and Social Studies ISHSS, Universiteit van Amsterdam, 2000–2005.</ref> ====Floods==== {{Main|Flood control in the Netherlands|Floods in the Netherlands|North Sea flood of 1953|Storm tides of the North Sea}} Over the centuries, the Dutch coastline has changed considerably as a result of human intervention and natural disasters. Most notable in terms of land loss was the storm of 1134, which created the [[archipelago]] of [[Zeeland]] in the south-west. On 14 December 1287, [[St. Lucia's flood]] affected the Netherlands and Germany killing more than 50,000 people in one of the most destructive floods in recorded history.<ref>[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/1485002/Zuiderzee-floods Zuiderzee floods (Netherlands history)]. Britannica Online Encyclopedia.</ref> The [[St. Elizabeth's flood (1421)|St. Elizabeth flood]] of 1421 and the mismanagement in its aftermath destroyed a newly reclaimed [[polder]], replacing it with the {{convert|72|km2|mi2|0|sing=on}} ''[[Biesbosch]]'' tidal floodplains in the south-centre. The huge [[North Sea flood of 1953|North Sea flood of early February 1953]] caused the collapse of several dikes in the south-west of the Netherlands; more than 1,800 people drowned in the flood. The Dutch government subsequently instituted a large-scale programme, the "[[Deltawerken|Delta Works]]", to protect the country against future flooding, which was completed over a period of more than thirty years. The disasters were somewhat increased in severity through human influence. People had drained relatively high-lying [[swamp]]land to use it as farmland. This drainage caused the fertile [[peat]] to compress and the ground level to drop, whereby they would lower the water level to compensate for the drop in ground level, causing the underlying peat to compress even more. Because of the flooding, farming was difficult, which encouraged foreign trade, the result of which was that the Dutch were involved in world affairs since the early 14th/15th century.<ref>Duplessis, Robert S. (1997) ''Transitions to Capitalism in Early Modern Europe'', Cambridge University Press, ISBN 0521397731</ref> The flooding problem remains unsolvable. Also, until the 19th century peat was mined, dried, and used for fuel, further exacerbating the problem. [[File:The Netherlands compared to sealevel.png||thumb|Map of the largest part of the Netherlands without flood control]] To guard against floods, a series of defences against the water were contrived. In the first millennium [[AD]], villages and farmhouses were built on man-made hills called ''terps''. Later, these terps were connected by dikes. In the 12th century, local government agencies called ''"[[Water board (Netherlands)|waterschappen]]"'' ("water boards") or ''"[[Water board (Netherlands)|hoogheemraadschappen]]"'' ("high home councils") started to appear, whose job it was to maintain the water level and to protect a region from floods; these agencies continue to exist. As the ground level dropped, the dikes by necessity grew and merged into an integrated system. By the 13th century [[windmill]]s had come into use to pump water out of areas below sea level. The windmills were later used to drain lakes, creating the famous [[polders]]. {{Citation needed|date=February 2012}} In 1932 the ''[[Afsluitdijk]]'' ("Closure Dike") was completed, blocking the former ''[[Zuiderzee]]'' (Southern Sea) from the North Sea and thus creating the [[IJsselmeer]] ([[IJssel]] Lake). It became part of the larger [[Zuiderzee Works]] in which four polders totalling {{convert|2500|km2|mi2|0}} were reclaimed from the sea.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sdu.nl/staatscourant/gemeentes/gem533nh.htm|publisher=sdu.nl|title=Kerngegevens gemeente Wieringermeer|accessdate=21 January 2008 |archiveurl = //web.archive.org/web/20080106163025/http://www.sdu.nl/staatscourant/gemeentes/gem533nh.htm |archivedate = 6 January 2008}}{{dead link|date=April 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sdu.nl/staatscourant/PROVINCIES/flevoland.htm|publisher=sdu.nl|title=Kerngegevens procincie Flevoland|accessdate=21 January 2008 |archiveurl = //web.archive.org/web/20071226115958/http://www.sdu.nl/staatscourant/PROVINCIES/flevoland.htm |archivedate = 26 December 2007}}{{dead link|date=April 2014}}</ref> The Netherlands is one of the countries that may suffer most from [[climate change]]. Not only is the rising sea a problem, but erratic weather patterns may cause the rivers to overflow.<ref>{{Cite news|last = Nickerson|first = Colin|title = Netherlands relinquishes some of itself to the waters|work=Boston Globe|date= 5 December 2005|url = http://www.boston.com/news/world/europe/articles/2005/12/05/holland_goes_beyond_holding_back_the_tide/|accessdate =10 October 2007}}{{dead link|date=April 2014}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last = Olsthoorn|first = A.A.|coauthors = Richard S.J. Tol|title = Floods, flood management and climate change in The Netherlands|journal=Institute for Environmental Studies|publisher=Institute for Environmental Studies, Vrije Universiteit|date=February 2001|url = http://de.scientificcommons.org/16816958|accessdate =10 October 2007}}{{dead link|date=April 2014}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last = Tol|first = Richard S. J.|coauthors = Nicolien van der Grijp, Alexander A. Olsthoorn, Peter E. van der Werff|title = Adapting to Climate: A Case Study on Riverine Flood Risks in the Netherlands|journal=Risk Analysis|volume = 23|issue = 3|pages = 575–583|year= 2003|doi = 10.1111/1539-6924.00338|pmid = 12836850}}</ref> [[File:Netherlands, Zoetermeer, Zoetermeerse Meerpolder (1).JPG|thumb|A polder at 5.53 metres below sea level.]] =====Delta works===== {{Main|Delta Works}} [[File:Deltawerken na.png|thumb|The [[Delta Works]] are located in the provinces of [[South Holland]] and [[Zeeland]].]] After the [[North Sea Flood of 1953|1953 disaster]], the [[Delta Works]] were constructed, a comprehensive set of civil works throughout the Dutch coast. The project started in 1958 and was largely completed in 1997 with the completion of the [[Maeslantkering]]. New projects have been periodically started since to renovate and renew the Delta Works. A main goal of the Delta project was to reduce the risk of flooding in South Holland and Zeeland to once per 10,000 years (compared to 1 per 4000 years for the rest of the country). This was achieved by raising {{convert|3000|km|mi|0}} of outer sea-dykes and {{convert|10000|km|mi|0}} of inner, canal, and river dikes, and by closing off the sea [[estuary|estuaries]] of the Zeeland province. New risk assessments occasionally show problems requiring additional Delta project dyke reinforcements. The Delta project is considered by the [[American Society of Civil Engineers]] as one of the [[American Society of Civil Engineers#World wonders|seven wonders of the modern world]].<ref>[http://www.asce.org/Content.aspx?id=2147487305 Seven Wonders]. Asce.org (19 July 2010). Retrieved on 21 August 2012.</ref> It is anticipated that [[global warming]] in the 21st century will result in a rise in [[sea level]] which, despite popular belief, will possibly not overwhelm the [[flood control in the Netherlands|measures the Netherlands has taken to control floods]].{{citation needed|date=December 2013}} Even more specifically, the Netherlands is the only country in the world actively preparing for a sea level rise. A politically neutral [http://www.deltacommissie.com/ Delta Commission] has formulated an action plan to cope with a sea level rise of {{convert|1.10|m|ft}} and a simultaneous land height decline of {{convert|10|cm|in}}. The plan foresees in the reinforcement of the existing coastal defenses like [[Levee|dikes]] and [[dune]]s with {{convert|1.30|m|ft}} of additional flood protection. Climate change will not only threaten the Netherlands from the sea side, but could also alter rain fall patterns and river run-off. To protect the country from river flooding, another program is already being executed. The [[Room for the River (Netherlands)|Room for the River plan]] grants more flow space to rivers, protects the major populated areas and allows for periodic flooding of indefensible lands. The few residents that lived in these so-called "overflow areas" have been moved to higher ground, with some of that ground having been raised above anticipated flood levels.<ref name=NYT021313>{{cite news|title=Going With the Flow|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/17/arts/design/flood-control-in-the-netherlands-now-allows-sea-water-in.html|accessdate=19 February 2013|newspaper=The New York Times|date=13 February 2013|author=Kimmelman, Michael}}</ref> Protecting the country against floods is one element of climate change. The other is that the pressure of the sea water on ground water will increase.{{citation needed|date=December 2013}} As a result, the fresh water table will be pushed more inland, resulting in more brackish or saline groundwater in the coastal provinces. Due to this change, some drinking water areas will be forced to apply desalination despite the apparent abundance of water. It will also affect agriculture. The [[greenhouse]]s can continue their production by becoming more water efficient (they are already disconnected from the groundwater, thereby not becoming more saline), though they will need to become more energy and water efficient. The push of more brackish water into the mainland will also cause changes in flora and fauna.{{citation needed|date=December 2013}} ====Climate==== The predominant wind direction in the Netherlands is south-west, which causes a moderate [[Oceanic climate|maritime climate]], with cool summers and mild winters. This is especially the case in places within direct proximity of the Dutch coastline, which sometimes are over {{convert|10|C-change|0}} warmer (in winter) or cooler (in summer) than places in the (south) east of the country. The following tables are based on mean measurements by the [[KNMI (institute)|KNMI]] weather station in [[De Bilt]] between 1981 and 2010: {{Weather box |location = De Bilt (1981–2010 averages), all KNMI locations (1901–2011 extremes), snowy days: (1971–2000 averages). |metric first = Yes |single line = Yes |Jan record high C = 17.2 |Feb record high C = 20.4 |Mar record high C = 25.6 |Apr record high C = 32.2 |May record high C = 35.6 |Jun record high C = 38.4 |Jul record high C = 37.1 |Aug record high C = 38.6 |Sep record high C = 35.2 |Oct record high C = 30.1 |Nov record high C = 21.1 |Dec record high C = 17.8 |year record high C = 38.6 |Jan high C = 5.6 |Feb high C = 6.4 |Mar high C = 10.0 |Apr high C = 14.0 |May high C = 18.0 |Jun high C = 20.4 |Jul high C = 22.8 |Aug high C = 22.6 |Sep high C = 19.1 |Oct high C = 14.6 |Nov high C = 9.6 |Dec high C = 6.1 |year high C = 14.1 |Jan mean C = 3.1 |Feb mean C = 3.3 |Mar mean C = 6.2 |Apr mean C = 9.2 |May mean C = 13.1 |Jun mean C = 15.6 |Jul mean C = 17.9 |Aug mean C = 17.5 |Sep mean C = 14.5 |Oct mean C = 10.7 |Nov mean C = 6.7 |Dec mean C = 3.7 |year mean C = 10.1 |Jan low C = 0.3 |Feb low C = 0.2 |Mar low C = 2.3 |Apr low C = 4.1 |May low C = 7.8 |Jun low C = 10.5 |Jul low C = 12.8 |Aug low C = 12.3 |Sep low C = 9.9 |Oct low C = 6.9 |Nov low C = 3.6 |Dec low C = 1.0 |year low C = 6.0 |Jan record low C = -27.4 |Feb record low C = -26.8 |Mar record low C = -20.7 |Apr record low C = -9.4 |May record low C = -5.4 |Jun record low C = -1.2 |Jul record low C = 0.7 |Aug record low C = 1.3 |Sep record low C = -3.7 |Oct record low C = -8.5 |Nov record low C = -14.4 |Dec record low C = -22.3 |year record low C = -27.4 |Jan precipitation mm = 69.6 |Feb precipitation mm = 55.8 |Mar precipitation mm = 66.8 |Apr precipitation mm = 42.3 |May precipitation mm = 61.9 |Jun precipitation mm = 65.6 |Jul precipitation mm = 81.1 |Aug precipitation mm = 72.9 |Sep precipitation mm = 78.1 |Oct precipitation mm = 82.8 |Nov precipitation mm = 79.8 |Dec precipitation mm = 75.8 |year precipitation mm = 832.5 |precipitation colour = green |Jan humidity= 87 |Feb humidity= 84 |Mar humidity= 81 |Apr humidity= 75 |May humidity= 75 |Jun humidity= 76 |Jul humidity= 77 |Aug humidity= 79 |Sep humidity= 84 |Oct humidity= 86 |Nov humidity= 89 |Dec humidity= 89 |year humidity= 82 |unit precipitation days = 0.1 mm |Jan precipitation days = 17 |Feb precipitation days = 14 |Mar precipitation days = 17 |Apr precipitation days = 13 |May precipitation days = 14 |Jun precipitation days = 14 |Jul precipitation days = 14 |Aug precipitation days = 14 |Sep precipitation days = 15 |Oct precipitation days = 16 |Nov precipitation days = 18 |Dec precipitation days = 17 |year precipitation days = 184 |unit snow days = 0 cm |Jan snow days = 6 |Feb snow days = 6 |Mar snow days = 4 |Apr snow days = 2 |May snow days = 0 |Jun snow days = – |Jul snow days = – |Aug snow days = – |Sep snow days = – |Oct snow days = 0 |Nov snow days = 2 |Dec snow days = 5 |year snow days = 25 |Jan sun = 62.3 |Feb sun = 85.7 |Mar sun = 121.6 |Apr sun = 173.6 |May sun = 207.2 |Jun sun = 193.9 |Jul sun = 206.0 |Aug sun = 187.7 |Sep sun = 138.3 |Oct sun = 112.9 |Nov sun = 63.0 |Dec sun = 49.3 |year sun = 1601.5 |date=December 2011 |source 1 = Knmi.nl<ref name="knmi">{{cite web | url = http://www.knmi.nl/|title = Knmi.nl| accessdate =25 December 2011 |language = Dutch}}</ref> }} Ice days (maximum temperature below {{convert|0|C|F|0}}) usually occur from December until February, with the occasional rare ice day prior to or after that period. Freezing days (minimum temperature below {{convert|0|C|F|0}}) occur much more often, usually ranging from mid-November to late March, but not rarely measured as early as mid October and as late as mid May. If one chooses the height of measurement to be {{convert|10|cm|0|abbr=on}} above ground instead of {{convert|150|cm|0|abbr=on}}, one may even find such temperatures in the middle of the summer. On average, snow can occur from November to April, but sometimes occurs in May or October too. [[File:Nijlânnermolen Workum.jpg|thumb|[[Friesland]]]] Warm days (maximum temperature above {{convert|20|C|F|0}}) in De Bilt are usually found in April to October, but in some parts of the country these warm days can also occur in March, or even sometimes in November or February (usually not in De Bilt, however). Summer days (maximum temperature above {{convert|25|C|F|0}}) are usually measured in De Bilt from May until September, tropical days (maximum temperature above {{convert|30|C|F|0}}) are rare and usually occur only in June to August. Precipitation throughout the year is distributed relatively equally each month. Summer and autumn months tend to gather a little more precipitation than the other months, mainly because of the intensity of the rainfall rather than the frequency of rain days (this is especially the case in summer, when lightning is also much more frequent). The number of sunshine hours is affected by the fact that because of the geographical latitude, the length of the days varies between barely eight hours in December and nearly 17 hours in June. ====Environment==== {{Further|List of national parks of the Netherlands|List of extinct animals of the Netherlands}} The Netherlands has 20 national parks and hundreds of other nature reserves, most of which are owned by [[Staatsbosbeheer]] and [[Natuurmonumenten]] and include [[lake]]s, [[heathland]], [[Woodland|woods]], [[dunes]] and other habitats. [[Phytogeography|Phytogeographically]], the Netherlands is shared between the Atlantic European and Central European provinces of the [[Circumboreal Region]] within the [[Boreal Kingdom]]. According to the [[World Wide Fund for Nature]], the territory of the Netherlands belongs to the [[ecoregion]] of Atlantic mixed forests. In 1871, the last old original natural woods were cut down, and most woods today are planted monocultures of trees like [[Scots Pine]] and trees that are not native to the Netherlands.{{Citation needed|date=January 2009}} These woods were planted on [[heath (habitat)#Anthropogenic heaths|anthropogenic heaths]] and sand-drifts (overgrazed heaths) ([[Veluwe]]). [[File:Netherlands Grote Peel lake.jpg|thumb|[[De Groote Peel National Park]] in [[North Brabant]].]] ===Caribbean islands=== {{Main|Bonaire#Geography|l1=Bonaire|Saba#Geography and ecology|l2=Saba|Sint Eustatius#Geography|l3=Sint Eustatius}} [[File:Bonaire 1.jpg|thumb|right|View of the coast of [[Bonaire]]]] The [[Caribbean Netherlands]] form a part of the [[Lesser Antilles]]. Within this island group, * '''Bonaire''' is part of the [[ABC islands (Lesser Antilles)|ABC islands]] within the [[Leeward Antilles]] island chain off the [[Venezuela]]n coast. The Leeward Antilles have a mixed volcanic and coral origin. * '''Saba''' and '''Sint Eustatius''' are part of the [[SSS islands]]. They are located east of [[Puerto Rico]] and the [[Virgin Islands]]. Although in the English language they are considered part of the [[Leeward Islands]], French, Spanish, [[Dutch language|Dutch]] and the English spoken locally consider them part of the [[Windward Islands]]. The Windward Islands are all of volcanic origin and hilly, leaving little ground suitable for [[agriculture]]. The highest point is [[Mount Scenery]], {{convert|887|m|ft|0}}, on [[Saba]] (also the highest point in all the [[Kingdom of the Netherlands]]). The islands of the Caribbean Netherlands enjoy a [[tropical]] [[climate]] with warm weather all year round. The Leeward Islands are warmer and drier than the Windward islands. In summer, the Windward Islands can be subject to [[hurricanes]]. ==Government== {{Main|Government of the Netherlands}} The Netherlands has been a [[constitutional monarchy]] since 1815 and a [[parliamentary system|parliamentary democracy]] since 1848. The Netherlands is described as a [[consociational state]]. Dutch politics and governance are characterised by an effort to achieve broad consensus on important issues, within both the political community and society as a whole. In 2010, ''[[The Economist]]'' ranked the Netherlands as the 10th [[Democracy Index|most democratic country in the world]]. The [[Dutch monarchy|monarch]] is the [[head of state]], at present [[King Willem-Alexander]]. Constitutionally, the position is equipped with limited powers. The monarch can exert some influence during the [[Cabinet of the Netherlands#Formation|formation of a new cabinet]], where they serve as neutral arbiter between the political parties. Additionally, the king (the title queen has no constitutional significance) has the right to be briefed and consulted. Depending on the personalities and relationships of the king and the ministers, the king might have ''influence'' beyond the ''power'' granted by the constitution. [[File:Willem-Alexander (Royal Wedding in Stockholm, 2010) cropped.jpg|thumb|upright|left|[[Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands|Willem-Alexander]] became King of the Netherlands on 30 April 2013.]] The [[executive (government)|executive power]] is formed by the [[Council of Ministers of the Netherlands|council of Ministers]], the deliberative council of the [[Cabinet of the Netherlands|Dutch cabinet]]. The cabinet consists usually of 13 to 16 ministers and a varying number of [[State Secretary (Netherlands)|state secretaries]]. One to three ministers are [[minister without portfolio|ministers without portfolio]]. The [[head of government]] is the [[Prime Minister of the Netherlands]], who often is the leader of the largest party of the coalition. The Prime Minister is a ''[[primus inter pares]]'', with no explicit powers beyond those of the other ministers. [[Mark Rutte]] has been Prime Minister since October 2010; the Prime Minister had been the leader of the largest party continuously since 1973. [[File:Den Haag Binnenhof.jpg|thumb|The [[Binnenhof]], where the lower and upper houses of the States General meet.]] The cabinet is [[ministerial responsibility|responsible]] to the [[bicameralism|bicameral]] parliament, the [[States General of the Netherlands|States General]], which also has [[legislative|legislative powers]]. The 150 members of the [[House of Representatives of the Netherlands|House of Representatives]], the [[Lower House]], are elected in [[direct election]]s, which are held every four years or after the fall of the cabinet (by example: when one of the chambers carries a [[motion of no confidence]], the cabinet offers its resignation to the monarch). The [[States-Provincial]] are directly elected every four years as well. The members of the provincial assemblies elect the 75 members of the [[Senate of the Netherlands|Senate]], the [[upper house]], which has the power to reject laws, but not propose or amend them. Both trade unions and [[employers organisation]]s are consulted beforehand in policymaking in the financial, economic and social areas. They meet regularly with government in the [[Social-Economic Council]]. This body advises government and its advice cannot be put aside easily. The Netherlands has a long tradition of [[Toleration|social tolerance]]. In the 18th century, while the [[Dutch Reformed Church]] was the [[state religion]], [[Roman Catholicism in the Netherlands|Catholicism]], other forms of Protestantism, such as Baptists and Lutherans, and [[History of the Jews in the Netherlands|Judaism]] were tolerated. In the late 19th century this Dutch tradition of religious tolerance transformed into a system of [[pillarisation]], in which religious groups coexisted separately and only interacted at the level of government. This tradition of tolerance influences Dutch [[criminal justice system of the Netherlands|criminal justice]] policies on [[Drug policy of the Netherlands|recreational drugs]], [[Prostitution in the Netherlands|prostitution]], [[LGBT rights in the Netherlands|LGBT rights]], [[euthanasia]], and [[abortion in the Netherlands|abortion]], which are among the most liberal in the world. ===Political parties=== {{Main|Political parties of the Netherlands|Politics of the Netherlands}} [[File:Mark Rutte-4.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Mark Rutte]] has been the Prime Minister of the Netherlands since October 2010.]] Because of the [[political parties of the Netherlands|multi-party system]], no single party has held a majority in parliament since the 19th century, and [[coalition government|coalition cabinets]] had to be formed. Since [[suffrage]] became universal in 1919, the Dutch political system has been dominated by three families of political parties: the strongest of which were the [[Christian democracy|Christian democrats]], currently represented by the [[Christian Democratic Appeal]] (CDA); second were the [[social democracy|social democrats]], represented by the [[Dutch Labour Party|Labour Party]] (PvdA); and third were the [[liberalism in the Netherlands|liberals]], of which the right wing [[People's Party for Freedom and Democracy]] (VVD) is the main representative. These parties co-operated in coalition cabinets in which the Christian democrats had always been a partner: so either a [[centre-left]] coalition of the Christian democrats and social democrats was ruling or a centre-right coalition of Christian democrats and liberals. In the 1970s, the [[party system]] became more volatile: the Christian democratic parties lost seats, while new parties became successful, such as the [[radicalism (historical)|radical]] democrat and [[progressivism|progressive]] liberal [[D'66|D66]]. In the [[Dutch general election, 1994|1994 election]], the CDA lost its dominant position. A "[[purple (government)|purple]]" cabinet was formed by VVD, D66, and PvdA. In the [[Dutch general election, 2002|2002 elections]], this cabinet lost its majority, because of an increased support for the CDA and the rise of the right [[Lijst Pim Fortuyn|LPF]], a new political party, around [[Pim Fortuyn]], who was assassinated a week before the elections. A short-lived [[First Balkenende cabinet|cabinet]] was formed by CDA, VVD, and LPF, which was led by the CDA leader [[Jan Peter Balkenende]]. After the [[Dutch general election, 2003|2003 elections]], in which the LPF lost most of its seats, a [[Balkenende II|cabinet]] was formed by CDA, VVD, and D66. The cabinet initiated an ambitious programme of reforming the [[welfare state]], the [[Healthcare in the Netherlands|healthcare system]], and [[immigration policy|immigration]] policy. In June 2006, the cabinet fell after D66 voted in favour of a motion of no confidence against the Minister of Immigration and Integration, [[Rita Verdonk]], who had instigated an investigation of the asylum procedure of [[Ayaan Hirsi Ali]], a VVD [[Member of Parliament|MP]]. A [[Balkenende III|caretaker cabinet]] was formed by CDA and VVD, and [[Dutch general election, 2006|general elections]] were held on 22 November 2006. In these elections, the CDA remained the largest party and the [[Socialist Party (Netherlands)|Socialist Party]] made the largest gains. The [[2006–07 Dutch cabinet formation|formation of a new cabinet]] took three months, resulting in a [[Netherlands cabinet Balkenende-4|coalition]] of CDA, PvdA, and [[ChristianUnion]]. On 20 February 2010, the cabinet fell when the PvdA refused to prolong the involvement of the Dutch Army in [[Uruzgan]], Afghanistan.<ref>{{cite web |title = Kabinet valt over Uruzgan-besluit|publisher=[[De Volkskrant]]|date = 20 February 2010|url =http://www.volkskrant.nl/binnenland/article1350355.ece/Kabinet_valt_over_Uruzgan-besluit|archiveurl =//web.archive.org/web/20100223041947/http://www.volkskrant.nl/binnenland/article1350355.ece/Kabinet_valt_over_Uruzgan-besluit|archivedate=23 February 2010|accessdate=20 February 2010|author=Dirks, Bart and Koelé, Theo |language=Dutch}}</ref> [[Snap election]]s were held on [[Dutch general election, 2010|9 June 2010]], with devastating results for the previously largest party, the CDA, which lost about half of its seats, resulting in 21 seats. The VVD became the largest party with 31 seats, closely followed by the PvdA with 30 seats. The big winner of the 2010 elections was [[Geert Wilders]], whose extreme-right wing [[Party for Freedom|PVV]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ibtimes.com/dutch-parliamentary-elections-will-far-right-freedom-party-defy-polls-again-780833 |title=Dutch Parliamentary Elections: Will Far-Right Freedom Party Defy Polls Again? |publisher=International Business Times |date=12 September 2012 |accessdate=26 March 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/w/geert_wilders/index.html |title=Times Topics: Geert Wilders |publisher=The New York Times|accessdate=26 March 2013|first1=Stephen|last1=Castle|first2=Steven|last2=Erlanger}}</ref> the ideological successor to the [[Pim Fortuyn List|LPF]], more than doubled its number of seats.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.france24.com/en/20100610-netherlands-government-coalition-elections-party-for-freedom-anti-islam |title=Lengthy coalition talks loom after far-right gain in Dutch elections |publisher=France24 |accessdate=12 June 2010}}</ref> [[2010 Dutch cabinet formation|Negotiation talks for a new government]] resulted in a [[minority government]], led by VVD (a first) in coalition with CDA, which was sworn in on 14 October 2010. This unprecedented minority government was supported by PVV, but proved ultimately to be unstable,<ref>{{de icon}} {{cite web|url=http://www.spiegel.de/politik/ausland/0,1518,722177,00.html |title=Neue niederländische Regierung formiert sich |work=Der Spiegel |date=8 October 2010}}</ref> when on 21 April 2012, Wilders, leader of PVV, unexpectedly 'torpedoed seven weeks of austerity talks' on new austerity measures, paving the way for early elections.<ref>{{cite news |title=Dutch prime minister says government austerity talks collapse |agency=Associated Press |url=http://www.boston.com/business/articles/2012/04/21/dutch_prime_minister_says_austerity_talks_collapse/ |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date= 21 April 2012|author= Corder, Mike |accessdate=21 April 2012}}{{dead link|date=April 2014}}</ref> <ref>{{cite news |title=Dutch prime minister lays blame squarely with Geert Wilders|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/apr/23/eurozone-crisis-austerity-dutch-government | location=London | work=The Guardian |first=Graeme |last=Wearden |date=23 April 2012}}</ref> <ref>{{cite news |title=Dutch prime minister says austerity talks collapse|url=http://www.nwaonline.com/news/2012/apr/21/dutch-prime-minister-says-austerity-talks-collapse/}}</ref> VVD and PvdA were the big winners of the elections. Since 5 November 2012 they have formed the [[second Rutte cabinet]]. ===Administrative divisions=== {{Main|Provinces of the Netherlands|Municipalities of the Netherlands|Water board (Netherlands)|Public body (Netherlands)|Caribbean Netherlands}} [[File:Netherlands Map.svg|thumb|[[Provinces of the Netherlands|Provinces]] and [[Special municipality (Netherlands)|special municipalities]] of the Netherlands.]] The Netherlands is divided into twelve provinces, each under a Commissioner of the King (''Commissaris van de Koning''), except for [[Limburg (Netherlands)|Limburg province]] where the position is named Governor (''Gouverneur''). All provinces are divided into [[Municipalities of the Netherlands|municipalities]] (''gemeenten''), of which there are 403.<ref name=MUNICPS>{{cite web |url = http://www.cbs.nl/nl-NL/menu/methoden/classificaties/overzicht/gemeentelijke-indeling/2014/default.htm |title = Gemeentelijke indeling op 1 januari 2014 |trans_title = Municipalities on 1 January 2014 |language = Dutch |author = <!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date = 1 January 2014 |work = CBS Classifications |publisher = [[Statistics Netherlands|CBS]] |accessdate = 7 January 2014}}</ref> The country is also subdivided into 24 water districts, governed by a [[Water board (Netherlands)|water board]] (''waterschap'' or ''hoogheemraadschap''), each having authority in matters concerning water management.<ref name=WATER>{{cite web|url=http://www.uvw.nl/de-waterschappen.html|title=De waterschappen|language=Dutch|accessdate=7 June 2013}}{{dead link|date=April 2014}}</ref> The creation of water boards actually pre-dates that of the nation itself, the first appearing in 1196. The Dutch water boards are among the oldest democratic entities in the world still in existence. The administrative structure on the 3 BES islands, also known as the [[Caribbean Netherlands]], is different. These islands have the status of ''openbare lichamen ([[Public body (Netherlands)|public bodies]])'' and are generally referred to as ''special municipalities''. They are not part of a province.<ref name=WOLBES>{{cite web|url=http://www.eerstekamer.nl/wetsvoorstel/31954_wet_openbare_lichamen|title=31.954, Wet openbare lichamen Bonaire, Sint Eustatius en Saba|language=Dutch|publisher=Eerste kamer der Staten-Generaal|quote=De openbare lichamen vallen rechtstreeks onder het Rijk omdat zij geen deel uitmaken van een provincie.<br>"Through the establishment of the BES islands as public bodies, rather than communities, the BES islands' rules may deviate from the rules in the European part of the Netherlands. The Dutch legislation will be introduced gradually. The public bodies fall directly under the central government because they are not part of a province."|accessdate=15 October 2010}}</ref> ====Provinces==== {| style="background:none;" cellspacing="2px" | {| class="sortable wikitable" style="text-align:left;" |- ! style="width:40px;" class="unsortable"| [[Flag]] ! style="width:140px;"| Province ! style="width:115px;"| Capital ! style="width:80px;"| Largest city ! style="width:60px;"| Area<ref name="ProvArea">{{cite web|url=http://statline.cbs.nl/StatWeb/publication/?VW=T&DM=SLNL&PA=70072ned&D1=224&D2=5-16&D3=l&HD=081103-1603&HDR=T&STB=G1,G2|language=Dutch|publisher=[[Statistics Netherlands]]|year=2007|accessdate=13 October 2007|title=Regionale Kerncijfers Nederland}}</ref><br> (km²) ! style="width:90px;"| Population<ref>{{cite web|url=http://statline.cbs.nl/StatWeb/publication/?DM=SLNL&PA=03759NED&D1=0&D2=129-132&D3=0,5-16,101-902&D4=21-22&HDR=T,G2&STB=G1,G3&VW=T|language=Dutch|publisher=[[Statistics Netherlands]]|year=2013|accessdate=31 October 2013|title=Bevolking; geslacht, leeftijd, burgerlijke staat en regio, 1 januari}}</ref><br><small>31-09-2013</small> ! style="width:80px;"|Density<br/>(per km²) |- | style="text-align:center"|[[File:Flag Drenthe.svg|27px]] || [[Drenthe]] || [[Assen]] ||<!-- Please DO NOT change the largest city of Drenthe to Emmen. What is intended here is the city proper; not the municipality. Assen city proper is larger than Emmen city proper although Emmen municipality is larger. --> [[Assen]] || style="text-align:right"|2,639|| style="text-align:right"|489,155|| style="text-align:right"|185 |- | style="text-align:center"|[[File:Flevolandflag.svg|27px]] || [[Flevoland]] || [[Lelystad]] || [[Almere]] || style="text-align:right"|1,415|| style="text-align:right"|399,825|| style="text-align:right"|282 |- | style="text-align:center"|[[File:Frisian flag.svg|27px]] || [[Friesland]] || [[Leeuwarden]] || [[Leeuwarden]] || style="text-align:right"|3,340|| style="text-align:right"|646,401|| style="text-align:right"|194 |- | style="text-align:center"|[[File:Gelderland-Flag.svg|27px]] || [[Gelderland]] || [[Arnhem]] || [[Nijmegen]] || style="text-align:right"|4,970|| style="text-align:right"|2,019,196|| style="text-align:right"|406 |- | style="text-align:center"|[[File:Flag Groningen.svg|27px]] || [[Groningen (province)|Groningen]] || [[Groningen (city)|Groningen]] || [[Groningen (city)|Groningen]] || style="text-align:right"|2,325|| style="text-align:right"|582,908|| style="text-align:right"|251 |- | style="text-align:center"|[[File:NL-LimburgVlag.svg|27px]] || [[Limburg (Netherlands)|Limburg]] || [[Maastricht]] || [[Maastricht]] || style="text-align:right"|2,150|| style="text-align:right"|1,120,332|| style="text-align:right"|521 |- | style="text-align:center"|[[File:North Brabant-Flag.svg|27px]] || [[North Brabant]]|| [['s-Hertogenbosch]]<!-- spelled this way for table-aesthetic reasons--> || [[Eindhoven]] || style="text-align:right"|4,914|| style="text-align:right"|2,478,687|| style="text-align:right"|504 |- | style="text-align:center"|[[File:Flag North-Holland, Netherlands.svg|27px]] || [[North Holland]] || [[Haarlem]] || [[Amsterdam]] || style="text-align:right"|2,665|| style="text-align:right"|2,737,540|| style="text-align:right"|1,027 |- | style="text-align:center"|[[File:Flag Overijssel.svg|27px]] || [[Overijssel]] || [[Zwolle]] || [[Enschede]] || style="text-align:right"|3,324|| style="text-align:right"|1,139,462|| style="text-align:right"|343 |- | style="text-align:center"|[[File:Utrecht (province)-Flag.svg|27px]] || [[Utrecht (province)|Utrecht]] || [[Utrecht (city)|Utrecht]] || [[Utrecht]] || style="text-align:right"|1,383|| style="text-align:right"|1,251,266|| style="text-align:right"|905 |- | style="text-align:center"|[[File:Flag of Zeeland.svg|27px]] || [[Zeeland]] || [[Middelburg]] || [[Middelburg]] || style="text-align:right"|1,784|| style="text-align:right"|380,864|| style="text-align:right"|213 |- | style="text-align:center"|[[File:Flag Zuid-Holland.svg|27px]] || [[South Holland]] || [[The Hague]] || [[Rotterdam]] || style="text-align:right"|2,808|| style="text-align:right"|3,572,409|| style="text-align:right"|1,272 |- class="sortbottom" ! colspan="4" style="text-align:right;"| Total ! style="text-align:right;"| 33,718 ! style="text-align:right;"| 16,818,045 ! style="text-align:right;"| 499 |} |} ====Special municipalities==== {| style="background:none;" cellspacing="2px" | {| class="sortable wikitable" style="text-align:left;" |- ! style="width:40px;" class="unsortable"| [[Flag]] ! style="width:140px;"| Name ! style="width:115px;"| Capital ! style="width:80px;"| Largest city ! style="width:60px;"| Area<ref name="BESArea">{{cite web|url=http://www.cbs.an/area_climate/area_a1.asp|archiveurl=//web.archive.org/web/20110706074026/http://www.cbs.an/area_climate/area_a1.asp|archivedate=6 July 2011|publisher=Central Bureau of Statistics (Netherlands Antilles)|year=2010|accessdate=11 June 2013|title=Statistical Info: Area and Climate}}{{dead link|date=April 2014}}</ref><br> (km²) ! style="width:90px;"| Population<ref>{{cite web|url=http://statline.cbs.nl/StatWeb/publication/?DM=SLNL&PA=80539ned&D1=0-1,9-10&D2=a&D3=a&HDR=T&STB=G1,G2&CHARTTYPE=1&VW=T|publisher=Central Bureau of Statistics|year=2012|accessdate=18 October 2013|title=Bevolkingsontwikkeling Caribisch Nederland; geboorte, sterfte, migratie|language=Dutch}}</ref><br><small>31-12-2012</small> ! style="width:80px;"|Density<br/>(per km²) |- | style="text-align:center"|{{flagicon|Bonaire|size=27px}} || [[Bonaire]] || [[Kralendijk]] || [[Kralendijk]] || style="text-align:right"|288|| style="text-align:right"|17,408|| style="text-align:right"|60 |- | style="text-align:center"|{{flagicon|Sint Eustatius|size=27px}} || [[Sint Eustatius]] || [[Oranjestad, Sint Eustatius|Oranjestad]] || [[Oranjestad, Sint Eustatius|Oranjestad]] || style="text-align:right"|21|| style="text-align:right"|3,897|| style="text-align:right"|186 |- | style="text-align:center"|{{flagicon|Saba|size=27px}} || [[Saba]] || [[The Bottom]] || [[The Bottom]] || style="text-align:right"|13|| style="text-align:right"|1,991|| style="text-align:right"|153 |- class="sortbottom" ! colspan="4" style="text-align:right;"| Total ! style="text-align:right;"| 322 ! style="text-align:right;"| 23,296 ! style="text-align:right;"| 72 |} |} ===Foreign relations=== [[File:International Court of Justice.jpg|thumb|The [[Peace Palace]] (''Vredespaleis''), [[The Hague]]]] {{Main|Foreign relations of the Netherlands}} The history of [[foreign relations of the Netherlands|Dutch foreign policy]] has been characterised by its [[neutral state|neutrality]]. Since the Second World War the Netherlands has become a member of a large number of international organisations, most prominently the UN, [[NATO]] and the EU. The Dutch economy is very open and relies on [[international trade]]. The [[foreign policy]] of the Netherlands is based on four basic commitments: to [[atlanticism|atlantic co-operation]], to [[European integration]], to [[international development]] and to [[international law]]. One of the more controversial international issues surrounding the Netherlands is its [[drug policy of the Netherlands|liberal policy towards soft drugs]]. During and after the [[Dutch Golden Age]], the Dutch people built up a commercial and colonial empire, which fell apart quickly after the Second World War. The historical ties inherited from its colonial past still influence the foreign relations of the Netherlands. ===Military=== {{Main|Military of the Netherlands}} The Netherlands has one of the oldest standing armies in Europe; it was first established as such by [[Maurice of Nassau]]. The Dutch army was used throughout the [[Dutch Empire]]. After the defeat of Napoleon, the Dutch army was transformed into a [[conscription]] army. The army was unsuccessfully deployed during the [[Belgian revolution]] in 1830. After 1830, it was deployed mainly in the Dutch colonies, as the Netherlands remained neutral in European wars (including the First World War), until the [[Battle of the Netherlands|Netherlands was invaded in the Second World War]] and quickly defeated by the Wehrmacht in May 1940. [[File:HNLMS Holland.jpg|thumb|Zr. Ms. Holland, a [[Royal Dutch Navy]] [[Offshore patrol vessel]]]] The Netherlands abandoned its neutrality in 1948 when it signed the [[Treaty of Brussels]], and later became a founding member of [[NATO]] in 1949. The Dutch military was therefore part of the NATO strength in [[Cold War]] Europe, deploying its army to several bases in Germany. More than 3.000 Dutch soldiers were assigned to the [[2nd Infantry Division (United States)|2nd Infantry Division]] of the [[United States Army]] during the [[Korean War]]. In 1996 conscription was suspended, and the Dutch army was once again transformed into a professional army. Since the 1990s the Dutch army has been involved in the [[Bosnian War]] and the [[Kosovo War]], it held a province in [[Iraq]] after the defeat of [[Saddam Hussein]], and it was engaged in [[War in Afghanistan (2001–present)|Afghanistan]]. The military is composed of four branches, all of which carry the prefix ''Koninklijke'' (Royal): <!-- Pls do not change any of these from 'Royal Netherlands' to 'Dutch', the official name of ALL branches of the Army is Royal Netherlands--> * ''Koninklijke Landmacht'' (KL), the [[Royal Netherlands Army]] * ''Koninklijke Marine'' (KM), the [[Royal Netherlands Navy]], including the Naval Air Service and Marine Corps * ''Koninklijke Luchtmacht'' (KLu), the [[Royal Netherlands Air Force]] * ''Koninklijke Marechaussee'' (KMar), the [[Royal Marechaussee]] (Military Police), tasks include military police and border control General [[Tom Middendorp]] is the current Commander of the Netherlands armed forces. All military specialities except the [[Koninklijke Marine#Submarine service|submarine service]] and the [[Royal Netherlands Marine Corps]] (''Korps Mariniers'') are open to women. [[Korps Commandotroepen|The Korps Commandotroepen]], the Special Operations Force of the Netherlands Army, is open to women, but because of the extremely high physical demands for initial training, it is almost impossible for women to become a commando.<ref>[http://www.korpscommandotroepen.nl/index.php?l=nl&p=118 KCT. Official website of the Dutch Commando Foundation]. Korpscommandotroepen.nl (14 April 2010). Retrieved on 21 August 2012.</ref> The Dutch Ministry of Defence employs more than 70,000 personnel, including over 20,000 civilians and over 50,000 military personnel.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.defensie.nl/onderwerpen/werken_bij_defensie |title=Ministerie van defensie – Werken bij Defensie |publisher=Mindef.nl |accessdate=29 April 2010}}{{dead link|date=April 2014}}</ref> In April 2011 the government announced a major reduction in its military because of a cut in government expenditure, including a decrease in the number of tanks, fighter aircraft, naval ships and senior officials.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.defensie.nl/actueel/nieuws/2011/04/08/46180709/Defensie_hard_getroffen_door_bezuinigingen_video |title=Defensie hard getroffen door bezuinigingen |publisher=Ministry of Defence |accessdate=26 April 2011}}{{dead link|date=April 2014}}</ref> ==Economy== {{Main|Economy of the Netherlands}} [[File:Netherlands treemap.png|thumb|300px|A graphical depiction of Dutch product exports in 28 colour-coded categories.<ref>{{cite web |title=Economic Complexity Observatory |publisher=MIT Media Lab and the Center for International Development at Harvard University |url=http://atlas.media.mit.edu/ |accessdate=17 January 2014}}</ref>]] The Netherlands has a developed economy and has been playing a special role in the European economy for many centuries. Since the 16th century, shipping, fishing, trade, and banking have been leading sectors of the Dutch economy. The Netherlands is one of the world's 10 leading exporting countries. Foodstuffs form the largest industrial sector. Other major industries include chemicals, metallurgy, machinery, electrical goods, and tourism (in 2012 the Netherlands welcomed 11.7 million international tourists). Examples include [[Unilever]], [[Heineken International|Heineken]], financial services ([[ING Group|ING]]), chemicals ([[DSM (company)|DSM]], [[AkzoNobel|AKZO]]), petroleum refining ([[Royal Dutch Shell|Shell]]), electronical machinery ([[Philips]], [[ASML Holding|ASML]]), and car navigation ([[TomTom]]). The Netherlands has the [[List of countries by GDP (nominal)|18th-largest economy in the world]], and [[List of countries by GDP (nominal) per capita|ranks 10th in GDP (nominal) per capita]]. Between 1997 and 2000 annual economic growth (GDP) averaged nearly 4%, well above the European average. Growth slowed considerably from 2001 to 2005 with the global economic slowdown, but accelerated to 4.1% in the third quarter of 2007. In May 2013, inflation was at 2.8% per year.<ref>{{cite web|title=Inflation up to 2.8 percent|url=http://www.cbs.nl/en-GB/menu/themas/dossiers/conjunctuur/publicaties/artikelen/archief/2013/2013-042-pb.htm|publisher=Statistics Netherlands|accessdate=11 June 2013|date=6 June 2013}}</ref> In April 2013, unemployment was at 8.2% (or 6.7% following the [[International Labour Organization|ILO]] definition) of the [[labour force]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cbs.nl/en-GB/menu/themas/dossiers/conjunctuur/publicaties/artikelen/archief/2013/2013-035-pb.htm|title=Unemployment further up|accessdate=10 June 2013|date=15 May 2013|publisher=Statistics Netherlands}}</ref> In [[Quarter (time)|Q3]] and Q4 2011, the Dutch economy contracted by 0.4% and 0.7%, respectively, because of European Debt Crisis, while in Q4 the Eurozone economy shrunk by 0.3%.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_world_business/view/1183178/1/.html |title=Eurozone economy shrinks 0.3% in Q4 |date=15 February 2012|work=channelnewsasia.com}}</ref> The Netherlands also has a relatively low [[Gini coefficient|GINI coefficient]] of 0.326. Despite ranking 7th in [[GDP per capita]], [[UNICEF]] ranked the Netherlands 1st in child well-being.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.unicef.org/media/files/ChildPovertyReport.pdf |title=Child Poverty Report Study by UNICEF 2007|format=PDF|work=unicef.org}}</ref> On the [[Index of Economic Freedom]] Netherlands is the 13th most [[free market]] capitalist economy out of 157 surveyed countries. [[Amsterdam]] is the financial and business capital of the Netherlands.<ref name="ez">{{cite web |url=http://www.ez.amsterdam.nl/page.php?menu=24&page=6 |archiveurl=//web.archive.org/web/20081205161807/http://www.ez.amsterdam.nl/page.php?menu=24&page=6 |archivedate=5 December 2008 |title=Amsterdam – Economische Zaken |language=Dutch |accessdate=22 May 2008 }}{{dead link|date=April 2014}}</ref> The [[Amsterdam Stock Exchange]] (AEX), part of [[Euronext]], is the world's oldest stock exchange and is one of Europe's largest bourses. It is situated near [[Dam Square]] in the city's centre. As a founding member of the [[euro]], the Netherlands replaced (for accounting purposes) its former currency, the "gulden" ([[Dutch guilder|guilder]]), on 1 January 1999, along with 15 other adopters of the euro. Actual [[euro coins]] and [[euro banknotes|banknotes]] followed on 1 January 2002. One euro was equivalent to 2.20371 Dutch guilders. In the [[Caribbean Netherlands]], the [[US dollar]] is used instead of the euro. [[File:Amazonehaven.JPG|thumb|The [[Port of Rotterdam]] is Europe's largest port.]] The Dutch location gives it prime access to markets in the UK and Germany, with the [[port of Rotterdam]] being the largest port in Europe. Other important parts of the economy are [[international trade]] (Dutch colonialism started with co-operative private enterprises such as the [[Dutch East India Company|VOC]]), banking and transport. The Netherlands successfully addressed the issue of public finances and stagnating job growth long before its European partners. Amsterdam is the 5th-busiest tourist destination in Europe with more than 4.2 million international visitors.<ref name="42milvisitors">{{Wayback |date=20090215160103 |url=http://www.ez.amsterdam.nl/page.php?page=9&menu=27 |title=Amsterdam en de wereld: Toerisme en congreswezen }}{{dead link|date=April 2014}}. ez.amsterdam.nl</ref> Since the enlargement of the EU large numbers of [[migrant worker]]s have arrived in the Netherlands from [[Central Europe|central]] and [[eastern Europe]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://uk.reuters.com/article/2012/02/10/uk-dutch-immigrants-idUKTRE8191ML20120210 |title= Dutch allow Wilders' anti-Pole website, EU critical | publisher= Reuters | date=10 February 2012 |first=Gilbert |last=Kreijger}}</ref> Of economic importance is [[BrabantStad]], a partnership between the municipalities of [[Breda]], [[Eindhoven]], [[Helmond]], [['s-Hertogenbosch]] and [[Tilburg]] and the province of North Brabant. BrabantStad is the fastest growing economic region in the Netherlands, with Brainport as one of the three national top regions and as a top region in the world. The region lies within the [[Eindhoven]]-[[Leuven]]-[[Aachen]] Triangle (ELAT).<ref name="ref608454752">{{cite web|url=http://www.sre.nl/|title=- De factor SRE|publisher=sre.nl|accessdate=2014-02-19}}</ref> The partnership aims to form an urban network and to make North Brabant explicitly known as a leading knowledge region within Europe. With a total of 1.5 million people and 20% of the industrial production in the Netherlands is BrabantStad one of the major economical important, metropolitan regions of the Netherlands. Of all the money that goes to research and development in the Netherlands, one third is spent in [[Eindhoven]]. A quarter of the jobs in the region are in technology and ICT.<ref name="ref-213874478">{{cite web|url=http://www.eindhoven.nl/web/show|title=Eindhoven - Eindhoven|publisher=eindhoven.nl|accessdate=2014-02-19}}</ref> Of all European patent applications in the field of physics and electronics about eight per cent is from North Brabant.<ref name="ref-601915138">{{cite web|url=http://www.brabantstad.nl/index.php|title=Welkom | BrabantStad, een sterk internationaal concurrerend en duurzaam groeiend stedelijk netwerk.|publisher=brabantstad.nl|accessdate=2014-02-19}}</ref> In the extended region, BrabantStad is part of the [[Eindhoven]]-[[Leuven]]-[[Aachen]] Triangle (ELAT). This economic cooperation agreement between three cities in three countries has created one of the most innovative regions in the European Union (measured in terms of money invested in [[technology]] and [[knowledge economy]]).<ref name="ref1983490620">{{cite web|url=http://www.elat.org/|title=http://www.elat.org/|publisher=elat.org|accessdate=2014-02-19}}</ref> The economic success of this region is important for the international competitiveness of the Netherlands; Together [[Amsterdam]] ([[Amsterdam Airport Schiphol|airport]]), [[Rotterdam]] ([[Port of Rotterdam|seaport]]), and [[Eindhoven]] ([[Brainport, Netherlands|Brainport]]) form the foundation of the Dutch economy.<ref name="ref1367203750">{{cite web|url=http://www.brainport.nl/over-brainport|title=Over Brainport|publisher=brainport.nl|accessdate=2014-02-19}}</ref> The country continues to be one of the leading European nations for attracting foreign direct investment and is one of the five largest investors in the United States. The economy experienced a slowdown in 2005, but in 2006 recovered to the fastest pace in six years on the back of increased exports and strong investment. The pace of job growth reached 10-year highs in 2007. The Netherlands is the fifth-most competitive economy in the world, according to the [[World Economic Forum]]'s [[Global Competitiveness Report]].<ref name="wefcomp">{{cite web|url=http://www.weforum.org/issues/global-competitiveness |title=Global Competitiveness Report 2012–2013 |publisher=World Economic Forum |date=5 September 2012 |accessdate=11 June 2013}}</ref> The [[Groningen gas field]], one of the largest [[natural gas field]]s in the world, is situated near [[Slochteren]]. Exploitation of this field has resulted in €159 billion in revenue since the mid-1970s.<ref name="geo">{{cite web|url=http://www.geoexpro.com/article/The_Groningen_Gas_Field/bf349ab1.aspx|title=The Groningen Gas Field|year=2009|publisher=''GEO ExPro Magazine''|accessdate=11 June 2013}}</ref> ===Agriculture=== [[File:NL Moerdijk municipality Zevenbergen city IMG 2832.JPG|thumb|Farmland in the Netherlands]] A highly mechanised agricultural sector employs 4% of the labour force but provides large surpluses for the food-processing industry and for exports. The Dutch rank third worldwide in value of agricultural exports, behind the United States and France, with exports earning $55 billion annually. A significant portion of Dutch agricultural exports are derived from fresh-cut plants, flowers, and bulbs, with the Netherlands exporting two-thirds of the world's total.<ref name="USDA Foreign Agriculture Service">{{cite web|url = http://www.fas.usda.gov/gainfiles/200501/146118432.pdf#search=%22netherlands%20main%20agriculture%20export%20flowers%22|title = Netherlands: Agricultural situation|accessdate =20 June 2007|publisher=USDA Foreign Agriculture Service}}</ref> The Netherlands also exports a quarter of all the world's tomatoes, and trade of one-third of the world's exports of [[Capsicum|chilis]], tomatoes and cucumbers goes through the country. The Netherlands also exports one-fifteenth of the world's apples.<ref name="USDA Foreign Agriculture Service"/> ===Transport=== {{See also|Transport in the Netherlands|Rail transport in the Netherlands}} [[Rotterdam]] has the largest port in Europe, with the rivers Meuse and Rhine providing excellent access to the [[hinterland]] upstream reaching to [[Basel, Switzerland]], and into France. As of 2013, Rotterdam was the world's eighth largest [[container port]] handling 440.5 million metric tonnes of cargo annually.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.portofrotterdam.com/en/Port/port-statistics/Pages/default.aspx |title=Port of Rotterdam Statistics 2011-2013 |publisher=Port of Rotterdam |accessdate=1 June 2014}}</ref> The port's main activities are [[petrochemical]] industries and general cargo handling and [[transshipment]]. The harbour functions as an important transit point for [[bulk material handling|bulk materials]] and between the European continent and overseas. From Rotterdam goods are transported by ship, river barge, train or road. In 2007, the [[Betuweroute]], a new fast freight railway from Rotterdam to Germany, was completed. As part of its commitment to environmental sustainability, the Dutch government initiated a plan to establish over 200 recharging stations for electric vehicles across the country by 2015. The rollout will be undertaken by Switzerland-based power and automation company ABB and Dutch startup Fastned, and will aim to provide at least one station within a 50-kilometre radius (30 miles) from every home in the Netherlands.<ref>{{cite web|title=Every Dutch citizen will live within 31 miles of an electric vehicle charging station by 2015|url=http://www.theverge.com/2013/7/10/4509962/netherlands-nationwide-electric-vehicle-charging-network-abb-fastned|work=The Verge|publisher=Vox Media, Inc|accessdate=11 July 2013|last=Toor |first=Amar |date=10 July 2013}}</ref> ==Demographics== {{Main|Demographics of the Netherlands}} [[File:Queensday 2011 Amsterdam 26.jpg|thumb|Dutch people in orange celebrating [[Koninginnedag|Queen's Day]] in Amsterdam.]] The Netherlands had an estimated population of 16,785,403 on 30 April 2013.<ref name="cbs-counter">{{cite web|title=Population and population dynamics; month, quarter and year|url=http://statline.cbs.nl/StatWeb/publication/?VW=T&DM=SLEN&PA=37943eng&LA=EN|publisher=Statistics Netherlands|accessdate=12 June 2013}}</ref> It is the [[List of European countries by population|10th most populous country in Europe]] and the [[List of countries by population|63rd most populous country]] in the world. Between 1900 and 1950, the country's population almost doubled from 5.1 to 10.0 million people. From 1950 to 2000, the population further increased from 10.0 to 15.9 million people, but the rate of [[population growth]] was less than that of the previous fifty years.<ref>[http://statline.cbs.nl/StatWeb/publication/?DM=SLEN&PA=37556ENG&D1=0-44,53-60&D2=1,11,21,31,41,51,61,71,81,91,101&LA=EN&VW=T CBS Statline – Population; history]. [[Statistics Netherlands]]. Retrieved on 8 March 2009.</ref> The estimated growth rate {{As of|2013|alt=in 2013}} is 0.44%.<ref name="cia-worldfactbook-nl">{{cite web|title=The World Factbook – Netherlands|url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/nl.html|publisher=[[Central Intelligence Agency]]|accessdate=11 June 2013}}</ref> The [[fertility rate]] in the Netherlands is 1.78 children per woman (2013 est<ref name="cia-worldfactbook-nl"/>), which is high compared with many other European countries, but [[sub-replacement fertility|below the rate of 2.1 children per woman required for natural population replacement]]. [[Life expectancy]] is high in the Netherlands: 83.21 years for newborn girls and 78.93 for boys (2013 est<ref name="cia-worldfactbook-nl"/>). The country has a [[Human migration|migration]] rate of 1.99 migrants per 1,000 inhabitants per year.<ref name="cia-worldfactbook-nl"/> The majority of the population of the Netherlands is ethnically [[Dutch people|Dutch]]. A 2005 estimate counted: 80.9% Dutch, 2.4% [[Indonesia]]n, 2.4% [[Germans|German]], 2.2% [[Turkish-Dutch|Turkish]], 2.0% [[Surinamese people|Surinamese]], 1.9% [[Morocco|Moroccan]], 0.8% [[Netherlands Antilles|Antillean]] and [[Aruba]]n, and 7.4% others.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cbs.nl/NR/rdonlyres/CCD504EA-9D41-40C2-AE28-BFB0A51C2045/0/2005k3b15p096art.pdf|title=Demografie van de allochtonen in Nederland|publisher=[[Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek]]|author=Garssen, Joop, Han Nicolaas and Arno Sprangers|year=2005|language=Dutch|format=PDF|accessdate=2 July 2011}}</ref> The [[Dutch people|Dutch]] are the tallest people in the world, with an average [[Human height|height]] of {{convert|1.81|m|ftin|1|abbr=out}} for adult males and {{convert|1.67|m|ftin|1|abbr=out}} for adult females in 2009.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://statline.cbs.nl/StatWeb/publication/?VW=T&DM=SLNL&PA=03799&D1=242,254,267-270&D2=0-17&HD=081103-1603&HDR=T.&STB=G1|publisher=Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek|title=Reported health and lifestyle|accessdate=12 August 2012}}</ref> People in the south are on average about {{convert|2|cm|1|abbr=in}} shorter than those in the north. Dutch people, or [[Dutch diaspora|descendants of Dutch people]], are also found in migrant communities worldwide, notably in [[Canada]], [[Australia]], [[Brazil]], [[South Africa]] and [[the United States]]. According to the 2006 US Census, more than 5 million Americans claim total or partial [[Dutch American|Dutch]] ancestry.<ref>{{cite web|author=American FactFinder, United States Census Bureau |url=http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/ADPTable?_bm=y&-geo_id=01000US&-ds_name=ACS_2006_EST_G00_%2526amp%253B-_lang%253Den%2526amp%253B-_caller%253Dgeoselect%2526amp%253B-format%253D |title=Census 2006 ACS Ancestry estimates |publisher=Factfinder.census.gov |accessdate=29 April 2010}}{{dead link|date=April 2014}}</ref> There are close to 3 million Dutch-descended [[Afrikaner]]s living in South Africa.<ref>[http://countrystudies.us/south-africa/49.htm South Africa – Afrikaans Speakers]. ''Library of Congress.''</ref> In 1940, there were 290,000 Europeans and Eurasians in Indonesia,<ref>[http://repositories.cdlib.org/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1077&context=ies A Hidden Language – Dutch in Indonesia] (PDF). Institute of European Studies (University of California, Berkeley).</ref> but most have since left the country.<ref>[http://www.kitlv.nl/pdf_documents/asia-migrations.pdf Dutch colonialism, migration and cultural heritage] (PDF). Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asia and Caribbean Studies.</ref> According to [[Eurostat]], in 2010 there were 1.8 million foreign-born residents in the Netherlands, corresponding to 11.1% of the total population. Of these, 1.4 million (8.5%) were born outside the EU and 0.428 million (2.6%) were born in another EU Member State.<ref>Vasileva, Katya (2011) [http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/cache/ITY_OFFPUB/KS-SF-11-034/EN/KS-SF-11-034-EN.PDF 6.5% of the EU population are foreigners and 9.4% are born abroad], Eurostat, Statistics in focus vol. 34.</ref> The Netherlands is the 24th [[List of sovereign states and dependent territories by population density|most densely populated]] country in the world, with {{convert|404.6|PD/sqkm|sigfig=4}}—or {{convert|497|PD/sqkm|sigfig=4}} if only the land area is counted. The [[Randstad]] is the country's largest [[conurbation]] located in the west of the country and contains the four largest cities: Amsterdam in the province [[North Holland]], [[Rotterdam]] and [[The Hague]] in the province [[South Holland]], and [[Utrecht (city)|Utrecht]] in the province [[Utrecht (province)|Utrecht]]. The Randstad has a population of 7 million inhabitants and is the [[List of metropolitan areas in Europe by population|6th largest]] [[metropolitan area]] in Europe. {{Largest cities of the Netherlands}} {{-}} ===Language=== {{Main|Languages of the Netherlands}} [[File:Population of the Netherlands 1900-2000.png|thumb|Population of the Netherlands from 1900 to 2000]] The official language is [[Dutch language|Dutch]], which is spoken by the vast majority of the inhabitants. Besides Dutch, the European part of the Netherlands recognises three regional languages under the [[European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages]]. One of those is [[West Frisian language|Frisian]], which is spoken in the northern province of [[Friesland]], called ''Fryslân'' in that language.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2098.html |title=CIA World Factbook: Official languages per country |publisher=Cia.gov |accessdate=23 April 2011}}</ref> Frisian is the only of the three which is standardised and has a formal status for government correspondence, albeit only in the province of Friesland. In addition [[Dutch Low Saxon|Low Saxon]] (''Nedersaksisch'' in Dutch) is recognised. Low Saxon consists of several dialects spoken in the north and east, like [[Twents]] in the region of [[Twente]], and [[Drents]] in the province of [[Drenthe]]. [[Limburgish]] is the third recognised regional language. It consists of Dutch varieties of [[Meuse-Rhenish]] [[Franconian languages|Franconian]] languages and is spoken in the south-eastern province of [[Limburg (Netherlands)|Limburg]].<ref name="international2000"/> The dialects most spoken in the Netherlands are the [[Brabantian]]-[[Hollandic]] dialects.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.taalcanon.nl/vragen/hoeveel-dialecten-heeft-het-nederlands/ |title=Hoeveel dialecten heeft het Nederlands? | Taalcanon |publisher=Taalcanon.nl |accessdate=2014-04-23}}</ref> English has a formal status in the special municipalities of [[Saba]] and [[Sint Eustatius]]. It is widely spoken on these islands. [[Papiamento]] has a formal status in the special municipality of [[Bonaire]]. [[Yiddish]] and the [[Romani language]] were recognised in 1996 as non-territorial languages.<ref>"The Kingdom of the Netherlands further declares that the principles enumerated in Part II of the Charter will be applied to the Lower-Saxon languages used in the Netherlands, and, in accordance with Article 7, paragraph 5, to Yiddish and the Romanes languages." [http://conventions.coe.int/Treaty/Commun/ListeDeclarations.asp?NT=148&CM=8&DF=23/01/05&CL=ENG&VL=1 Netherlands: Declaration contained in the instrument of acceptance, deposited on 2 May 1996 – Or. Engl.], List of declarations made with respect to treaty No. 148 – [[European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages]]</ref> There is a tradition of learning foreign languages in the Netherlands: about 70% of the total population have good knowledge of conversational English, 55– 59% of German, and 19% of French. Children start with English courses at primary schools when they are about four or five years old.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.denhaag.nl/en/residents/to/Primary-education-in-the-Netherlands.htm |title=The Hague - Primary education in the Netherlands |publisher=Denhaag.nl |accessdate=2014-04-23}}</ref> English is a mandatory course in all secondary schools.<ref name=xyz>{{cite web|title = Foreign languages in secondary education|work=Wat is het aanbod aan vreemde talen in de onderbouw van het voortgezet onderwijs (vo)?|publisher=Rijksoverheid|url =http://www.rijksoverheid.nl/documenten-en-publicaties/vragen-en-antwoorden/wat-is-het-aanbod-aan-vreemde-talen-in-de-onderbouw-van-het-voortgezet-onderwijs-vo.html|archiveurl =//web.archive.org/web/20110429185145/http://www.rijksoverheid.nl/documenten-en-publicaties/vragen-en-antwoorden/wat-is-het-aanbod-aan-vreemde-talen-in-de-onderbouw-van-het-voortgezet-onderwijs-vo.html|archivedate =29 April 2011|accessdate =3 May 2010}}{{dead link|date=April 2014}}{{Nl icon}}</ref> In most lower level secondary school educations (''[[voorbereidend middelbaar beroepsonderwijs|vmbo]]''), one additional modern foreign language is mandatory during the first two years.<ref name="Roster of the Central Exams of 2009">[http://www.examenblad.nl/9336000/1/j9vvhinitagymgn_m7mvh57glpdohx6_n11vg41h1h4i9qe/vhl5jftd1sx8 Roster of the Central Exams of 2009], Examenblad</ref> In higher level secondary schools (''[[hoger algemeen voortgezet onderwijs|havo]]'' and ''[[voorbereidend wetenschappelijk onderwijs|vwo]]''), two additional modern foreign languages are mandatory during the first three years. Only during the last three years in ''vwo'' one foreign language is mandatory. The standard modern languages are French and German, although schools can change one of these modern languages with Spanish, [[Turkish language|Turkish]], [[Arabic]], or Russian.<ref name="Roster of the Central Exams of 2009"/> Additionally, schools in the Frisia region teach and have exams in [[West Frisian language|Frisian]], and schools across the country teach and have exams in classical Greek and Latin for secondary school (called gymnasium or vwo+). ===Religion=== {{Main|Religion in the Netherlands}} [[File:DomTorenUtrechtNederland.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Dom Tower of Utrecht]]]] The Netherlands was a predominantly Christian society until late into the 20th century, with a strong demarcation ([[pillarisation]]) between roughly the Catholic south on one side and the [[calvinism|Calvinist]] north on the other side. In the 1960s, this started to diminish. Although religious diversity remains, there has been a decline of religious adherence. The Netherlands is one of the most [[secular]] countries in [[Western Europe]], with only 39% being religiously affiliated (31% for those aged under 35), and fewer than 5.6% attending church regularly (meaning once or more per month) in 2010. Religion is in the Netherlands generally considered a personal matter which is not supposed to be propagated in public.<ref>{{cite book|title=Godsdienstige veranderingen in Nederland|language=Dutch|author=Becker, Jos and Joep de Hart|isbn=90-377-0259-7|year=2006|publisher=Sociaal en Cultureel Planbureau|oclc=84601762}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=Godsdienstige veranderingen in Nederland|language=Dutch|author=Becker, Jos and Joep de Hart|isbn=90-377-0259-7|year=2006|publisher=Sociaal en Cultureel Planbureau|oclc=84601762}}</ref><ref>[http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/338181/news/world/dutch-bishops-give-pope-francis-bleak-picture-of-church-in-decline Bleak picture of church in decline] 4.12.3013 GMA news</ref> According to the most recent [[Eurobarometer]] poll 2010,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_341_en.pdf|title=Special Eurobarometer, biotechnology, page 204|date=Fieldwork: Jan–Feb 2010|format=PDF}}</ref> 28% of the Dutch citizens responded that "they believe there is a God", whereas 39% answered that "they believe there is some sort of spirit or life force", and 30% that "they do not believe there is any sort of spirit, god, or life force". Since 1989, the [[Religious affiliation|unaffiliated]] have become mainstream, the number of adults without a religion in 2005 being at 51.3% and steadily growing. Almost all Christian groups show a decrease in the number of members or less stable membership. However, in particular the loss of members of the two major churches, which are the Roman Catholic Church in the Netherlands, with a membership loss of more than 300,000 members between late 2005 and late 2010, and the Protestant Church in the Netherlands, with a membership loss of more than 150,000 members, cause the number of Christians in the Netherlands to have decreased from approximately 7.132 million (44%) by the end of 2005 to 6.861 million (39%) <ref>http://www.gh.nl/onderzoek/Lectoraat%20Zorg%20en%20Spiritualiteit/~/media/Files/Onderzoek/ZS/Diversen/20111103%20GrevelS-handout.ashx</ref> by the end of 2010. Also [[Ietsism]], [[Agnosticism]] and [[Christian atheism]] are on the rise; the first two being general accepted and the last being more or less considered to be non-controversial.<ref>H. Knippenberg, "The Changing Religious Landscape of Europe", Het Spinhuis, Amsterdam 2005 ISBN 90-5589-248-3</ref> A countervailing trend is produced by a religious revival in the Protestant [[Bible Belt (Netherlands)|Bible Belt]], and the growth of Muslim and Hindu communities resulting from immigration and high birth rates.<ref>Hans Knippenberg, "Secularization in the Netherlands in its historical and geographical dimensions," ''GeoJournal'' (1998) 45#3 pp 209-220. [http://www.springerlink.com/content/k0658n63j673385u/ online]</ref><ref>Tomáš Sobotka and Feray Adigüzel, "Religiosity and spatial demographic differences in the Netherlands" (2002) [http://som.eldoc.ub.rug.nl/ online]</ref> The SCP (Sociaal Cultureel Planbureau) expects the number of non-affiliated Dutch to be at 72% in 2020.<ref>Sociaal en Cultureel Planbureau, God in Nederland (2006/2007)</ref> It should be noted that different sources give very different percentages.<ref name="Knippenberg page 92">Knippenberg, Hans "The Changing Religious Landscape of Europe" edited by Knippenberg published by Het Spinhuis, Amsterdam 2005 ISBN 90-5589-248-3, page 92</ref> A 2007 research ''God in Nederland'', based on in-depth interviews of 1132 people concluded that 61% of the Dutch are non-affiliated. Fewer than 7% attend church regularly (at least once a month). Similar studies were done in 1966, 1979 and 1996, showing a steady decline of religious affiliation. That this trend is likely to continue is illustrated by the fact that in the age group under 35, 69% are non-affiliated. However, those who ''do'' identify with a religious denomination tend to be more profoundly religious than in the past. Religious belief is also regarded as a very personal affair, as is illustrated by the fact that 60% of self-described believers are not affiliated with any organised religion. There is a stronger stress on positive sides of belief, with [[Hell]] and the concept of damnation being pushed into the background. One quarter of non-believers sometimes pray, but more in a sense of meditative self-reflection.<ref name="Knippenberg page 92"/> Freedom of education has been guaranteed by the Dutch constitution since 1917, and schools run by religious groups (especially Catholic and Protestant) are funded by the government. All schools must meet strict quality criteria. Three political parties in the Dutch parliament ([[Christian Democratic Appeal|CDA]], [[ChristianUnion]], and [[Reformed Political Party|SGP]]) base their policy on Christian belief in varying degrees. Although the Netherlands is a secular state, in some [[Municipalities of the Netherlands|municipalities]] where the Christian parties have the majority, the council meetings are opened by prayer. Municipalities in general also give civil servants a day off on Christian religious holidays, such as Easter and the [[Ascension of Jesus]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.beleven.org/feesten/lijsten/landen.php?land=Nederland |title=Feestdagen Nederland |publisher=Beleven.org |accessdate=27 January 2010}}</ref> {{Pie chart |thumb = right |caption = Religion in the Netherlands (2005)<ref>Donk, W.B.H.J. van de; Jonkers, A.P.; Kronjee, G.J.; Plum, R.J.J.M.: Geloven in het publieke domein, verkenningen van een dubbele transformatie, WRR, Amsterdam University Press, Amsterdam</ref> |label1 = [[Irreligion|Irreligious]] |value1 = 51.3 |color1 = Orange |label2 = [[Roman Catholic Church|Roman Catholicism]] |value2 = 24.6 |color2 = DarkOrchid |label3 = [[Protestantism]] |value3 = 14.8 |color3 = DodgerBlue |label4 = [[Islam]] |value4 = 5.8 |color4 = LimeGreen |label5 = [[Hinduism]] |value5 = 1.4 |color5 = Yellow |label6 = [[Buddhism]] |value6 = 1.2 |color6 = Magenta |label7 = Other Unspecified |value7 = 0.9 |color7 = Blue }} ====Roman Catholicism==== Currently, Roman Catholicism is the single largest religion of the Netherlands with around four million registered adherents which is 24% of the Dutch population in 2011.<ref name="SILA">{{cite news |url=http://www.sila.nl/5-Pages/01-Aantallen2011.html |title=Kerkelijke gezindte en kerkbezoek; vanaf 1849; 18 jaar of ouder |date=15 October 2010 }}</ref> In the second half of the twentieth century a rapid secularization took place in the Catholic parts of the Netherlands. A planned visit of [[Pope Francis]] to the Netherlands was blocked by [[Cardinal (Catholicism)|Cardinal]] [[Wim Eijk]] in 2014, allegedly because of the feared lack of interest for the [[Pope]] among the Dutch public.<ref>{{cite web|author=Emiel Hakkenes |url=http://www.trouw.nl/tr/nl/4492/Nederland/article/detail/3587802/2014/02/01/Kardinaal-Eijk-blokkeert-bezoek-paus-Franciscus.dhtml |title=Kardinaal Eijk blokkeert bezoek paus Franciscus - Nederland - TROUW |publisher=Trouw.nl |accessdate=2014-04-23}}</ref> In 2006 slightly more than half of the Brabantian people identified with Catholism, but only 1-2% of the total population of that area attend the [[mass]], and these churchgoers consist mostly of people over 65 years old.<ref>Kerncijfers 2006 uit de kerkelijke statistiek van het Rooms-Katholiek Kerkgenootschap in Nederland, Rapport nr. 561 oktober 2007, Jolanda Massaar- Remmerswaal dr. Ton Bernts, KASKI, onderzoek en advies over religie en samenleving</ref> Since the provinces of [[North Brabant]] and [[Limburg (Netherlands)|Limburg]] are in the Netherlands historically most [[Roman Catholic]], their people still use the term and some traditions as a base for their [[Cultural Christian|cultural identity]] rather than as a religious identity. The vast majority of the Catholic population in the Netherlands is now largely irreligious in practice. Research among Catholics in the Netherlands in 2007 shows that only 27% of the Dutch Catholics can be regarded as a [[theist]], 55% as an [[ietsism|ietsist]] / [[agnostic theist]] and 17% as [[agnostic]].<ref name="Nederland' 2006">God in Nederland' (1996-2006), by Ronald Meester, G. Dekker, ISBN 9789025957407</ref> ====Protestantism==== The [[Protestant Church in the Netherlands]] (PKN) follows with 10.8% of the population.<ref name="CBS 2009">{{cite news |url=http://statline.cbs.nl/StatWeb/publication/?DM=SLNL&PA=37944&D1=0-5,10&D2=29-40&VW=T |title=Kerkelijke gezindte en kerkbezoek; vanaf 1849; 18 jaar of ouder |date=15 October 2010}}</ref> It was formed in 2004 as a merger of the two major strands of [[Calvinism]]: the [[Dutch Reformed Church]], the [[Reformed Churches in the Netherlands]] and a smaller [[Lutheran]] Church. Other Protestant churches, both orthodox Calvinist and liberal churches did not merge into the PKN. The number of members falls on average by about 2.5% per year. This is caused primarily by the death of older members and little growth among the younger population.<ref>Bron: Statistische Jaarbrief 2011</ref> Research in 2007 concludes that 42% of the members of the PKN is a [[non-theist]].<ref name="Nederland' 2006"/> Furthermore, in the [[Protestant Church in the Netherlands]] (PKN) and several other smaller denominations of the Netherlands, 1 in 6 clergy are either agnostic or [[Christian Atheism|atheist]].<ref name=PKN-Hendrikse>{{cite news|last=Pigott|first=Robert|title=Dutch rethink Christianity for a doubtful world|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-14417362|accessdate=2 October 2011|newspaper=BBC News|date=5 August 2011}}</ref> ====Humanism==== A research in 2003 shows that about 1.27 million people in the Netherlands express explicitly an affinity with [[secular humanism]], which is about 9.4% of the total population.<ref name="verwey-jonker.nl">http://www.verwey-jonker.nl/doc/participatie/D0693416.pdf</ref> [[Erasmus]] and [[Dirck Coornhert]] are important early representatives of [[humanism]] in the Netherlands in the 16th century. In the 17th century, especially [[Spinoza]] and [[Hugo Grotius]] were important. During the [[Age of Enlightenment]] (18th century), the importance of science and research increased sharply. Confidence in human understanding and logical reasoning was given shape in [[liberalism]]. The German philosophers [[Ludwig Feuerbach]] and [[Kant]] and the [[evolution theory]] of [[Charles Darwin|Darwin]], among other scientific theories in the 19th century, had an exceptionally strong influence and were a major step in the development of humanism in the Netherlands. The modern organized humanist movement began in the Netherlands in the mid-nineteenth century with the establishment of freethinkers association ''De Dageraad'' (Dawn). The members, including writer [[Multatuli]] and later Anton Constandse. [[Marx]]' [[socialism]] had a significant influence on the Dutch humanism of the 20th century. With the establishment of the humanistic associations ''Humanitas'' in 1945 and the ''Humanistisch Verbond'' in 1946, Dutch humanists organized themselves after the [[World War II|Second World War]]. When the [[Universal Declaration of Human Rights]] was adopted by the [[United Nations]] in 1948, the Dutch Humanist movements became involved with the establishment of the [[International Humanist and Ethical Union]] in 1952 (and since 1990 also the [[European Humanist Federation]]).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.humanistischverbond.nl/geschiedenis-humanisme |title=Geschiedenis humanisme |publisher=Humanistischverbond.nl |accessdate=2014-04-23}}</ref> ====Pluralism==== Slightly more than half (52.8%) of the respondents to a research about [[humanism]] in 2003 affiliated with no religious or philosophical movement at all. In contrast 8% said to follow more than 1 movement. This form of pluralism occurs in all religious and philosophical Dutch movements, but is strongest among supporters of non-[[Western religion]]s. 75% of Dutch Buddhists also affiliate with other religious or philosophical movements. Among followers of [[Hinduism]] in the Netherlands, this ratio is even higher, at 91%. On the other hand, followers of Western religions and humanism, as well as movements in the 'other' category were least likely to affiliate with more than one religious or philosophical movement. Within Western movements the people affiliating with humanism were most likely to also adhere to one or more other movements (47%). Most of these humanists adhere to Catholicism (27%), Protestantism (14%) or Buddhism (12%). Also 9% of Catholics, 6% of Protestants and 50% of the Buddhists counting themselves as humanists, as well as 25% of the Muslims, 55% of the Hindu, 19% of the Jews and 15% of the supporters of a movement other than these listed.<ref name="verwey-jonker.nl"/> ====Minority Religions==== In 2006, there were 850,000 [[Islam in the Netherlands|Muslims]].<ref name=CBS>{{cite web|url=http://www.cbs.nl/NR/rdonlyres/ACE89EBE-0785-4664-9973-A6A00A457A55/0/2007k3b15p48art.pdf|title=Towards a new estimation on the number of Muslims in the Netherlands|work=Central Bureau of Statistics, Netherlands|year=2006|accessdate=5 July 2009|format=PDF}}</ref> As a result of different determination methods in 2012 this number had dropped to 825.000 (4% of the total Dutch population).<ref name=CBS2>{{cite web|url=http://www.cbs.nl/nl-NL/menu/themas/vrije-tijd-cultuur/publicaties/artikelen/archief/2012/2012-3759-wm.htm|title=Een op de zes bezoekt regelmatig kerk of moskee|work=Central Bureau of Statistics, Netherlands|year=2012|accessdate=30 March 2014}}</ref> Muslim numbers began to rise after the 1970s as the result of [[Demographics of the Netherlands#Im- and Emigration|immigration]]. Some migrants from former [[Dutch Empire|Dutch colonies]], such as [[Surinam]] and [[Indonesia]], were sometimes Muslim, but migrant workers from [[Turkey]] and [[Morocco]] are the biggest part, as well as their children. During the 1990s, the Netherlands opened its borders for Muslim refugees from countries like [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]], [[Iran]], [[Iraq]], [[Somalia]], and [[Afghanistan]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.scp.nl/publicaties/boeken/9037702597/Godsdienstige_veranderingen.pdf |title=Godsdienstige veranderingen in Nederland |format=PDF |accessdate=2010-05-17 |archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20070125142251/http://www.scp.nl/publicaties/boeken/9037702597/Godsdienstige_veranderingen.pdf |archivedate = 2007-01-25}}</ref> Muslims form a diverse group. Social tensions between native Dutch and migrant Muslims began to rise in the early 21st century, with the rise and murder of populist politician [[Pim Fortuyn]] by militant animal rights activist [[Volkert van der Graaf]] and the murder of [[Theo van Gogh (film director)|Theo van Gogh]] by an extremist Muslim, [[Mohammed Bouyeri]]. There are about 1,500 [[Ahmadiyya|Ahmadi]] Muslims in Netherlands.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dichtbij.nl/almere/regionaal-nieuws/artikel/2567273/poort-krijgt-nieuwe-moskee.aspx | title=Poort krijgt nieuwe moskee | date=December 13, 2013 | accessdate=April 26, 2014}}</ref> The Netherlands has an estimated 250,000 [[Buddhism in the Netherlands|Buddhists]] or people who feel strongly attracted by this religion, mainly ethnic Dutch people. There are approximately 200,000 [[Hinduism in the Netherlands|Hindus]], most of them of [[Suriname]]se origin. [[Sikh]]s are another religious minority in the Netherlands, numbering around 12,000, mainly located in or around Amsterdam. There are five [[gurudwara]]s in the Netherlands. The [[Association of Religion Data Archives]] (relying on [[World Christian Encyclopedia]]) estimated some 6,400 Bahá'ís in 2005.<ref name="WCE-05">{{cite web| title = Most Baha'i Nations (2005)|work=The Association of Religion Data Archives|year = 2005| url =http://www.thearda.com/QuickLists/QuickList_40c.asp|accessdate =4 July 2009}}</ref> Although the [[Holocaust]] deeply affected the [[History of the Jews in the Netherlands|Jewish]] community (killing about 75% of its 140,000 members at the time<ref>{{cite journal |author=Blom, JCH |title=The Persecution of the Jews in the Netherlands: A Comparative Western European Perspective |doi=10.1177/026569148901900302 |journal=European History Quarterly |date=July 1989 |volume=19 |issue=3 |pages=333–351}}</ref>), it has managed to rebuild a vibrant and lively Jewish life for its approximately 45,000 current members. Before the [[World War II|Second World War]], 10% of the Amsterdam population was [[Jewish Amsterdam|Jewish]].<ref>[http://www.jewishhistoryamsterdam.com/jewish-history-amsterdam.html The Jewish history of Amsterdam]. jewishhistoryamsterdam.com.</ref> ===Education=== {{Main|Education in the Netherlands}} Education in the Netherlands is compulsory between the ages of 4 and 16, and partially compulsory between the ages of 16 and 18. All children in the Netherlands usually attend elementary school from (on average) ages 4 to 12. It comprises eight grades, the first of which is facultative. Based on an aptitude test, the 8th grade teacher's recommendation and the opinion of the pupil's parents or caretakers, a choice is made for one of the three main streams of secondary education (after completing a particular stream, a pupil may still continue in the penultimate year of the next stream): * The [[voorbereidend middelbaar beroepsonderwijs|vmbo]] has 4 grades and is subdivided over several levels. Successfully completing the vmbo results in a low-level vocational degree that grants access to the mbo ("middle-level applied education"). This form of education primarily focuses on teaching a practical trade. With the mbo certification, a student can apply for the hbo. * The [[hoger algemeen voortgezet onderwijs|havo]] has 5 grades and allows for admission to the hbo ("higher professional education"), which are [[vocational university|universities of professional education]] (or applied sciences) that award professional bachelor degrees that gives access to the university system. * The [[voorbereidend wetenschappelijk onderwijs|vwo]] (including [[Atheneum (school)|atheneum]] and [[Gymnasium (school)|gymnasium]]) has 6 grades and prepares for studying at a research university. The university consists of a three-year bachelor's degree, followed by a one-, two- or three-year master's degree, and finally a four-year [[doctoral degree]]. [[Research assistant|Doctoral candidates]] in the Netherlands are temporary employees of a university. ==Culture== {{Main|Culture of the Netherlands}} [[File:Hollande04.jpg|thumb|300px|Symbols and icons of Dutch culture]] The Netherlands has had many well-known painters. The 17th century, in which the Dutch Republic was prosperous, was the age of the "Dutch Masters", such as [[Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn|Rembrandt van Rijn]], [[Johannes Vermeer]], [[Jan Steen]], [[Jacob van Ruysdael]] and many others. Famous Dutch painters of the 19th and 20th century were [[Vincent van Gogh]] and [[Piet Mondrian|Piet Mondriaan]]. [[M. C. Escher]] is a well-known graphics artist. [[Willem de Kooning]] was born and trained in [[Rotterdam]], although he is considered to have reached acclaim as an American artist. The Netherlands is the country of philosophers [[Erasmus|Erasmus of Rotterdam]] and [[Baruch Spinoza|Spinoza]]. All of [[René Descartes|Descartes]]' major work was done in the Netherlands. The Dutch scientist [[Christiaan Huygens]] (1629–1695) discovered [[Saturn]]'s moon [[Titan (moon)|Titan]], argued that light travelled as waves, invented the [[pendulum clock]] and was the first physicist to use mathematical formulae. [[Antonie van Leeuwenhoek]] was the first to observe and describe [[microorganism|single-celled organisms]] with a [[microscope]]. In the [[Dutch Golden Age]], literature flourished as well, with [[Joost van den Vondel]] and [[Pieter Corneliszoon Hooft|P. C. Hooft]] as the two most famous writers. In the 19th century, [[Multatuli]] wrote about the poor treatment of the natives in Dutch colonies. Important 20th century authors include [[Harry Mulisch]], [[Jan Wolkers]], [[Simon Vestdijk]], [[Hella S. Haasse]], [[Cees Nooteboom]], [[Gerard van het Reve|Gerard (van het) Reve]] and [[Willem Frederik Hermans]]. [[Anne Frank]]'s [[The Diary of a Young Girl|''Diary of a Young Girl'']] was published after she died in the Holocaust and translated from Dutch to all major languages. Replicas of Dutch buildings can be found in [[Huis Ten Bosch (theme park)|Huis Ten Bosch]], [[Nagasaki]], Japan. A similar Holland Village is being built in [[Shenyang]], China. [[Windmill]]s, [[tulip]]s, [[Clog (shoe)|wooden shoes]], cheese, [[Delftware]] pottery, and [[cannabis (drug)|cannabis]] are among the items associated with the Netherlands by tourists. The Netherlands has a long history of social tolerance and today is regarded as a liberal country, considering [[drug policy of the Netherlands|its drug policy]] and its legalisation of [[euthanasia]]. On 1 April 2001, the Netherlands became the first nation to legalize [[same-sex marriage in the Netherlands|same-sex marriage]]. ===Customs and etiquette=== The Dutch have a [[etiquette|code of etiquette]] which governs social behaviour and is considered important. Because of the international position of the Netherlands, many books have been written on the subject. Some customs may not be true in all regions and they are never absolute. In addition to those specific to the Dutch, many general points of [[etiquette in Europe|European etiquette]] apply to the Dutch as well. Dutch society is [[Egalitarianism|egalitarian]], individualistic and modern. The people tend to view themselves as modest, independent and self-reliant. They value ability over dependency. The Dutch have an aversion to the non-essential. Ostentatious behaviour is to be avoided. Accumulating money is fine, but public spending of large amounts of money is considered something of a [[vice]] and associated with being a show-off. A high lifestyle is considered wasteful and suspect with most people. The Dutch are proud of their [[cultural heritage]], rich history in art and involvement in [[international relations|international affairs]]. Dutch manners are blunt with a no-nonsense attitude; informality combined with adherence to basic behaviour. This might be perceived as impersonal and patronising by other cultures, but is the norm in Dutch culture. According to a humorous source on Dutch culture, [[The UnDutchables|The Undutchables]]: ''Their directness gives many the impression that they are rude and crude—attributes they prefer to call ‘openness’''.<ref name="Colin White 1995">Colin White & Laurie Boucke (1995). The UnDutchables: An observation of the Netherlands, its culture and its inhabitants (3rd Ed.). White-Boucke Publishing.</ref> A well known more serious source on Dutch etiquette is "Dealing with the Dutch" from Jacob Vossestein: ''Dutch egalitarianism is the idea that people are equal, especially from a moral point of view, and accordingly, causes the somewhat ambiguous stance the Dutch have towards hierarchy and status.''<ref>J. Vossenstein, Dealing with the Dutch, 9789460220791</ref> As always, manners differ between groups. Asking about basic rules will not be considered impolite. ''What may strike you as being blatantly blunt topics and comments are no more embarrassing or unusual to the Dutch than discussing the weather''.<ref name="Colin White 1995"/> ===Sport=== [[File:Robin Van Persie vs Swansea 2011 (cropped).jpg|thumb|Dutch star football player [[Robin van Persie]] in a match in 2011]] [[File:Simple Dutch meal.JPG|thumb|Example of traditional Dutch dinner: [[Brussels sprout]]s, boiled potatoes and sausage, including its gravy]] {{main|Sport in the Netherlands}} Approximately 4.5 million of the 16.8 million people in the Netherlands are registered to one of the 35,000 sports clubs in the country. About two-thirds of the population older than 15 years participates in sports weekly.<ref>{{nl}} {{Wayback |date=20080925042514 |url=http://s2.ned.univie.ac.at/NoN/landeskunde/nl/h11/index.htm |title=Sport in Nederland }}. ned.univie.ac.at</ref> [[Association football|Football]] is the most popular participant sport in the Netherlands, before [[field hockey]] and [[volleyball]] as the second and third most popular team sports. Tennis, gymnastics and golf are the three most widely engaged individual sports.<ref name="sport">{{nl}} {{Wayback |date=20070812034648 |url=http://www.sport.nl/content/nieuwsartikelen/nocnsf/223198?channel=nocnsf |title=Ledental sportbonden opnieuw gestegen }}{{dead link|date=April 2014}}. sport.nl. 24 July 2006</ref> Organisation of sports began at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. Federations for sports were established (such as the speed skating federation in 1882), rules were unified and sports clubs came into existence. A Dutch National Olympic Committee was established in 1912. Thus far, the nation has won 230 medals at the [[Summer Olympic Games]] and another 78 medals at the [[Winter Olympic Games]]. ===Cuisine=== {{main|Dutch Cuisine}} The country's cuisine is shaped by the practice of [[fishing]] and [[farming]], including the cultivation of the soil for raising crops and the raising of domesticated animals, and the [[history of the Netherlands]]. Traditionally, Dutch cuisine is simple and straightforward, with many vegetables and little meat; breakfast and lunch are typically bread with toppings while dinner is meat and potatoes, supplemented with seasonal vegetables. The Dutch diet was relatively high in carbohydrates and fat, reflecting the dietary need of the labourers whose culture moulded the country, and contains many dairy products. Without many refinements, it is best described as rustic, though many holidays are still celebrated with special foods. In the course of the twentieth century this diet changed and became much more [[Multiculturalism|cosmopolitan]], with most international cuisines being represented in the major cities. The Southern Dutch cuisine constitutes the cuisine of the Dutch provinces of [[North-Brabant]] and [[Limburg (Netherlands)|Limburg]] and the [[Flemish Region]] in [[Belgium]]. It is renowned for its many rich pastries, soups, stews and vegetable dishes and is often called Burgundian which is a Dutch idiom invoking the rich Burgundian court which ruled the Low Countries in the Middle Ages renowned for its splendor and great feasts. It is the only Dutch culinary region which developed an [[haute cuisine]]. ==Colonial heritage== {{main|Dutch Empire}} {{further|Dutch East Indies|Indos in the Dutch East Indies}} [[File:GezichtOpNieuwAmsterdam.jpg|thumb|[[New Amsterdam]] as it appeared in 1664. Under British rule it became known as [[New York City|New York]].]] From the exploitations of the [[Dutch East India Company]] in the 17th century, to the [[New Imperialism|colonisations]] in the 19th century, [[Dutch Empire|Dutch imperial possessions]] continued to expand, reaching their greatest extent by establishing a hegemony of the [[Dutch East Indies]] in the early 20th century. The Dutch East Indies, which later formed modern-day Indonesia, was one of the most valuable European colonies in the world and the most important one for the Netherlands.<ref>{{cite book|author=Hart, Jonathan |title=Empires and Colonies |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=LnevC1FYdnEC&pg=PA201 |accessdate=21 August 2012 |year=2008|publisher=Polity |isbn=978-0-7456-2614-7 |pages=201–}}</ref> Over 350 years of mutual heritage has left a significant cultural mark on the Netherlands. In the [[Dutch Golden Age]] of the 17th century, the Netherlands urbanised considerably, mostly financed by corporate revenue from the Asian trade monopolies. Social status was based on merchants' income, which reduced [[feudalism]] and considerably changed the dynamics of Dutch society. When the [[Dutch Royal Family]] was established in 1815, much of its wealth came from Colonial trade.<ref>To this day the Dutch Royal family is in fact the wealthiest family of the Netherlands. One of the foundations of its wealth was the colonial trade.{{cite news|url=http://www.forbes.com/2007/08/30/worlds-richest-royals-biz-royals07-cx_lk_0830royalintro_slide_15.html?thisSpeed=30000 |title=In Pictures: The World's Richest Royals |work=Forbes |date=30 August 2007 |accessdate=5 March 2010 |first1=Devon |last1=Pendleton |first2=Tatiana |last2=Serafin}}</ref> Universities such as the Royal [[Leiden University]], founded in the 16th century, have developed into leading knowledge centres for [[Southeast Asia|South-east Asia]]n and Indonesian studies.<ref>Some of the university faculties still include: Indonesian Languages and Cultures; South-east Asia and Oceania Languages and Cultures; Cultural Anthropology</ref> Leiden University has produced leading academics such as [[Christiaan Snouck Hurgronje]], and still has academics who specialise in Indonesian languages and cultures. Leiden University and in particular [[KITLV]] are educational and scientific institutions that to this day share both an intellectual and historical interest in Indonesian studies. Other scientific institutions in the Netherlands include the Amsterdam [[Tropenmuseum]], an anthropological museum with massive collections of Indonesian art, culture, ethnography and anthropology. [[File:COLLECTIE TROPENMUSEUM Een Europeaan vaccineert Indonesische patiënten met neosalvarsaan tegen de ziekte framboesia TMnr 10006691.jpg|thumb|A European doctor vaccinates Indonesian patients.]] The traditions of the [[Royal Dutch East Indies Army]] (KNIL) are maintained by the [[Regiment Van Heutsz]] of the modern [[Royal Netherlands Army]]. A dedicated ''[[Bronbeek]] Museum'', a former home for retired KNIL soldiers, exists in [[Arnhem]] to this day. A specific segment of Dutch literature called [[Dutch Indies literature]] still exists and includes established authors, such as [[Louis Couperus]], the writer of "The Hidden Force", taking the colonial era as an important source of inspiration.<ref>Nieuwenhuys, Rob ''Mirror of the Indies: A History of Dutch Colonial Literature'' translated from Dutch by E. M. Beekman (Publisher: Periplus, 1999) [http://dannyreviews.com/h/Mirror_Indies.html Book review.]</ref> One of the great masterpieces of [[Dutch literature]] is the book "[[Max Havelaar]]", written by [[Multatuli]] in 1860.<ref>Etty, Elsbeth (July 1998). [http://retro.nrc.nl/W2/Lab/Profiel/Nederland/novels.html "Novels: Coming to terms with Calvinism, colonies and the war."] NRC Handelsblad</ref> The majority of Dutchmen that repatriated to the Netherlands after and during the Indonesian revolution are [[Indo people|Indo]] (Eurasian), native to the islands of the Dutch East Indies. This relatively large Eurasian population had developed over a period of 400 years and were classified by colonial law as belonging to the European legal community.<ref>Bosma U., Raben R. (2008). [http://books.google.com/books?id=47wCTCJX9X4C ''Being "Dutch" in the Indies: a history of creolisation and empire, 1500–1920''], University of Michigan, NUS Press, ISBN 9971-69-373-9</ref> In Dutch they are referred to as ''Indische Nederlanders'' or as Indo (short for Indo-European).<ref>Note: Of the 296,200 so-called Dutch 'repatriants' only 92,200 were expatriate Dutchmen born in the Netherlands. Willems, Wim (2001). ''De uittocht uit Indie 1945–1995''. Bert Bakker, Amsterdam, pp. 12–13. ISBN 90-351-2361-1</ref> Including their second generation descendants, Indos are currently the largest foreign-born group in the Netherlands. In 2008, the Dutch Census Bureau for Statistics (CBS)<ref>[http://www.cbs.nl/nl-NL/menu/themas/bevolking/cijfers/default.htm Official CBS website containing all Dutch demographic statistics]. Cbs.nl. Retrieved on 21 August 2012.</ref> registered 387,000 first- and second-generation Indos living in the Netherlands.<ref>De Vries, Marlene (2009). [http://books.google.com/books?id=PNo0ZYamYsUC ''Indisch is een gevoel, de tweede en derde generatie Indische Nederlanders.''] Amsterdam University Press, ISBN 978-90-8964-125-0, p. 369</ref> Although considered fully assimilated into Dutch society, as the main ethnic minority in the Netherlands, these 'repatriants' have played a pivotal role in introducing elements of Indonesian culture into Dutch mainstream culture. Practically every town in the Netherlands has a 'Toko' (Dutch Indonesian Shop) or an Indonesian restaurant<ref>[http://indisch-eten.startpagina.nl/ Overview website (incomplete)]. Indisch-eten.startpagina.nl. Retrieved on 21 August 2012.</ref> and many '[[Pasar Malam]]' (Night market in Malay/Indonesian) fairs are organised throughout the year. Many Indonesian dishes and foodstuffs have become commonplace in the Netherlands. [[Rijsttafel]], a colonial culinary concept, and dishes such as [[Nasi goreng]] and [[satay|sateh]] are very popular in the Netherlands.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://dutchfood.about.com/od/mainmeals/Main_Meals.htm |title=Dutch Food – Main Meals |publisher=about.com |accessdate=19 May 2012}}</ref> ==See also== * [[Dutch Caribbean]] * [[Monarchy of the Netherlands]] * [[Outline of the Netherlands]] ==Notes== {{reflist|30em|group=nb}} ==References== {{Reflist|30em}} ; Statistics {{Refbegin}} * [[Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek]] (2006). [http://statline.cbs.nl/StatWeb/publication/?VW=T&DM=SLEN&PA=7068eng&D1=69-134&D2=(l-11)-l&HD=081103-1603&LA=EN Health statistics]. Retrieved 17 June 2006. {{Refend}} ; Articles {{Refbegin}} *{{Cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/country_profiles/1043423.stm|title=Country profiles: The Netherlands|accessdate=20 June 2007|publisher=BBC|date=3 March 2010}} *{{cite web|url=http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/3204.htm|title=Background Note: The Netherlands|accessdate=20 June 2007|publisher=[[United States Department of State]]}} {{Refend}} ==Further reading== {{main|History of the Netherlands#Further reading}} {{Refbegin}} ===Geography and environment=== * Burke, Gerald L. ''The making of Dutch towns: A study in urban development from the 10th–17th centuries'' (1960) * Lambert, Audrey M. ''The Making of the Dutch Landscape: An Historical Geography of the Netherlands'' (1985); focus on the history of land reclamation * Meijer, Henk. ''Compact geography of the Netherlands'' (1985) * Riley, R. C., and G. J. Ashworth. ''Benelux: An Economic Geography of Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg'' (1975) [http://www.questia.com/read/85882918/benelux-an-economic-geography-of-belgium-the-netherlands online] ===History=== * Paul Arblaster. ''A History of the Low Countries''. Palgrave Essential Histories Series New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2006. 298 pp. ISBN 1-4039-4828-3. * J. C. H. Blom and E. Lamberts, eds. ''History of the Low Countries'' (1998) * Jonathan Israel. ''The Dutch Republic: Its Rise, Greatness, and Fall 1477–1806'' (1995) * J. A. Kossmann-Putto and E. H. Kossmann. ''The Low Countries: History of the Northern and Southern Netherlands'' (1987) {{Refend}} ==External links== {{Sister project links|Netherlands|voy=Netherlands}} ; Government * [http://overheid.nl/english/ Overheid.nl] – official Dutch government portal * [http://www.government.nl/ Government.nl] – official Dutch government web site * [http://www.cbs.nl/en-GB/menu/cijfers/default.htm CBS] – Key figures from the Dutch bureau of statistics *{{Statoids|id=unl|title=Provinces of Netherlands}} ; General information *[http://www.cbg.nl/index.php/EN?taal=EN CBG] - the Netherlands Centre for Family History (English-language homepage) *[http://en.nationaalarchief.nl/ Nationaal Archief] - Dutch National Archives (English-language homepage) *{{CIA World Factbook link|nl|Netherlands}} * [http://ucblibraries.colorado.edu/govpubs/for/netherlands.htm Netherlands] from ''UCB Libraries GovPubs'' *{{dmoz|Regional/Europe/Netherlands}} * [http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-17740800 Netherlands profile] from the [[BBC News]] *{{Wikiatlas|Netherlands}} *{{osmrelation-inline|47796}} * [http://www.ifs.du.edu/ifs/frm_CountryProfile.aspx?Country=NL Key Development Forecasts for the Netherlands] from [[International Futures]] ; Travel * [http://www.holland.com/ Holland.com] – English website of the Netherlands tourist office * [http://www.netherlands-tourism.com/ netherlands-tourism.com] – Tourism guide to the Netherlands * [http://www.nbtc.nl/en/homepage.htm nbtc.nl] – Organisation responsible for promoting the Netherlands nationally and internationally {{Netherlands topics}} {{Navboxes |title = Articles related to the Netherlands |list = {{Navboxes |title = Geographic locale |list = {{Geographic location | Centre = {{flag|Netherlands}} | North = ''[[North Sea]]'' | Northeast = ''[[North Sea]]'' • {{flag|Denmark}} | East = {{flag|Germany}} | Southeast = {{flag|Germany}} | South = {{flag|Belgium}} | Southwest = {{flag|Belgium}} | West = {{flag|United Kingdom}} • ''[[North Sea]]'' | Northwest = ''[[North Sea]]'' }} {{Sovereign states of Europe}} <!-- Redirecting Template removed per [[Wikipedia:Templates for deletion/Log/2008 April 7#Template:Germanic-speaking regions of Europe]] --> }} {{Navboxes |title = International membership and history |list = {{EU members}} {{Council of Europe members}} {{Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development}} {{North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO)}} {{World Trade Organization}} {{Dutch Language Union}} {{dutch colonies|Kingdom2}} }} {{National personifications}} {{Europe topic|Climate of}} }} {{Portal bar|Netherlands|European Union|Europe}} {{Coord|52|19|N|5|33|E|type:country|display=title}} [[Category:Netherlands| ]] [[Category:Benelux]] [[Category:Constitutional monarchies]] [[Category:Countries in Europe]] [[Category:Countries in the Caribbean]] [[Category:Dutch-speaking countries and territories]] [[Category:Germanic countries and territories]] [[Category:Kingdom of the Netherlands]] [[Category:Liberal democracies]] [[Category:Member states of NATO]] [[Category:Member states of the Dutch Language Union]] [[Category:Member states of the European Union]] [[Category:Member states of the Union for the Mediterranean]] [[Category:Northern Europe]] [[Category:Western Europe]] {{usedwp|Netherlands}} [[category:Valid name- nation]]<!-- this is to offer it for autocompletion in forms --> {{#set:Definite article=1}} <!-- refer to "the Netherlands" --> Loading editor Below are some commonly used wiki markup codes. 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