The Netherlands is a densely populated country in Western Europe famous for its flat landscape, extensive canal systems, windmills, tulip fields, and masters of Dutch Golden Age painting such as Rembrandt and Vermeer. A historically significant maritime and trading nation, the Netherlands built a major colonial empire during its 17th-century Golden Age. Amsterdam is the constitutional capital while The Hague is the seat of government and home to the International Court of Justice.
Population and area are rounded.
The Dutch flag descends from the orange, white and blue “Prince's flag” of William of Orange, who led the revolt against Spain in the 16th century. During the 17th century orange gave way to red, possibly because orange dye faded quickly and red was easier to see at sea. The red-white-blue was formally confirmed in 1937, and an orange pennant is still flown above it on royal birthdays.
Horizontal red-white-blue. Luxembourg looks identical but has lighter blue. Russia's is also red-white-blue.
The Netherlands has more bicycles than people — about 23 million bikes for 17 million residents.
The Netherlands' flag is often mixed up with these. Learn to tell them apart:
Every flag that has flown over the Netherlands, from today back through time.
The modern red-white-blue continued through the Batavian Republic, Kingdom, and present day; its bright vermilion red was officially fixed by royal decree in 1937. Orange survives in the pennant flown above the flag on royal occasions.
Orange was gradually swapped for red between roughly 1630 and 1660 — partly because red was more visible at sea, partly to signal the Republic's growing distance from the House of Orange. A 1664 resolution formally named the red-white-blue the "Statenvlag".
An orange-white-blue tricolour tied to William of Orange and the Dutch Revolt against Spain. It is the direct ancestor of today's flag and remains an emblem of the House of Orange.
Empires, kingdoms and republics that once covered part of the Netherlands.
Red-and-white vertical stripes with three silver six-pointed stars — the civic banner of the Dutch cheese city of Gouda, of medieval origin.
The Dutch revolutionary republic's flag placed a white canton on the tricolor enclosing a seated liberty maiden with a liberty-cap spear and the Dutch lion.
The red-white-blue 'Statenvlag' of the Seven United Provinces, a merchant republic that became a 17th-century global trading and naval superpower in its Golden Age.
An autonomous country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands since 1986, off the Venezuelan coast. Its light-blue flag has two yellow stripes and a red star.
An autonomous country within the Kingdom since the 2010 break-up of the Netherlands Antilles. Two stars on its flag stand for Curaçao and Klein Curaçao.
The Dutch southern half of the island of Saint Martin — the smallest land mass shared by two nations, with French Saint-Martin to the north.
A 'BES island' that became a special municipality of the Netherlands proper in 2010, governed much like a Dutch town despite lying in the Caribbean.
The smallest special municipality, a single volcanic peak. Its flag's gold star sits on a diamond of red and blue.
Known as 'Statia', once a booming free port that was the first to salute the American flag in 1776. A special municipality since 2010.
The 12 states, provinces and regions of the Netherlands with their own flags.
Drenthe
Flevoland
Friesland
Gelderland
Groningen
Limburg
North Brabant
North Holland
Overijssel
Utrecht
Zeeland
South HollandThe Netherlands shares a land border with 2 countries: Belgium and Germany.
30 other national flags use the same main colours as the Netherlands'.
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