The 'Netherlands' (
Dutch: , ) is the
European part of the
Kingdom of the Netherlands, which consists of the Netherlands, the
Netherlands Antilles, and
Aruba. The Netherlands is a
constitutional monarchy, located in
Western Europe. It is bordered by the
North Sea to the north and west,
Belgium to the south, and
Germany to the east.
The Netherlands is often called ''
Holland''. This is technically incorrect, as
North and
South Holland in the western Netherlands are only
two of the country's twelve provinces (for more on this and other naming issues see
Netherlands (terminology)).
The Netherlands is a geographically low-lying and
densely populated country. It is popularly known for its
windmills,
cheese,
clogs (wooden shoes),
delftware and
gouda pottery,
dikes,
tulips,
bicycles, and
social tolerance. A
liberal democracy, the country is also well-known for its
liberal policies toward
drugs,
prostitution,
gay rights,
abortion, and
euthanasia.
The Netherlands has an international outlook; among other affiliations the country is a member of the
European Union (EU),
NATO, the
OECD, and has signed the
Kyoto protocol. Along with Belgium and
Luxembourg, the Netherlands is also one of three member nations of the
Benelux economic union. The country is host to four international courts: the
Permanent Court of Arbitration, the
International Court of Justice, the
International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, and the
International Criminal Court. All of these courts, as well as the EU's criminal intelligence agency (
Europol) are situated in
The Hague, which has led to the city being referred to as "the world's legal capital."
Naming conventions
Main articles: Netherlands (terminology)
Various terms have been used in English to refer to the Netherlands and its inhabitants.
''(The) Netherlands'' is the official name of the European part of the
Kingdom of the Netherlands. The term ''
Holland'' is commonly and incorrectly used as a synonym for ''the Netherlands'' as a whole, but it actually only refers to a region in the west of the country, which has long been the most economically powerful part of the country. The prominence of this region led to the whole country often being referred to as ''Holland'' all over the world.
The country's
people and
language are called ''Dutch''. The word ''Netherlands'' is sometimes used as an adjective in place of Dutch (e.g. the
Royal Netherlands Army). ''
Netherlandic'' or ''
Netherlandish'' are also sometimes used, though they more frequently refer to the
Low Countries.
''Dutch'' has frequently caused confusion among
anglophones because of the resemblance to ''
Deutsch'' (
German). During and after the
World War I, this resulted in a negative perception being attached to both ''Deutsch'' and ''Dutch'', so many Dutch governmental institutions, such as the military, the embassies, and the Dutch bank, started to use ''Netherlands'' (which closely resembles ''Nederlands'', the Dutch word for ''Dutch'') instead.
Geography
Main articles: Geography of the Netherlands
A remarkable aspect of the Netherlands is the flatness. Hilly landscapes can be found only in the central part, the south-eastern tip of the country and where the
glaciers pushed up several hilly ridges such as the
Hondsrug in Drenthe, the stuwwallen near
Nijmegen,
Salland,
Twente and the
Utrechtse Heuvelrug.
Below sea level
About half of its surface area is less than 1 metre (3.3 ft) above
sea level, and much of it is actually below sea level (see
map showing these areas). An extensive range of
dikes and
dunes protects these areas from flooding. Numerous massive pumping stations keep the ground water level in check. The highest point, the
Vaalserberg, in the south-eastern most point of the country, is 322.7 metres (1,053 ft) above sea level. The
Vaalserberg is a foothill of the
Ardennes mountains. A substantial part of the Netherlands, for example, all of the province of
Flevoland (largely consists of the largest man-made island in the world) and large parts of
Holland, have been reclaimed from the sea. These areas are known as
polders. This not only explains why The Netherlands is called "A land won from the sea" but has also led to the famous Dutch saying "God created the world, but the Dutch created the Netherlands".
Floods
In years past, the Dutch coastline has changed considerably as a result of human intervention and natural disasters. Most notable in terms of land loss are the 1134 storm, which created the
archipelago of
Zeeland in the south west, and the 1287 storm, which killed 50,000 people and created the
''Zuiderzee'' (now dammed in and renamed the ''IJsselmeer'' — see below) in the northwest, giving Amsterdam direct access to the sea. The
St. Elizabeth flood of 1421 and the mismanagement in its aftermath destroyed a newly reclaimed polder, replacing it with the 72 square kilometres (28
sq mi) ''
Biesbosch'' tidal floodplains in the south-centre. The most recent parts of Zeeland were flooded during the
North Sea Flood of 1953 and 1,836 people were killed, after which the
''Delta Plan'' was executed.
Satellite image of the Netherlands (ca. May 2000)
The disasters were partially man-made; the people drained relatively high lying swampland for use as farmland. This drainage caused the fertile
peat to compress and the ground level to drop, locking the land users in a vicious circle whereby they would lower the water level to compensate for the drop in ground level, causing the underlying peat to compress even more. The vicious circle is unsolvable and remains to this day. Up until the 19th century peat was dug up, dried, and used for fuel, further adding to the problem.
To guard against floods, a series of defences against the water were contrived. In the first millennium, 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 ''"waterschappen"'' (English "water bodies") or ''"hoogheemraadschappen"'' ("high home councils") started to appear, whose job it was to maintain the water level and to protect a region from floods. (The water bodies are still around today performing the same function.) As the ground level dropped, the dikes by necessity grew and merged into an integrated system. In the 13th century, windmills came into use to pump water out of the areas by now below sea level. The windmills were later used to drain lakes, creating the famous
polders. In 1932, the ''
Afsluitdijk'' (English "Closure Dike") was completed, blocking the former ''Zuiderzee'' (Southern Sea) off from the North Sea and thus creating the
IJsselmeer (
IJssel Lake). It became part of the larger
Zuiderzee Works in which four polders totalling 1,650 square kilometres (637 sq mi) were reclaimed from the sea.
Delta works
After the
1953 disaster, the
Delta project, a vast construction effort designed to end the threat from the sea once and for all, was launched in 1958 and largely completed in 2002. The official goal of the Delta project was to reduce the risk of flooding in the Zeeland to once per 10,000 years. (For the rest of the country, the protection-level is once per 4,000 years.) This was achieved by raising 3,000 kilometres (1,864
mi) of outer sea-dikes and 10,000 kilometres (6,200 mi) of inner, canal, and river dikes to "delta" height, and by closing off the sea
estuaries of the Zeeland province. New risk assessments occasionally show problems requiring additional Delta project dike reinforcements. The Delta project is one of the largest construction efforts in human history and is considered by the
American Society of Civil Engineers as one of the
seven wonders of the modern world.
Because of the high cost of maintaining the polders some have argued that maybe some of the deepest polders should be given up. Additionally, the Netherlands is one of the countries that may suffer most from
climatic change. Not only is the rising sea a problem, but also erratic weather patterns may cause the rivers to overflow.
Rivers
The country is divided into two main parts by three rivers
Rhine (''Rijn''),
Waal, and
Meuse (''Maas''). These rivers not only function as a natural barrier, but also as a cultural divide, as is evident in the different
dialects spoken north and south of these "Large Rivers" (''de Grote Rivieren'') and the (former) religious dominance of Catholics in the south and Calvinists in the north. The south-western part of the Netherlands is actually one
river delta of these rivers and two arms of the
Scheldt (''Westerschelde & Oosterschelde'').
The predominant wind direction in the Netherlands is south-west, which causes a moderate
maritime climate, with cool summers and mild winters.
Nature
Keukenhof Gardens near Lisse
History
Main articles: History of the Netherlands
Under
Charles V,
Holy Roman Emperor, and king of
Spain, the region was part of the
Seventeen Provinces of the Netherlands, which also included most of present-day
Belgium,
Luxembourg, and some land of
France and
Germany. 1568 saw the start of the
Eighty Years' War between the provinces and Spain. In 1579, the northern half of the Seventeen Provinces declared itself independent from Spain, and they formed the
Union of Utrecht, which is seen as the foundation of the modern Netherlands.
Philip II, the son of
Charles V, was not prepared to let them go that easily and war continued until 1648 when Spain under King
Philip IV finally recognized Dutch independence in the Treaty of
Münster.
Republic
After gaining formal independence from the
Spanish Empire, the Dutch grew to become one of the major seafaring and economic powers of the 17th century during the period of the
Republic of the Seven United Netherlands. In the so-called
Dutch Golden Age, colonies and
trading posts were established all over the globe. (See
Dutch colonial empire)
Many economic historians regard the Netherlands as the first thoroughly
capitalist country in the world. In early modern Europe it featured the wealthiest trading city (
Amsterdam) and the first full-time
stock exchange. The inventiveness of the traders led to
insurance and retirement funds as well as such less benign phenomena as the boom-bust cycle, the world's first asset-inflation bubble, the
tulip mania of 1636–1637, and according to Murray Sayle, the world's first bear raider - Isaac le Maire, who forced prices down by dumping stock and then buying it back at a discount.
[1]
Kingdom
After briefly being incorporated in the
First French Empire under
Napoleon, the
United Kingdom of the Netherlands was formed in 1815, consisting of the present day Netherlands,
Belgium and
Luxembourg. In addition, the king of the Netherlands became hereditary
Grand Duke of Luxembourg. Belgium rebelled and gained independence in 1830, while the
personal union between
Luxembourg and the Netherlands was severed in 1890 as a result of
ascendancy laws which prevented
Queen Wilhelmina from becoming Grand Duchess.
The Netherlands possessed several colonies, most notably the
Dutch East Indies (now
Indonesia) and
Suriname (the latter was traded with the British for
New Amsterdam, now known as
New York). 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 the 19th century, the Netherlands was slow to industrialise compared to neighbouring countries, mainly due to its unique infrastructure of waterways and reliance on wind power.
World War I & II
The Netherlands remained neutral in World War I and intended to do so in World War II. However, Nazi Germany invaded the Netherlands in 1940 in the Western European campaign of the Second World War. The country was quickly overrun and the army main force surrendered on May 14 after the
bombing of Rotterdam, although a Dutch and French allied force held the province of Zeeland for a short time after the Dutch surrender. The Kingdom as such continued the war from the colonial empire; the
government in exile resided in London.
During the occupation over 100,000 Dutch
Jews were rounded up to be transported to Nazi concentration camps in Germany, Poland and
Czechoslovakia where they were murdered in the
Holocaust along with significant numbers of Dutch
Roma (Gypsies). Some Dutch e.g. members of
Henneicke Column collaborated with Nazi occupiers in hunting down and arresting hiding Jews. Between 8,000 and 9,000 Dutch Jews were rounded up in this manner and consequently deported to German
extermination camps and murdered. Several thousand Dutch men also joined the
Waffen-SS to form the
4th SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Brigade Netherlands fighting on the Eastern Front.
Dutch civilians were often treated brutally. Dutch workers were conscripted for 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.
The Allied
21st Army Group was given the task to conduct military operations to liberate The Netherlands after the breakout from
Normandy. British, Canadian, Polish and American soldiers fought on Dutch soil beginning in September 1944. A first thrust,
Operation Market Garden north from Belgium to Arnhem, failed. Canadian units fighting to liberate the Scheldt estuary liberated Zealand, and after March 1945 the east of the country but not Holland proper where German forces held out until the surrender of
May 6,
1945, in Wageningen at Hotel De Wereld. The disrupted transportation system, caused by German destruction of dikes to slow allied advances, and German confiscation of much food and livestock made the "Hunger Winter" of 1944-1945 one in which malnutrition and starvation were rife among the Dutch population. The country suffered a similar "severe winter" in 1945-46 because of abnormal cold and the slow reconstruction.
After the war, the Dutch economy prospered by leaving behind an era of neutrality and gaining closer ties with neighbouring states. The Netherlands became a member of the
Benelux ('Be'lgium, the 'Ne'therlands and 'Lux'embourg) cooperation. Furthermore, the Netherlands was among the twelve founding members of the
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and among the six founding members of the
European Coal and Steel Community, which would later evolve into the
European Union.
Flag of the Netherlands on the Batavia
Provinces and municipalities
Main articles: Provinces of the Netherlands,
Municipalities in the Netherlands
The Netherlands is divided into twelve administrative regions, called
provinces, each under a
Governor, who is called ''Commissaris der Koningin'' (Commissioner of the Queen), except for the province
Limburg where the commissioner is called Gouverneur (
Governor) which underlines the more "non-Dutch" mentality.
★
Friesland - north; capital and largest city
Leeuwarden
★
Groningen - north east; capital and largest city
Groningen
★
Drenthe - south of Groningen; capital and largest city (proper)
Assen
★
Overijssel - east central, south of Drenthe; capital
Zwolle, largest city
Enschede
★
Flevoland - central, north of Utrecht; capital
Lelystad, largest city
Almere
★
Gelderland - east central, south of Overijssel; capital
Arnhem, largest city
Nijmegen
★
Utrecht - central; capital and largest city
Utrecht
★
North Holland - (''Noord-Holland'') north west; capital
Haarlem, largest city (of the province and the country)
Amsterdam
★
South Holland - (''Zuid-Holland'') west central, south of North Holland; capital
The Hague ('s-Gravenhage'' or ''Den Haag''), largest city
Rotterdam
★
Zeeland - south west; capital and largest city (proper)
Middelburg
★
North Brabant - (''Noord-Brabant'') south central; capital
's-Hertogenbosch (or ''Den Bosch''), largest city
Eindhoven
★
Limburg - south east; capital and largest city
Maastricht.
All provinces are divided into
municipalities (''gemeenten''), 458 in total (
1 January 2006).
The country is also subdivided in water districts, governed by a water board (''waterschap'' or ''hoogheemraadschap''), each having authority in matters concerning water management. As of
1 January 2005 there are 27. The creation of water boards actually pre-dates that of the nation itself, the first appearing in 1196. In fact, the Dutch water boards are one of the oldest democratic entities in the world still in existence.
Politics
Main articles: Politics of the Netherlands
The Netherlands has been a
constitutional monarchy since 1815 and a
parliamentary democracy since 1848; before that it had been a
republic from 1581 to 1806 and a kingdom between 1806 and 1810 (it was part of
France between 1810 and 1813). The Netherlands is described as a
consociational state. Dutch politics and governance are characterized by an effort to achieve broad consensus on important issues, within both the political community and society as a whole.
The
head of state is the
monarch, at present
Queen Beatrix. Constitutionally the monarch still has considerable powers, but in practice it has become a ceremonial function. The monarch can exert most influence during the
formation of a new cabinet, where he/she serves as neutral arbiter between the political parties.
In practice the
executive power is formed by
Dutch cabinet. Because of the
multi-party system no party has ever held a majority in parliament since the 19th century, therefore
coalition cabinets have to be formed. The cabinet consists usually of around thirteen to sixteen ministers of which between one and three
ministers without portfolio, and a varying number of
state secretaries. The
head of government is the
Prime Minister of the Netherlands, who is often, but not always, the leader of the largest party in the coalition. In practice the Prime Minister has been the leader of the largest coalition party since 1973. He is a
primus inter pares, meaning he has no explicit powers that go beyond those of the other ministers.
The cabinet is
responsible to the
bicameral parliament, the
States-General which also has
legislative powers. The 150 members of the
Second Chamber, the
Lower House are elected in
direct elections, which are held every four years or after a cabinet crisis. The
provincial assemblies are directly elected every four years as well. The members of the provincial assemblies elect the 75 members of the
First Chamber, the
Upper House, which has less legislative powers, as it can merely reject laws, not propose or amend them.
Both
trade unions and
employers organisations 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.
While historically the
Dutch foreign policy was characterized by
neutrality, since the
Second World War the Netherlands became 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 Netherlands has a long tradition of
social tolerance. In the 18th century, while the
Dutch Reformed Church was the
state religion,
Catholicism and
Judaism were tolerated. In the late 19th century this Dutch tradition of religious tolerance transformed into a system of
pillarization, in which religious groups coexisted separately and only interacted at the level of government. This tradition of tolerance is linked to the Dutch policies on
recreational drugs,
prostitution,
same-sex marriage and
euthanasia, which are among the most liberal in the world.
Since
suffrage became universal in 1919 the Dutch political system has been dominated by three families of political parties: the strongest family were the
Christian democrats currently represented by the
Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), second were the
social democrats, of which the
Labour Party (PvdA) is currently the largest party and third were the
liberals of which the
People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) is the main representative. These cooperated in coalition cabinets in which the Christian democrats had always been partner: so either a centre left coalition of the Christian democrats and social democrats 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, like the
radical democrat and
progressive liberal D66, became successful.
In the
1994 election the CDA lost its dominant position. A "
purple" cabinet was formed by the VVD, D66 and PvdA. In
2002 elections this cabinet lost its majority, due to the rise of
LPF, a new political party around the flamboyant populist
Pim Fortuyn, who was shot to death a week before the elections took place. The elections also saw increased support for the CDA. A short lived
cabinet was formed by CDA, VVD and LPF, led by the leader of the Christian democrats,
Jan Peter Balkenende. After the
2003 elections in which the LPF lost almost all its seats, a
cabinet was formed by the CDA, the VVD and D66. The cabinet initiated an ambitious program of reforming the
welfare state, the
health care system and
immigration policies.
In June 2006 the cabinet fell, as D66 voted in favour of a motion of no confidence against minister of immigration and integration
Rita Verdonk in the aftermath of the upheaval about the asylum procedure of
Ayaan Hirsi Ali instigated by the Dutch immigration minister
Verdonk. A
care taker cabinet was formed by CDA and VVD, and
the general elections were held on
22 November 2006. In these elections the
Christian Democratic Appeal remained the largest party and the
Socialist Party made the largest gains. The
formation of a new cabinet started two days after the elections. Initial investigations toward a CDA-SP-PvdA coalition failed, after which a coalition of CDA, PvdA and ChristianUnion was formed.
The results of the elections were:
Economy
Main articles: Economy of the Netherlands,
List of Dutch companies
The Netherlands has a prosperous and
open economy in which the government has reduced its role since the 1980s. Industrial activity is predominantly in food-processing (for example
Unilever and
Heineken), chemicals (for example
DSM),
petroleum refining (for example
Royal Dutch Shell), and electrical machinery (for example
Philips).
Slochteren has one of the largest
natural gas fields in the world, which has so far (2006) resulted in a total revenue of €159 billion since the mid 1970s. With just over half of the reserves used up and an expected continued rise in oil prices, the revenues over the next few decades are expected to be at least that much.
[2]
The Netherlands has the
16th largest economy in the world, and
ranks 10th in GDP (nominal) per capita. Between 1998 and 2000 annual economic growth (
GDP) averaged nearly 4%, well above the European average. Growth slowed considerably in 2001-05 due to the global economic slowdown, but the first quarter of 2006 showed promising growth of 2.6%.
Inflation is 1.3% and is expected to stay low at around 1.5% in the coming years.
Unemployment is at 5.5% of the
labour force. By
Eurostat standards however, unemployment in the Netherlands is at only 3.3% - the lowest rate of all
European Union member states
[3]. The Netherlands also has a relatively low
GINI coefficient of 0.326.
Agriculture
A highly mechanised
agricultural sector employs no more than 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. The Netherlands also exports a quarter of all world tomatoes, and one-third of the world's exports of peppers and cucumbers.
[4] The Netherlands' 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 cooperative private enterprises such as the
VOC),
banking and
transport. The Netherlands successfully addressed the issue of public finances and stagnating job growth long before its European partners.
As a founding member of the
Euro, the Netherlands replaced (for accounting purposes) its former
currency, the
Guilder, on
January 1,
1999, along with the other adopters of the single European currency. Actual
Euro coins and
banknotes followed on
January 1,
2002. In the first years of the third millennium, economic and employment growth came to a standstill, which the government tried to resolve by reducing expenses.
Demographics
Main articles: Demographics of the Netherlands
Demographics of Netherlands, Data of
FAO, year 2005 ; Number of inhabitants in thousands.
The people of the Netherlands are amongst the tallest in the world, with an average height of about 1.81 metres for adult males and 1.68 m for adult females
[5]
The Netherlands is the 23rd
most densely populated country in the world, with 395 inhabitants per square kilometre (1,023 sq mi)—or 484 people per square kilometre (1,254/sq mi) if only the land area is counted, since 18.4% is water. Partly because of this it is also one of the most densely cabled countries in the world. Internet penetration is at 65.9% the 19th highest in the world.
[6]
The ethnic origins of the citizens of the Netherlands are diverse. The vast majority of the population however still remains
Dutch. They were: 80.8%
Dutch, 2.4%
German, 2.4%
Indonesian (
Indo-European, Indo-Dutch,
Moluccan), 2.2%
Turks, 2.0%
Surinamese, 1.9%
Moroccan, 1.5%
Indian, 0.8%
Antillean and
Aruban, and 6.0% other.
[7] However, this does not include the whole Kingdom of the Netherlands (such as the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba, which have a non-Dutch majority community), and only includes the population in the Netherlands itself. The Netherlands also has a resident population of some 800,000 people of
Indo (mixed Dutch and
Indonesian) descent.
Religion
Main articles: Religion in the Netherlands
The Netherlands is one of the more secular countries in the world, with only 39% being religiously affiliated (31% for those aged under 35), although 62% are believers (but 40% of those not in the traditional sense). Fewer than 20% visit church regularly .
[8]
Dutch law takes very liberal stances on such controversial issues as abortion
[9], drugs and euthanasia.
[10] However, Christian schools are still funded by the government and three political parties in the Dutch parliament (CDA, ChristianUnion and SGP) base their policy on the Bible.
Languages
The official language is
Dutch, which is spoken by a large majority of the inhabitants, the exception being some groups of immigrants.
Another official language is
Frisian, which is spoken in the northern province of
Fryslân. Frisian is co-official only in the province of Fryslân, although with a few restrictions. Several dialects of
Low Saxon (''Nedersaksisch'' in Dutch) are spoken in much of the north and east and are recognised by the Netherlands as ''regional languages'' according to the
European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages, as well as the
Franconian Limburgish language in the South.
There is a tradition of learning foreign languages in the Netherlands: about 85% of the total population have basic knowledge of
English, 55–60% of
German and 25% of
French. Courses in
Spanish,
Russian,
Arabic,
Turkish,
Ancient Greek, and
Latin are offered in schools as well.
Culture
Main articles: Culture of the Netherlands
The Netherlands has had many well-known painters. The 17th century, when the Dutch republic was prosperous, was the age of the "Dutch Masters", such as
Rembrandt van Rijn,
Johannes Vermeer,
Jan Steen and many others. Famous Dutch
painters of the 19th and 20th century were
Vincent van Gogh and
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.
Han van Meegeren was an infamous Dutch
art forger.
The Netherlands is the country of philosophers
Erasmus of Rotterdam and
Spinoza, and all of
Descartes' major work was done there. The Dutch scientist
Christiaan Huygens (1629–1695) discovered Saturn's moon Titan and invented the
pendulum clock.
In the
Dutch Golden Age,
literature flourished as well, with
Joost van den Vondel and
P.C. Hooft as the two most famous writers. In the 19th century,
Multatuli wrote about the bad treatment of the natives in Dutch colonies. Important 20th century authors include
Harry Mulisch,
Jan Wolkers,
Simon Vestdijk,
Cees Nooteboom,
Gerard (van het) Reve and
Willem Frederik Hermans.
Anne Frank's
''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,
Nagasaki,
Japan. A similar Holland Village is being built in
Shenyang,
China.
Windmills,
tulips,
wooden shoes, and
Delftware pottery are among the items associated with the Netherlands.
Military
Main articles: Military of the Netherlands
Conscription in the Netherlands was suspended in 1996. All military specialities, except the Submarine service and Marine Corps, are open to women. The Dutch Ministry of Defence employs 68,000 personnel, including both civilian and military personnel. The military is composed of four branches, all of which carry the prefix ''Koninklijke'' (Royal):
★ ''
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 Military Police, tasks include military police and border control
References
;Footnotes
1. "Japan Goes Dutch", ''London Review of Books'' (2001-04-01). 3-7.
2.
3. Eurostat unemployment rates april 2007
4. Netherlands: Agricultural situation
5. Reported health and lifestyle
6. Top 35 countries with the highest internet penetration rate
7. Demografie van de allochtonen in Nederland Garssen, Joop, Han Nicolaas and Arno Sprangers
8. Godsdienstige veranderingen in Nederland, Becker, Jos and Joep de Hart, , , Sociaal en Cultureel Planbureau, 2006,
9. Dutch policy on abortion
10. Euthanasia and the law Ursula Smartt
;Statistics
★
Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek (2006).
Health statistics. Retrieved
June 17,
2006.
★
The Netherlands: Economic structure
;Articles
★
Country profiles: The Netherlands
★
Background Note: The Netherlands
★
The Netherlands: Political forces
★
The Netherlands: History in brief
;Books
★ 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)
External links
★
Overheid.nl - official Dutch government portal
★
Government.nl - official Dutch government web site
★
★
CIA - The World Factbook -- Netherlands
★
CBS - Key figures from the Dutch bureau of statistics
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Holland.com - English website of the Netherlands tourist office
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