If you're considering taking a trip to the Netherlands and want to know more about the country and its history, this blog post provides a synopsis of its complicated history. This article overviews the landscape formation, its inhabitants, complex history, and present-day conditions. Additionally, detailed information about each province of today is provided.
Article Outline:
Pre-history
The Netherlands is a geographically difficult area to live in but has had inhabitants for around 250,000 years. In 1981, Archeologist Wil Roebroeks found evidence in the soil at the site of Maastricht-Belvèdère of Neanderthal occupation from at least 200,000 years ago. During the ice age, Scandinavian glaciers almost reached Amsterdam. It is believed that game animals such as mammoths and woolly rhinoceroses roamed the area during the Weichsel ice age from the Netherlands to England, which attracted hunting parties.
The end of the Ice Age led to a milder climate, and more people began to settle in the area. Records show that humans inhabited the Netherlands at least 37,000 years ago, and a Neanderthal skull (named Krijn) from about 40,000–100,000 years ago was found on the coast of the Zeeland province in 2001. These early inhabitants lived in small groups and survived by fishing and hunting bison, reindeer, and mammoths. The oldest known boat, the Pesse canoe, was found in Hoogeveen and is believed to be built sometime between 8040 and 7510 BC.
Agriculture began around 5,000 BC with the Linear Pottery culture in the southern Limburg area, and animal husbandry started between 4300–4000 BC. Many cultures lived throughout the area during this time, such as the Swifterbantcultuur (Swifterbant culture) from 5100–3400 BC. This group occupied what is currently the Flevopolder and survived by hunting, fishing, and agriculture (including farming). Different ways of life and technology mark each group; for example, the Bell Beaker culture (2800–1800 BC) introduced metalwork to the area.
The Classical Era
From about 1000 BC, several Germanic tribes began settling in the area due to invasion and overpopulation in their homelands. Yet, the Greek geographer Pytheas of Massilia wrote in c. 325 BC that "more people died in the struggle against water than the struggle against men" in this area.
The Gallic Wars between 58 BC–50 BC by Roman general Julius Caesar led to the southern parts of the Netherlands being integrated into the Roman Empire. Afterward, Caesar's adopted son Emperor Augustus subjected the Frisians in the north to his rule. In 69–70 AD, the Batavi (a militarily powerful Germanic tribe) revolted against the Roman empire with Celtic and other Germanic tribes. This last act of resistance from locals resulted in a century of peace, though the Romans defeated the rebels.
Around 375, mass migrations occurred across Europe, and Germanic peoples began arriving from the east. This period is known as the Volksverhuizingen (Migration Period). Newcomers of the northern Netherlands began to be known as the "Frisians," though they were not of Frisii decent. Various invasions marked this period, and the names of the tribes (besides the Frisians) vanished. Except for the northern Frisians, the tribes became what was known as the Franks, or the "free" people.
The Middle Ages
The Roman empire fell in 476, and by the 490s, Clovis I conquered and united all the Frankish territories. When Clovis I died, his four sons partitioned the kingdom amongst themselves. Cultural divides occurred throughout the centuries, resulting in a series of wars. Dutch speakers broke with the endonym “Frank” sometime around the 9th century; however, they were still considered Franks and were part of the Frankish empire under Charlemagne (Charles the Great).
The Frankish Carolingian Empire dominated from 800–888. The Treaty of Verdun partitioned the empire into three parts in 843: West Francia, East Francia, and Middle Francia. Most of the Netherlands became part of Middle Francia and was first ruled by Lothair I and then his son Lothair II. Later, it became known as Lotharingia until the Treaty of Meerssen in 870. The land became part of East Francia, which then became the Holy Roman Empire.
The area of the Netherlands, or the Low Countries (today’s Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg), was visited by Vikings during the 9th and 10th centuries. While it is believed the Vikings originally arrived as traders, raids began when they saw the weakness of the northern Frankish empire. While some Vikings did become lords, the Holy Roman Empire maintained political unity for a while. Finally, however, the counts of the Rhineland (Frisians) began to organize against the Vikings after receiving little to no support from their kings and emperors. Groups of ships, the first Dutch fleets, were created to defend the coast. Holland was born out of the overlords breaking their oath of defensive support.
The successors of Charles the Great (royal officials and nobles) emerged as a class. They formed various feudal states, which were dependent upon each other and led to a state of almost continuous war from the 9th–14th centuries. Provincial states emerged in the 15th century as townspeople became involved in council meetings, which reduced the power of counts and dukes.
Early Modern Era
The small Dutch states began to be influenced by the Duchy of Burgundy under the Duke of Burgundy (Prince Philip the Bold). However, it was eventually united by successor Duke Phillip III the Good. Under his reign, the Burgundian State reached its apex of prosperity. Trade in the area developed quickly, and Amsterdam became the primary trading port for grain in Europe in the Baltic region. Through years of marriages, purchases, and wars, the Dukes of Burgundy took control of the Seventeen Provinces of the Low Countries. Within a hundred years, the House of Burgundy concentrated most states except Friesland. Upon Duke Charles I the Bold’s death on January 5, 1477, his reign went to his daughter Maria, who married Emperor Maximilian I Habsburg of Austria (1477). When Maria died in 1482 after their son Philip IV the Handsome was born, control went to the Habsburg family.
Philip IV’s son Charles V became ruler in 1506, but soon after, he left to become the King of Spain and the Holy Roman Emperor. Charles turned control over to his close relatives, and unrest occurred when the Spanish sent by Charles imposed a centralized government that ignored the Dutch traditions and the officials in power. Charles V had granted the Netherlands as an entity in 1548.
During the 16th century, the Protestant Reformation exploded throughout Europe. Charles V and Philip II attempted to stop the rebellion and were triumphant during the first wave of reformation of Lutheranism. However, the second wave (Anabaptism) and third wave (Calvinism) were strong in the Netherlands around the mid-1500s. As a result, anti-Spanish sentiments arose, which led to the Dutch Revolt between 1566–1648.
In 1562, William the Silent (also known as William of Orange and the founder of the Dutch royal family) arose as an opponent against the repressive Spanish Hapsburg, ruled by Phillip II. In response, in 1567, Philip II sent Fernando Álvarez de Toledo (the Duke of Alba) with 30,000 soldiers. His tyranny as governor-general of the Netherlands led to the Eighty Years' War after he enacted the Council of Troubles (known as the Council of Blood).
The Eighty Years’ War, or the Dutch War of Independence against Spain, lasted from 1568–1648. During this time, in 1579, Dutch provinces revolted against Spain and formed a mutual alliance. After declaring independence, the provinces of Guelders, Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Groningen, Overijssel, and Frisia formed the Dutch Republic. The states were autonomous and had their own governments. A confederate government was set up and seated in The Hague and had representatives from each of the seven provinces.
The last thirty years of the Dutch War of Independence are known as the Thirty Years’ War (1618–1648) and was one of the most destructive wars in European history, with an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians dying. In 1648, the Peace of Westphalia was signed that granted peace to the Holy Roman Empire, gave freedom to the United Provinces from Spain, was the first attempt at modern international diplomacy, and set the stage for religious toleration politically.
The Dutch Golden Age lasted until 1672, when the Dutch art, trade, science, and military were among the best in Europe. By 1650, the Dutch owned 16,000 merchant ships, and the Dutch East India Company and the Dutch West India Company had colonies and trading posts around the globe. Amsterdam was the wealthiest trading city in the world, had the first full-time stock exchange, and many historians believe the Netherlands was the first thoroughly capitalist country.
However, costly trade and military conflicts, such as the Franco-Dutch War (1672–1678) and the War of Spanish Succession (1701–1714), initiated an economic decline. Additionally, the Java War (1741–1743) in the Dutch East Indies was detrimental to Dutch finances.
Modern Era
At the end of the 18th century, the Dutch Republic was in a deep economic crisis caused by the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War (1780–1784). As a result, a political division emerged between the Patriots (those inspired by Enlightenment and against stadtholder William V) and the Orangists (more traditionalists who supported the stadtholders). Ultimately, in 1795, the patrician oligarchies were overthrown in the Batavian Revolution. The Dutch Republic ceased to exist with the overthrow of William V (the Prince of Orange and last stadtholder of the Dutch Republic).
The French Empire, ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, occupied the country until 1813. Renamed the Kingdom of Holland, Napoleon’s younger brother Louis ruled the area. He won over the respect of his subjects. However, King Louis’ resistance to Napoleon led to his ousting from the throne in 1810. Holland was incorporated into the French Empire thereafter.
The Dutch served the new King for a few years, and Dutch soldiers even fought in Napoleon’s campaigns. Regardless, the failure of Napoleon’s campaigns against Russia and Spain, combined with heavy losses, led to influential Dutchmen preparing for a new, independent regime. Gijsbert Karel van Hogendorp, a distinguished politician, secretly devised a plan to take over the government in the autumn of 1813. When the French retreated in November, the exiled William I (the Prince of Orange and son of William V) returned from England to continue his reign as hereditary prince. He was inaugurated as the Sovereign Prince of the Netherlands in 1815.
During the time of William I’s exile, protests grew against slavery. When William I returned, he appeased the British by discontinuing the Transatlantic slave trade in June 1814. In May 1818, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands signed the Anglo-Dutch Slave Trade Treaty. However, slavery continued in some Dutch East Indies until after 1910 (in Samosir).
King William I’s authoritarian leadership style and censorship of the press in Belgium led to the Belgian Revolution of 1830 and Belgian independence. Though successful in the Ten Days’ Campaign, French intervention forced Dutch soldiers to retreat, and the Dutch formally withdrew in 1839. The Belgian defeat led William I to abdicate in October 1840. Under the rule of William II, the Netherlands became a parliamentary, liberal state with a new constitution. While democracy was extended after, struggles between various ideologies continued.
While the Netherlands was able to remain neutral during World War I, Nazi Germany invaded the Netherlands during World War II on May 10, 1940. Queen Wilhelmina and the royal family fled to London and formed a government-in-exile. The German bombing of Rotterdam on May 14 razed the city. It led to the Dutch army’s official surrender on May 15. Over 100,000 Dutch Jews were sent to extermination camps during the German occupation, about seventy-five percent of the Dutch-Jewish population. In April 1945, The First Canadian Army (Canadian, British, and Polish forces) liberated much of the Netherlands. The western provinces were liberated on the evening of May 5 when German troops surrendered. In total, 310,000 people in the Netherlands died during World War II, primarily civilians and Jewish.
After World War II, the Netherlands focused on reconstruction. It joined NATO in 1945 and the United Nations in 1949. Moreover, the loss of its colonies in the East Indies was devastating, and the Netherlands lost much of its wealth. Many inhabitants of the colonies immigrated to the mainland Netherlands, creating social changes. Many new suburbs were built around Amsterdam. In the 1960s and 1970s, significant cultural and social changes occurred in the Netherlands. The younger generation rejected traditional mores and advocated for social changes, such as women’s rights and sexuality. Additionally, the government encouraged emigration to reduce population density due to overpopulation.
In 1954, the Charter for the Kingdom of the Netherlands was created to reform the Netherlands' political structure. This included Aruba, Curaçao, and Sint Maarten. Today, the Kingdom of the Netherlands includes the above plus the special municipalities of Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba (known as the Caribbean Netherlands).
The Netherlands Today
Today, the population of the Netherlands stands at about 17.2 million people. However, it is growing at a relatively slow rate of .22% per year. Amsterdam is its most populous city, with about 905,000 inhabitants, followed by Rotterdam and The Hague. Amsterdam is the 18th most populous city in the European Union.
The economy of the Netherlands is the 19th largest in the world. Services (intangible goods) make up 70.2% of the Netherlands’ GDP, followed by industry (e.g., manufacturing) at 17.9%. As of 2018, travel and tourism accounted for only 4.4% of its GDP.
The modern Netherlands remains a Kingdom, led by King Willem-Alexander since April 30, 2013. The monarchy of the Netherlands follows a succession to the heirs of William I (William the Silent). In the 1950s, the Netherlands became a founding member of the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community with the signing of the Treaty of Rome. The country became a member country of the European Union in 1993.
In January 2020, the government of the Netherlands decided to officially drop the name Holland in a rebranding attempt to represent the entirety of the country's twelve provinces.
The twelve provinces of the Netherlands are as follows:
Drenthe boasts having various landscapes and the oldest remains of settlements in the country
The name likely stems from Germanic thrija-hantja, meaning “three lands”
Populated for about 15,000 years since prehistory
Artifacts have been found from the Wolstonian Stage (150,000 years ago)
Was a province of the Holy Roman Empire from 1046
Part of the Dutch Republic from 1581 until 1795
Officially been a province since 1796
Now mostly a sparsely populated rural area used for agriculture
Flevoland has the largest flower bulb region in the country and hosts a tulip festival yearly
Taken from the Roman “Lacus Flavo,” which referred to the Zuiderzee
The 12th and youngest province, established in 1986 through land reclamation in the Zuiderzee
The smallest province in the country
Friesland is home to the oldest still-working planetarium in the world
Named after the Frisians who were Germanic seafaring people
Was once a part of the ancient, larger region of Frisia
The only province with its own language, West Frisian
Gelderland has numerous castles and manor houses
Named after the Germanic town Geldern, known for its dragon legend
The name may also stem from the Germanic “gelwa-haru,” meaning “yellow mountains”
Dates back to the Holy Roman Empire
One of the largest provinces in the Netherlands but is also the least populated
Groningen is known for its museums and historic buildings, as well as great restaurants
The name is derived from the Old High German word “gron,” meaning “green”
The northeastern most province in the country
Historically was a part of Frisia, the Frankish Empire, the Holy Roman Empire, and the Dutch Republic
Currently is the 9th most populous province
Limburg is known as a culinary province with nice vineyards
Named after the Belgian fortified town with the same name, Limbourg-sur-Vesdre
The name is derived from "bourg," meaning "fortified town," and "lim," a reference to lime or linden trees
Was the seat of the Duchy of Limburg, an imperial state of the Holy Roman Empire
The southernmost province in the country
Noord-Brabant is province in which Vincent Van Gogh was born and where you can explore his life and work
Home to the Heeswijk (roughly 1,000 years old; known as Brabant castle) and Helmond Castle (the largest moated castle in the Netherlands)
The Duchy of Brabant was a state of the Holy Roman Empire
Possibly named after Silvius Brabo, a Roman soldier, or from the Old High German “bracha,” meaning “new land” or “land prepared for tillage”
Noord-Holland is home to the Dutch capital of Amsterdam
The provincial capital is Haarlem
The famous Zaanse Schans windmills are located here
Translates to “North Holland”
Located in the northwest on the North Sea
The province of today has its origins in the period of French rule (1795–1813)
Overijssel translates to “over the Ijssel”
A popular province for outdoor activities
Home to the National Park Weerribben-Wieden, the largest area of peat bogs in northwestern Europe
Utrecht is built around the Dom Tower, the tallest church tower in the Netherlands
From the Old Dutch word “ūt,” meaning “outside,” and Latin word “Traiectum” for fort
Known for its car-free city center with beautiful canals
A centuries-old university town and home to Utrecht University
The city center dates back to the High Middle Ages (10th to 13th centuries)
Evidence of inhabitants in the area dating back to the Stone Age and settlements in the Bronze Age
Zeeland has many beautiful beaches with clear saltwater
Famous for its culinary achievements with fish from the North Sea
Name references the “Lowland”
Large parts of the province are below sea level
The goddess Nehalennia was known to be worshiped in this area, dating back to the 2nd century BC
Zuid-Holland is home to vibrant cities such as Rotterdam and The Hague
Home to the 19 windmills in Kinderdijk, a UNESCO world heritage site
The name refers to South Holland
Has been inhabited at least 7,500 years before present
The province today has its origins in the French rule from 1795 to 1813
Do you have a favorite province in the Netherlands? If so, let's talk about it in the comments!
Groeten,
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