The national flag of the Netherlands (Dutch: de Nederlandse vlag) is a horizontal tricolour of red, white, and blue. The current design originates as a variant of the late 16th century orange-white-blue Prinsenvlag ("Prince's Flag"), evolving in the early 17th century as the red-white-blue Statenvlag ("States Flag"), the naval flag of the States-General of the Dutch Republic, making the Dutch flag the oldest tricolour flag in continuous use.[9][10][11] As a flag that symbolises the transformation from monarchy to republic, it has inspired both the derivative Russian flag, and after the French Revolution in 1789, the vertically striped French tricolour; both flags in turn influenced many other tricolours.[11][12]
During the economic crisis of the 1930s, the old Prince's Flag with the colour orange gained some popularity among some people[vague]. To end the confusion, the colours red, white and blue and its official status as the national flag of the Kingdom of the Netherlands were reaffirmed by royal decree on 19 February 1937.[13]
Description
Vruntschap of Jan van Hout (1575), the oldest known colour illustration of the Dutch flag. The flag is sticking out at the left of the top panel.
The national flag of the Netherlands is a tricolour flag. The horizontal fesses are bands of equal size in the colours from top to bottom, red (officially described as a "bright vermilion"), white (silver), and blue ("cobalt blue"). The flag proportions (width:length) are 2:3. The colour parameters were defined in November 1958 by the NEN (former HCNN) in as the following:[14][15][16]
The flag of the Netherlands is similar to that of Luxembourg, but it has a smaller width and it uses slightly darker shades of red and blue.[18] The similarity of the two flags has given rise to a national debate to change the flag of Luxembourg, initiated by Michel Wolter in 2006.[19]
Symbolism
Each band of colour in the Dutch flag holds some symbolism for the country. The red band symbolizes bravery, strength, valor, and hardiness; the white band, peace and honesty; and the blue band represents vigilance, truth, loyalty, perseverance, and justice.[20]
Another theory as to why the Dutch flag has these colours is because some researchers claim that they used to be a symbol of society: red symbolizes the people, white the church and blue the nobility.[21]
At the end of the 15th century, when the majority of the Netherlands provinces were united under the Duke of Burgundy, the Cross of Burgundy flag of the Duke of Burgundy was used for joint expeditions, which consisted of a red saltire resembling two crossed, roughly-pruned (knotted) branches, on a white field. Under the later House of Habsburg this flag remained in use.
In 1568 provinces of the Low Countriesrose in revolt against King Philip II of Spain, and Prince William of Orange (1533–1584) placed himself at the head of the rebels. The etymology of the House of Orange is unrelated to the name of the fruit or the colour. Usage of the colours orange, white and blue (Dutch: Oranje, Wit, Blauw, from French Orange, Blanc, Bleu) was based on the livery of William and was first recorded in the siege of Leiden in 1574, when Dutch officers wore orange-white-blue brassards.[22] The first known full colour depiction of the flag appeared in 1575 (see image). In Ghent in 1577, William was welcomed with a number of theatrical allegories represented by a young girl wearing orange, blue and white.[23] The first explicit reference to a naval flag in these colours is found in the ordonnances of the Admiralty of Zeeland, dated 1587, i.e. shortly after William's death.[22]
The colour combination of orange, white, and blue is commonly considered the first Dutch flag.[2] The 400th anniversary of the introduction of the Dutch flag was commemorated in the Netherlands by the issue of a postage stamp in 1972.[24] That was based on the fact that in 1572 the Watergeuzen (Gueux de mer, "Sea Beggars"), the pro-Dutch privateers, captured Den Briel in name of William, Prince of Orange. However, it is uncertain whether they took an orange-white-blue flag with them on the event, although they certainly started using an orange-white-blue tricolour somewhat later in the 1570s. It became later known as the Prinsenvlag ("Prince's flag") and served as the basis for the former South African flag, the flags of New York City and the Flag of Albany, New York, all three former dominions of the Dutch Republic.
Red as replacement for orange appeared as early as 1596, but more often after about 1630, as indicated by paintings of that time. Red gradually replaced orange (1630–60) as a sign of political change and growing dissociation of the Republic from the House of Orange.[25] It appears that prior to 1664, the red-white-blue tricolour was commonly known as the "Flag of Holland" (Hollandsche Vlag); named after one of the revolting provinces. In 1664, the States of Zeeland, one of the other revolting provinces, complained about this, and a resolution of the States-General introduced the name "States Flag" (Statenvlag), which the red, white and blue tricolour will be known hereafter.[26] The Dutch navy between 1588 and 1630 had always displayed the Prince's Flag, and after 1663 always the States Flag, with both flag variants being in use during the period of 1630–1662.[27]
The red-white-blue triband flag as used in the 17th century is said to have influenced the designs of both the seminal Russian flag[28] and the French flag.[25] In turn, these two flags would later influence many others.
With the Batavian Revolution in the Netherlands in the last decade of the 18th century, and the subsequent conquest by the French, the name "Prince's Flag" was forbidden and the red-white-blue of the Statenvlag was the only flag allowed, analogous as it was to France's own tricolour, chosen just a few months earlier, ironically influenced by that same Statenvlag.[25] In 1796 the red division of the flag was embellished with the figure of a Netherlands maiden, with a lion at her feet, in the upper left corner. In one hand she bore a shield with the Roman fasces and in the other a lance crowned with the cap of liberty. This flag had a life as short as that of the Batavian Republic for which it was created.
Louis Bonaparte, made king of Holland by his brother the Emperor Napoleon, wished to pursue a purely Dutch policy and to respect national sentiments as much as possible.[29] He removed the maiden of freedom from the flag and restored the old tricolour. His pro-Dutch policies led to conflicts with his brother, however, and the Netherlands were incorporated into the French Empire. In 1810 its flag was replaced by the imperial emblems.
Modern flag
In 1813, the Netherlands regained its independence and the Prince of Orange returned from exile and contemporary newspapers report that the red-white-blue flag was flown decorated with an orange Pennon/pennant and solid‐coloured orange flags were displayed in many places in the country as a sign of allegiance of the people to the House of Orange.[2]
Just before the outbreak of World War II, the Prince's Flag resurfaced again. Some people were convinced that orange, white, and blue were the true colours of the Dutch flag, particularly members of the National Socialist Movement in the Netherlands.[13] To end the discussion, a royal decree established the colours of the Dutch flag as: 'The colours of the flag of the Kingdom of the Netherlands are red, white and blue' (Dutch: De kleuren van de vlag van het Koninkrijk der Nederlanden zijn rood, wit en blauw).[30] It became the shortest decree in history, and was issued by Queen Wilhelmina on 19 February 1937.[31][32]
It was only on 16 August 1949 that the exact colour parameters were defined by the Ministry of the Navy[14] as bright vermilion (red), white and cobalt blue. The pennant is usually added on King's Day (Dutch: Koningsdag, 27 April) or other festive occasions related to the Royal Family.
The flag is customarily flown at government buildings and military bases in the Netherlands and abroad all year round. Private use is more uncommon. Only on national holidays is there widespread private use. At the birthdays or weddings of specific members of the Royal House, an orange pennant is added to the flag. There are special non-holiday festivities or remembrance occasions when the flag is flown, such as at the homes of students who have just graduated. The flag is then often accompanied by the graduate's school bag hung from the tip of the flagpole. The flag can also be displayed at times of sadness at half-mast (or a black pennant is added to the flag when hanging at half-mast is not possible) as a sign of respect or national mourning.
There are a number of flag-flying days in the Netherlands. The holidays on which flags are put out by the government, according to the flag instruction, are:
The dates mentioned in parentheses are the dates when the flags are put out, should the original scheduled flag day fall on a Sunday, when possible. Exceptions are Remembrance of the Dead and Liberation Day, should one of them fall on a Sunday, the flags are put out anyway.
The prime minister of the Netherlands is responsible for announcing updates to the flag instruction (last given in 2013 when Queen's Day on 30 April became King's Day on 27 April), announcing one-off flag days (last given on 19 March 2019 to remember the Utrecht tram shooting), and announcing one-off modifications to the current flag days (last given in 2020 when the flags were put out at half-mast on 4 May the whole day instead of from 18:00, due to the 75-year anniversary of the liberation of the Netherlands and the COVID-19 pandemic).
When a member of the Dutch Royal House is born, the flag instruction will be determined some weeks before the child is expected. In the most recent occasions – in 2003, 2005 and 2007, when Princess Máxima was expecting Princess Amalia, Princess Alexia and Princess Ariane respectively, it was announced that immediately upon announcement of the birth, the flags would be put out with the orange pennant. However, because Amalia and Ariane were born while darkness already fell (and Amalia was born on a Sunday), the flag day was postponed until the next day.
Flags of current countries in the Kingdom of the Netherlands
The national flag of Aruba was officially adopted on 18 March 1976. The blue field represents the sky, the sea, peace, hope, Aruba's future and its ties to the past. The two narrow stripes "suggest the movement toward status aparte". One represents "the flow of tourists to sun-drenched Aruba, enriching the island as well as vacationers", the other "industry, all the minerals (gold and phosphates in the past, petroleum in the early 20th century)". In addition to sun, gold, and abundance, the yellow is also said to represent wanglo flowers. The star has particularly complex symbolism. It is vexillologically unusual in having four points, representing the four cardinal directions. These refer in turn to the many countries of origin of the people of Aruba. They also represent the four main languages of Aruba: Papiamento, Spanish, English, and Dutch. The star also represents the island itself: a land of often red soil bordered by white beaches in a blue sea. The red also represents blood shed by Arubans during war, past Indian inhabitants, patriotic love, and Brazil wood. The white also represents purity and honesty.
The flag of Curaçao is a navy blue field with a horizontal hot yellow stripe slightly below the midline and two white, five-pointed stars in the canton. The blue symbolises the sea and sky (the bottom and top blue sections, respectively) divided by a yellow stroke representing the bright sun which bathes the island. The two stars represent Curaçao and Klein Curaçao, but also 'Love & Happiness'. The five points on each star symbolise the five continents from which Curaçao's people come.
The pre-independence flag of Suriname consisted of five coloured stars (from top left clockwise: white, black, brown, yellow, and red) connected by an ellipse. The coloured stars represent the major ethnic groups that comprise the Surinamese population: the original Amerindians, the colonising Europeans, the Africans brought in as slaves to work in plantations and the Indians, Javanese and Chinese who came as indentured workers to replace the Africans who escaped slavery and settled in the hinterland. The ellipse represents the harmonious relationship amongst the groups.
Netherlands Antilles
Flag of the Netherlands Antilles from 1959 to 1986 Flag of the Netherlands Antilles from 1986 to 2010, after the secession of Aruba
Within the flag of the Netherlands Antilles, there were five stars that symbolise the five islands that made up the country. While the colours red, white and blue refer to the flag of the Netherlands. A six-star version was used until 1986 when Aruba became its own country within the Kingdom. This original version was adopted on 19 November 1959.
This flag fell into disuse when the Netherlands Antilles was dissolved on 10 October 2010.
The islands of Sint Maarten and Curaçao obtained their separate country status within the Kingdom and the islands Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba are now overseas entities of the Netherlands.
Flags of former colonies of the Kingdom of the Netherlands
The flag consists of three horizontal stripes in the colours of the flag of the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands (red, white and blue) and it displays a monogram on the central stripe and a crown on the upper stripe, both gold-coloured. The origin of the monogram as well as its initials and its meaning is not known.
For the majority of the existence of the Netherlands East Indies the flag of the Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie (English: Dutch East India Company) was used. When the VOC became bankrupt and was formally dissolved in 1800, its possessions and debt were taken over by the government of the Batavian Republic. The VOC's territories became the Netherlands East Indies and were expanded over the course of the 19th century to include the whole of the Indonesian archipelago. As such, the flag of the Batavian Republic and Kingdom of the Netherlands were used.
The Yamato flag, made by ripping the blue band off the Dutch flag
The flag of the Netherlands has been said to be the origin of the Indonesian flag. To symbolise the intention of forcing out the Dutch, the Indonesian nationalists would rip apart the Dutch flag. They tore off the bottom third of the flag, and separated the red and white colours from the blue colour.[33]
The Morning Star flag (Indonesian: Bintang Kejora) represented the Netherlands New Guinea from 1 December 1961 until 1 October 1962 when the territory came under administration of the United Nations Temporary Executive Authority (UNTEA). The flag is commonly used by the West Papuan population including OPM (Organisasi Papua Merdeka; Free Papua Movement) supporters to rally self-determination human rights support and is popularly flown on 1 December each year in defiance of Indonesian domestic laws. The flag consists of a red vertical band along the hoist side, with a white five-pointed star in the centre. The flag was first raised on 1 December 1961 and used until the United Nations became the territory's administrator on 1 October 1962.
As the Prince's Flag was the first created tricolour flag, it (in)directly inspired many historical and modern day tricolour flags. The flags below are directly influenced by the Dutch flag, or its predecessors, in colour use and design as a result of a shared history (as flags of former colonies) or economic relations, which is the case for the Russian flag.[34] See the flags in the former colonies section above for more examples.
Dutch flag-inspired
The modern red-white-blue Dutch flag is the oldest tricolour flag in use, and directly inspired these historical and modern day flags:
The design of the French flag was adopted after the French Revolution, where the revolutionaries were influenced by the horizontally striped red-white-blue flag of the Netherlands.[12][11]
The flag of Hesse-Nassau is identical to that of the Netherlands. The Dutch royal house originates from the Duchy of Nassau.
The Russian flag in turn is believed to have influenced many flags of other Slavic countries, resulting in many red-white-blue styled tribands in other parts of Europe, and also the red-white-green flag of Bulgaria. Peter the Great of Russia was building a new Russian Navy mostly on Dutch standards; therefore the merchantflag of Russia at sea would be the inverted colours of the Dutch flag.[11]
The orange-white-blue Prince's Flag directly inspired many historical and modern day flags. Especially flags in the former colonies of New Netherland and South Africa are designed after this flag. See the flags in the former colonies section above for more examples.
The flag of Shanghai Municipal Council in Shanghai International Settlement included multiple flags to symbolize the countries that had participated in the creation and management of this enclave in the Chinese city of Shanghai. The Dutch flag was put along with old Swedish civil ensign (spread vertically), the Austrian flag and old Spanish merchant ensign around the lower shield; all of them were upside down.
^Wilhelmina en De Minister van Staat, Minister van Koloniën, Voorzitter van den Raad van Ministers (19 februari 1937): Koninklijk Besluit nr. 93, Zell am See.
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