From 2013 to 2015, the

Kingdom of the Netherlands , national_anthem = ) , image_map = Kingdom of the Netherlands (orthographic projection).svg , map_width = 250px , image_map2 = File:KonDerNed-10-10-10.png , map_caption2 = Map of the four constituent countries shown to scale , capital = ...

celebrated its

bicentennial __NOTOC__ A bicentennial or bicentenary is the two-hundredth anniversary of a part, or the celebrations thereof. It may refer to: Europe * French Revolution bicentennial, commemorating the 200th anniversary of 14 July 1789 uprising, celebrated ...

Events and publications

Landing Willem Frederik Scheveningen 1813

A National Committee, appointed by the

Council of Ministers A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/ shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or ...

in 2011, supervises the bicentennial celebrations. The Committee is chaired by politicians

Ank Bijleveld Anna Theodora Bernardina "Ank" Bijleveld-Schouten (born 17 March 1962) is a Dutch politician of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) who has been serving as acting mayor of Almere since 10 January 2022. She served as Minister of Defence in the ...

and

Jozias van Aartsen Jozias Johannes van Aartsen (. born 25 December 1947) is a retired Dutch politician who served as Leader of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy from 2004 to 2006. A native of The Hague, he attended the Christelijk Gymnasium Sorghvli ...

. The celebrations started with a reenactment on 30 November 2013 of Prince William Frederick's landing at Scheveningen, exactly two hundred years earlier, with Huub Stapel playing the role of William Frederick, the later king William I. The reenactment (which is performed every 25 years) drew a crowd of several thousand. Five more "national events" have been planned, of which the final one will take place in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

on 26 September 2015; the bicentennial's official website promises "a spectacular parade of achievements" on the

Amstel The Amstel () is a river in the province of North Holland in the Netherlands. It flows from the Aarkanaal and Drecht in Nieuwveen northwards, passing Uithoorn, Amstelveen, and Ouderkerk aan de Amstel, to the IJ in Amsterdam. Annually, the ri ...

. Aside from the official celebrations, new biographies of the first three kings (William I, II and

III III or iii may refer to: Companies * Information International, Inc., a computer technology company * Innovative Interfaces, Inc., a library-software company * 3i, formerly Investors in Industry, a British investment company Other uses * ...

) were published, revealing the existence of an illegitimate child of William I and homosexual affairs of William II.

Reception

Several Dutch historians and journalists have criticized the bicentennial's motto of "200 years of independence and democracy". NOS reporter Piet van Asseldonk questioned whether the country can celebrate two hundred years of kingship (given the

Kingdom of Holland The Kingdom of Holland ( nl, Holland (contemporary), (modern); french: Royaume de Hollande) was created by Napoleon Bonaparte, overthrowing the Batavian Republic in March 1806 in order to better control the Netherlands. Since becoming Empero ...

's foundation in 1806), or two hundred years of independence (already achieved by the

Eighty Years' War The Eighty Years' War or Dutch Revolt ( nl, Nederlandse Opstand) ( c.1566/1568–1648) was an armed conflict in the Habsburg Netherlands between disparate groups of rebels and the Spanish government. The causes of the war included the Ref ...

which ended in 1648), or two hundred years of Orange rule (the dynasty had been

Stadtholder In the Low Countries, ''stadtholder'' ( nl, stadhouder ) was an office of steward, designated a medieval official and then a national leader. The ''stadtholder'' was the replacement of the duke or count of a province during the Burgundian and H ...

s for much longer), or two hundred years of democracy (since the early kings were not democrats), and concluded that the theme was ambiguous and not very attractive. Similarly, historian Coos Huijsen stated that the celebrations "omitted half the story" by letting Dutch history start in 1813, rather than with the " struggle for freedom" of the late 16th century, arguing that

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader wh ...

's defeat was hardly to the merit of the Dutch. Historian/journalist Marnix Koolhaas, writing on an NPO website, calls the founding event—William I's return—"a common ''

coup d'état A coup d'état (; French for 'stroke of state'), also known as a coup or overthrow, is a seizure and removal of a government and its powers. Typically, it is an illegal seizure of power by a political faction, politician, cult, rebel group, m ...

''", while the Dutch monarchy was a Napoleonic invention, established in 1806. Comedian Arjen Lubach used the occasion of the bicentennial to protest against the Dutch monarchy, offering to become "

Pharaoh Pharaoh (, ; Egyptian: '' pr ꜥꜣ''; cop, , Pǝrro; Biblical Hebrew: ''Parʿō'') is the vernacular term often used by modern authors for the kings of ancient Egypt who ruled as monarchs from the First Dynasty (c. 3150 BC) until th ...

of the Netherlands" in his television show ''Zondag met Lubach'' (22 March 2015). He started a

citizens' initiative In political science, an initiative (also known as a popular initiative or citizens' initiative) is a means by which a petition signed by a certain number of registered voters can force a government to choose either to enact a law or hold a p ...

, a petition that obliges Dutch parliament to discuss a proposal if supported by more than 40,000 citizens, and obtained the required number of signatures within a day.

Earlier celebrations

Earlier anniversaries were celebrated in 1863 (construction of a monument for William I, which was renovated in 2004 for the bicentennial), 1913, 1933, 1963 and 1988.

External links

* (English version)

References

{{reflist 2013 in the Netherlands 2014 in the Netherlands 2015 in the Netherlands Bicentennial anniversaries