In 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 = ...

, the

monarchy A monarchy is a form of government in which a person, the monarch, is head of state for life or until abdication. The political legitimacy and authority of the monarch may vary from restricted and largely symbolic (constitutional monarchy) ...

is a constitutional office and is controlled by the

Constitution of the Netherlands The Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands ( nl, Grondwet voor het Koninkrijk der Nederlanden) is one of two fundamental documents governing the Kingdom of the Netherlands as well as the fundamental law of the European territory of the ...

. A distinction is made between members of the

royal family A royal family is the immediate family of kings/queens, emirs/emiras, sultans/ sultanas, or raja/ rani and sometimes their extended family. The term imperial family appropriately describes the family of an emperor or empress, and the term ...

and members of the royal house.

Membership

According to the Membership to the Royal House Act which was revised in 2002, the members of the royal house are: * the monarch (king or queen) as head of the royal house; * the members of the royal family in the

line of succession to the Dutch throne Since 1983, the crown of the Netherlands passes according to absolute primogeniture. From 1814 until 1887, a monarch could only be succeeded by their closest female relative if there were no eligible male relatives. Male-preference cognatic pri ...

but limited to two degrees of kinship from the current monarch (first degree are parents and second degree are siblings); * the heir to the throne; * the former monarch (on abdication); * the members of the royal house of further degrees of kinship if they were already members of the royal house prior to the revision of the act in 2002, were adults at the time and remain in the direct line of succession; * the spouses of the above; * the widows and widowers of the above, provided that they do not remarry, and that their spouses would still qualify if they were still alive today.

Current members

* The King (King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands), the current head of the royal house, oldest child of Queen Beatrix *

The Queen In the English-speaking world, The Queen most commonly refers to: * Elizabeth II (1926–2022), Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 1952 until her death The Queen may also refer to: * Camilla, Queen Consort (born 1947), ...

(Queen Máxima), wife of the King ** The Princess of Orange (Catharina-Amalia), eldest child of the King and Queen ** Princess Alexia, middle child of the King and Queen **

Princess Ariane Princess Ariane of the Netherlands, Princess of Orange-Nassau (Ariane Wilhelmina Máxima Inés; born 10 April 2007) is the third and youngest daughter of King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima. Princess Ariane is a member of the Dutch Royal Hous ...

, youngest child of the King and Queen *

Prince Constantijn Prince Constantijn of the Netherlands (''Constantijn Christof Frederik Aschwin''; born 11 October 1969) is the third and youngest son of the former Dutch queen, Beatrix, and her husband, Claus von Amsberg, and is the younger brother of the reig ...

, third and youngest child of Queen Beatrix and Prince Claus *

Princess Laurentien Princess Laurentien of the Netherlands (née Petra Laurentien Brinkhorst; born 25 May 1966) is the wife of Prince Constantijn and sister-in-law of King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima. Early life Petra Laurentien Brinkhorst was born in ...

, wife of Prince Constantijn

Loss of membership

The membership is lost if the right to succeed to the Dutch throne is lost, e.g. by marrying without parliament’s approval. This applied to several members of the royal family: * in 1964 Princess Irene married

Carlos Hugo, Duke of Parma Carlos Hugo, Duke of Parma and Piacenza (8 April 1930 – 18 August 2010) was the head of the House of Bourbon-Parma from 1977 until his death. Carlos Hugo was the Carlist pretender to the throne of Spain and sought to change the political directi ...

* in 1975 Princess Christina married Jorge Guillermo * in 2004 Prince Friso married

Mabel Wisse Smit Princess Mabel of Orange-Nassau (previously Mabel Martine Wisse Smit, born Mabel Martine Los; 11 August 1968), more commonly known as Mabel van Oranje, is the widow of Prince Friso and sister-in-law of King Willem-Alexander of the Netherland ...

; the government declined to ask official parliamentary permission for the marriage * in 2005 Prince Pieter-Christiaan married

Anita van Eijk Princess Anita of Orange-Nassau (Anita Theodora, née van Eijk; born 27 October 1969) is a member of the Dutch Royal Family. She is the wife of Prince Pieter-Christiaan of Orange-Nassau, van Vollenhoven. Early life Anita van Eijk was born in ...

* in 2005 Prince Floris married Aimée Söhngen In addition the membership is lost when a person, who was formerly a member, loses his direct right to succession because he or she is no longer related to the current monarch within three degrees of kinship. When King Willem-Alexander assumed the throne in 2013 this applied to: * Prince Maurits and his wife Princess Marilène *

Prince Bernhard , house = Lippe , father = Prince Bernhard of Lippe , mother = Armgard von Cramm , birth_date = , birth_name = Count Bernhard of Biesterfeld , birth_place = Jena, Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, Germany , death_date = ...

and his wife Princess Annette Membership is also lost to persons who are still in the direct line of succession, but are no longer related to the current monarch within two degrees of kinship. When King Willem-Alexander assumed the throne in 2013 this applied to: *

Countess Eloise of Orange-Nassau van Amsberg Countess Eloise of Oranje-Nassau, Jonkvrouwe van Amsberg (Eloise Beatrix Sophie Laurence; born 8 June 2002), in the media often styled as simply Eloise van Oranje, is the first child and daughter of Prince Constantijn and Princess Laurentien o ...

Count Claus-Casimir of Orange-Nassau van Amsberg Count Claus-Casimir of Orange-Nassau, Jonkheer van Amsberg (Claus-Casimir Bernhard Marius Max; born 21 March 2004), is the second child of Prince Constantijn and Princess Laurentien of the Netherlands and their only son. He is a member of the ...

Countess Leonore of Orange-Nassau van Amsberg Countess Leonore of Orange-Nassau, Jonkvrouwe van Amsberg (Leonore Marie Irene Enrica; born 3 June 2006), is the third child and second daughter of Prince Constantijn and Princess Laurentien of the Netherlands. She is a member of the Dutch roy ...

All children of

and

References

{{Reflist

Royal House A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family,''Oxford English Dictionary'', "dynasty, ''n''." Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1897. usually in the context of a monarchy, monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in repu ...

Royal and noble courts