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The naval history of the Netherlands dates back to the 15th century. As overseas trade was a traditional cornerstone of the Dutch economy, naval defence was indispensable for the protection of commercial interests.


Origins

At first the Dutch navy had a private character. Wealthy merchants and local authorities in the many ports of the
Low Countries The term Low Countries, also known as the Low Lands ( nl, de Lage Landen, french: les Pays-Bas, lb, déi Niddereg Lännereien) and historically called the Netherlands ( nl, de Nederlanden), Flanders, or Belgica, is a coastal lowland region in N ...
took initiative to arm ships since the 15th century and incidentally attacked
pirate Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...
s and foreign competitors. Defensive measures to protect the merchant ships could include sailing in a convoy and arming the
merchant A merchant is a person who trades in commodities produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Historically, a merchant is anyone who is involved in business or trade. Merchants have operated for as long as indust ...
s themselves. Offensive actions could include taking enemy ships by force. This was actively supported by the Dutch authorities in times of war, who handed out letters of marque, allowing Dutch captains to attack and, if possible capture enemy ships and their cargoes. The central authorities tried, in vain, to increase supervision on these private navies. By decree of Maximilian of Austria, on 8 January 1488 the forerunner of the Dutch Navy was formed. The role of the navy had a legal status from then on, and the task of defending the country at sea was the responsibility of the
Admiral of Flanders Admiral of Flanders (1383–1483) and Admiral of the Netherlands (1485–1573) was a title in the medieval Low Countries for the commander of the war fleet. The title of ''admiral'' (from the Arab ''emir-al-bahr''), for naval commanders of ships w ...
, later Admiral of the Netherlands, appointed by the sovereign. However, many provinces surreptitiously created small navies of their own, without informing the admiral.


A world power

The
Dutch revolt 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 ...
(1568–1648) in many ways started with the revolt of the Beggars and the navy was no exception.
William the Silent William the Silent (24 April 153310 July 1584), also known as William the Taciturn (translated from nl, Willem de Zwijger), or, more commonly in the Netherlands, William of Orange ( nl, Willem van Oranje), was the main leader of the Dutch Re ...
, the leader of the revolt, issued letters of marque under his authority as sovereign
Prince of Orange Prince of Orange (or Princess of Orange if the holder is female) is a title originally associated with the sovereign Principality of Orange, in what is now southern France and subsequently held by sovereigns in the Netherlands. The titl ...
. These roving bands of ships became known as the
Sea Beggars Geuzen (; ; french: Les Gueux) was a name assumed by the confederacy of Calvinist Dutch nobles, who from 1566 opposed Spanish rule in the Netherlands. The most successful group of them operated at sea, and so were called Watergeuzen (; ; frenc ...
. Their
capture of Brielle The Capture of Brielle by the ''Geuzen, Watergeuzen'', on 1 April 1572 marked a turning point in the uprising of the Seventeen Provinces, Low Countries against Spain in the Eighty Years' War. Militarily the success was minor as the port of Briell ...
was the first significant victory of the revolt, and led to the entire province of Holland and Zealand declaring for the Prince and against the
Habsburg The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...
overlord,
Philip II of Spain Philip II) in Spain, while in Portugal and his Italian kingdoms he ruled as Philip I ( pt, Filipe I). (21 May 152713 September 1598), also known as Philip the Prudent ( es, Felipe el Prudente), was King of Spain from 1556, King of Portugal from ...
and the Spanish government. As the revolt progressed into an independent
government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government i ...
and state, the navy was reorganized into a better command structure. The government of the newly established Dutch Republic installed five admiralties ( de Maze,
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 ...
,
Zeeland , nl, Ik worstel en kom boven("I struggle and emerge") , anthem = "Zeeuws volkslied"("Zeelandic Anthem") , image_map = Zeeland in the Netherlands.svg , map_alt = , m ...
, the Noorderkwartier, and
Friesland Friesland (, ; official fry, Fryslân ), historically and traditionally known as Frisia, is a province of the Netherlands located in the country's northern part. It is situated west of Groningen, northwest of Drenthe and Overijssel, north of ...
) which had offices in
Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte (river), Rotte'') is the second largest List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the Prov ...
,
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 ...
, Middelburg,
Hoorn Hoorn () is a city and municipality in the northwest of the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It is the largest town and the traditional capital of the region of West Friesland. Hoorn is located on the Markermeer, 20 kilometers ...
, Enkhuizen, and Dokkum (later Harlingen). During the 17th century the Dutch Republic was involved in many wars, many of them at sea. The main goal of the Dutch navy was to protect shipping lanes all over the world and, if need be, to repel a naval invasion of Dutch territory. Until 1648, Spain was the enemy; a
Dutch States Navy The States Navy ( nl, Staatse vloot) was a fleet of warships that constituted the naval military arm of the Dutch Republic from 1588 to 1795. This fleet was not comparable to the present navies or even its contemporary naval adversaries suc ...
/Dutch fleet destroyed the main force of a large Spanish fleet still under construction at
Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = "Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gibr ...
in 1607. Other activities included blocking the port of Antwerp and the Flemish coast (to prevent the Spanish troops there from getting supplies) and escorting the Dutch merchants in the
Baltic Baltic may refer to: Peoples and languages *Baltic languages, a subfamily of Indo-European languages, including Lithuanian, Latvian and extinct Old Prussian *Balts (or Baltic peoples), ethnic groups speaking the Baltic languages and/or originatin ...
. In the course of the 17th century, Dutch wealth and maritime expansion was the source of much envy across Europe, but especially in England. When the anti-Dutch Navigation Ordinance of 1651 was passed, tensions ran high. During the First Anglo-Dutch War the English fleet concentrated on capturing the Dutch merchant fleet, which would prove vital to their victory. An example of this is the
Battle of Dungeness The naval Battle of Dungeness took place on 30 November 1652 (10 December in the Gregorian calendar) during the First Anglo-Dutch War near the cape of Dungeness in Kent. Background In September 1652 the government of the Commonwealth of En ...
in December 1652, in which
Maarten Tromp Maarten Harpertszoon Tromp (also written as ''Maerten Tromp''; 23 April 1598 – 31 July 1653) was a Dutch army general and admiral in the Dutch navy. Son of a ship's captain, Tromp spent much of his childhood at sea, including being capture ...
was able to keep the Channel open for Dutch trade. In the
Second Anglo-Dutch War The Second Anglo-Dutch War or the Second Dutch War (4 March 1665 – 31 July 1667; nl, Tweede Engelse Oorlog "Second English War") was a conflict between England and the Dutch Republic partly for control over the seas and trade routes, whe ...
five major battles took place, nearly all of them in English waters. It was during this period that the
Raid on the Medway The Raid on the Medway, during the Second Anglo-Dutch War in June 1667, was a successful attack conducted by the Dutch navy on English warships laid up in the fleet anchorages off Chatham Dockyard and Gillingham in the county of Kent. At t ...
(1667) took place, the worst naval defeat in English history. The
Third Anglo-Dutch war The Third Anglo-Dutch War ( nl, Derde Engels-Nederlandse Oorlog), 27 March 1672 to 19 February 1674, was a naval conflict between the Dutch Republic and England, in alliance with France. It is considered a subsidiary of the wider 1672 to 1678 ...
was in fact an alliance between France, England,
Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...
and
Münster Münster (; nds, Mönster) is an independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a state di ...
to attack the Netherlands and end the dominance of the Dutch Republic over the seas. Although the Dutch fleet was the largest of the world at the time, the combined fleet of France and England quickly put the Dutch in a defensive position, but due to the tactical brilliance of
Michiel de Ruyter Michiel Adriaenszoon de Ruyter (; 24 March 1607 – 29 April 1676) was a Dutch admiral. Widely celebrated and regarded as one of the most skilled admirals in history, De Ruyter is arguably most famous for his achievements with the Dutch N ...
, it managed to inflict so much damage to both fleets in three consecutive battles in Dutch territorial waters at the nation's most anxious moment, that an invasion had to be called off. The Treaty of Westminster marked the end of the trade wars between the English and the Dutch. A new era arrived in 1688, when a new Anglo-French alliance seemed imminent; the Dutch
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 ...
William III took a desperate gamble by sailing to England with a large fleet that landed in
Brixham Brixham is a coastal town and civil parish, the smallest and southernmost of the three main population centres (the others being Paignton and Torquay) on the coast of Torbay in the county of Devon, in the south-west of England. Commercial fish ...
in Devon. He marched to London and toppled his father in law James II, who was in a very weak position then. William had himself proclaimed King of England, effectively making his greatest maritime rival an ally. In the 25 years after this '
Glorious Revolution The Glorious Revolution; gd, Rèabhlaid Ghlòrmhor; cy, Chwyldro Gogoneddus , also known as the ''Glorieuze Overtocht'' or ''Glorious Crossing'' in the Netherlands, is the sequence of events leading to the deposition of King James II and ...
' the Dutch and the English successfully fought together with various other allies against France, then at the height of its powers during the reign of
Louis XIV Louis XIV (Louis Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was List of French monarchs, King of France from 14 May 1643 until his death in 1715. His reign of 72 years and 110 days is the Li ...
. The naval war zone shifted from the North Sea and the English Channel to the French coast and
Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on ...
. At the end of the
War of the Spanish succession The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict that took place from 1701 to 1714. The death of childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700 led to a struggle for control of the Spanish Empire between his heirs, Phil ...
(1713) the series of wars ended. At the start of the 17th century, the squadrons of the Dutch fleet were reinforced with merchant ships adapted for battle in earlier conflicts. The introduction of the
line-tactic The line of battle is a tactic in naval warfare in which a fleet of ships forms a line end to end. The first example of its use as a tactic is disputed—it has been variously claimed for dates ranging from 1502 to 1652. Line-of-battle tacti ...
increased the demand for ships with more manoeuvrability, speed and crew experience. In 1653, the Dutch government decided to build 60 ships, and ten years later they placed another order for 60 more. The
flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically the ...
of the Republic, , was fitted with 96 guns. For comparison, the British , built more than a century later, had only 8 guns more. With about 4,000 sailors the Dutch navy was a relatively small employer in peacetime, but in times of war thousands more were hired. Flag officers and captains were themselves responsible for hiring the ship's crew. Usually a ship's crew were hired for only one campaign, excluding the officers. Since the early 17th century, experienced captains were employed for long periods of time by the Dutch navy; they were responsible for the ships provisions, and when they bought supplies for less money than the government provided they could keep the rest, and a smart captain could make a small fortune this way in peacetime. In 1665, regiments of soldiers were deployed aboard the ships. These soldiers would later become famous and feared Dutch marines. In the middle of the 17th century the Dutch navy was the most powerful navy in the world.


Decline and French domination

The Dutch Republic went into decline after 1713, and in the late 18th century its navy was no longer a match for the French and even less for the
British navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against Fr ...
. An ambitious
shipbuilding Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to bef ...
program in 1780 could not prevent the disastrous
Fourth Anglo-Dutch War The Fourth Anglo-Dutch War ( nl, Vierde Engels-Nederlandse Oorlog; 1780–1784) was a conflict between the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Dutch Republic. The war, contemporary with the War of American Independence (1775-1783), broke out o ...
(1780–1784); the Dutch had to allow free passage throughout the
East Indies The East Indies (or simply the Indies), is a term used in historical narratives of the Age of Discovery. The Indies refers to various lands in the East or the Eastern hemisphere, particularly the islands and mainlands found in and around ...
, effectively allowing the
Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against Fr ...
to become the new global naval power. Between 1783 and 1789 naval squadrons had been sent to Asia to support the
Dutch East India Company The United East India Company ( nl, Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie, the VOC) was a chartered company established on the 20th March 1602 by the States General of the Netherlands amalgamating existing companies into the first joint-stock ...
. Several major naval reforms concerning education and command structure took place after the
Batavian Revolution The Batavian Revolution ( nl, De Bataafse Revolutie) was a time of political, social and cultural turmoil at the end of the 18th century that marked the end of the Dutch Republic and saw the proclamation of the Batavian Republic. The period of ...
(1795). The federative decentralised naval command was now replaced by a central organisation in
The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital o ...
, reflecting the increasingly centralised structure of the country. The warships stayed in the drydocks, although a number of ships managed to follow the fleeing stadtholder
William V William V may refer to: * William V, Duke of Aquitaine (969–1030) *William V of Montpellier (1075–1121) * William V, Marquess of Montferrat (1191) * William V, Count of Nevers (before 11751181) *William V, Duke of Jülich (1299–1361) * Willia ...
to Great Britain; others, like the ships sailing in East Asia, were later joined with the forces of William V. After the
surrender Surrender may refer to: * Surrender (law), the early relinquishment of a tenancy * Surrender (military), the relinquishment of territory, combatants, facilities, or armaments to another power Film and television * ''Surrender'' (1927 film), an ...
of a naval squadron at
Saldanha Bay Saldanha Bay ( af, Saldanhabaai) is a natural harbour on the south-western coast of South Africa. The town that developed on the northern shore of the bay, also called Saldanha, was incorporated with five other towns into the Saldanha Bay Local ...
(1796) and the defeat at the
Battle of Camperdown The Battle of Camperdown (known in Dutch as the ''Zeeslag bij Kamperduin'') was a major naval action fought on 11 October 1797, between the British North Sea Fleet under Admiral Adam Duncan and a Batavian Navy (Dutch) fleet under Vice-Admiral ...
(1797), the surrender of the fleet near the Vlieter in 1799 proved to be the death of the Batavian Navy. In the three years (from 1810) the Netherlands were a part of Imperial France the navy was integrated with the French navy.


Revival

The Netherlands regained their independence and on December 7, 1813, the Dutch navy was once again a part of the Dutch armed forces. The Dutch navy in the 19th century suffered from a constant shortage of manpower, forcing the government to hire crew from its
colonies In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state'' ...
; this increased the total employees from 5000 in 1850 to over 10,000 in 1900. After the bankruptcy of the East India Company Dutch naval tasks shifted greatly towards East Asia, until some 60% of the entire navy was situated there around 1850. Alongside the Colonial Navy, administrative and civil tasks were carried out by the
Government Navy The Government Navy (''Gouvernementsmarine'' in Dutch or GM) was a Dutch naval force which stemmed from the Colonial Navy in the former Dutch East Indies. It existed from 1861 to 1949 and operated in a civil-administrative role alongside the Roy ...
.


1850s till World War II

After the disappearance of the
ship of the line A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed during the Age of Sail from the 17th century to the mid-19th century. The ship of the line was designed for the naval tactic known as the line of battle, which depended on the two colu ...
a whole array of ship classes and types were created. The invention of the
propeller A propeller (colloquially often called a screw if on a ship or an airscrew if on an aircraft) is a device with a rotating hub and radiating blades that are set at a pitch to form a helical spiral which, when rotated, exerts linear thrust upon ...
launched the mass use of steam-propelled ships. The first steam-powered frigate ''Admiraal van Wassenaar'' entered service in 1857. With the introduction of
Ironclad warship An ironclad is a steam engine, steam-propelled warship protected by Wrought iron, iron or steel iron armor, armor plates, constructed from 1859 to the early 1890s. The ironclad was developed as a result of the vulnerability of wooden warships ...
in the early part of the second half of the 19th century the navy began to modernize the fleet with a series of monitors and two larger turret ram ships, and . The first of these ships were purchased from foreign shipyards. But in 1867 the Rijkswerf in Amsterdam was the first to be modernized to build armored warships. In the 1890s the navy again modernized with the construction of a series of
protected cruiser Protected cruisers, a type of naval cruiser of the late-19th century, gained their description because an armoured deck offered protection for vital machine-spaces from fragments caused by shells exploding above them. Protected cruisers re ...
s and
coastal defence ship Coastal defence ships (sometimes called coastal battleships or coast defence ships) were warships built for the purpose of coastal defence, mostly during the period from 1860 to 1920. They were small, often cruiser-sized warships that sacrifi ...
s. Since the country had become a kingdom, the Dutch navy was renamed the
Royal Netherlands Navy The Royal Netherlands Navy ( nl, Koninklijke Marine, links=no) is the naval force of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. During the 17th century, the navy of the Dutch Republic (1581–1795) was one of the most powerful naval forces in the world an ...
in 1905. The 1910s saw the introduction of the first
submarine A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...
s. Just before
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
the navy had plans to acquire several dreadnought battleships but the war prevented these from ever being built. In 1917, the first airplanes were added to the navy. After the war the navy acquired several
light cruiser A light cruiser is a type of small or medium-sized warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light armored cruiser", describing a small ship that carried armor in the same way as an armored cruiser: a protective belt and deck. Prior to th ...
s, destroyers and submarines. Just before
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
the navy planned to acquire several
battlecruisers The battlecruiser (also written as battle cruiser or battle-cruiser) was a type of capital ship of the first half of the 20th century. These were similar in displacement, armament and cost to battleships, but differed in form and balance of attr ...
but like the dreadnoughts these were never built due to the war.


World War II and decolonisation

During the Second World War the Dutch navy was based in Allied countries, due to the conquest in May 1940 of the Netherlands by
Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
. The Dutch navy had its headquarters in London and smaller offices in
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
and Australia. At the start of the Second World War on 10 May 1940 the
Royal Netherlands Navy The Royal Netherlands Navy ( nl, Koninklijke Marine, links=no) is the naval force of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. During the 17th century, the navy of the Dutch Republic (1581–1795) was one of the most powerful naval forces in the world an ...
had three operational submarines in the Netherlands, namely HNLMS ''O 9'', ''O 10'' and ''O 13''. ''O 11'' was being repaired, while ''O 8'' and ''O 12'' were undergoing maintenance. Meanwhile, ''O 14'' and ''O 15'' were active at the time in the Caribbeans. Furthermore, seven submarines were in various stages of completion at different yards. On the other hand, the Dutch navy had 15 operational submarines in the
Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies ( nl, Nederlands(ch)-Indië; ), was a Dutch colony consisting of what is now Indonesia. It was formed from the nationalised trading posts of the Dutch East India Company, whic ...
. These submarines played an important role during the war, by confronting and sinking enemy ships. For example, HNLMS ''O 16'' and ''K XVII'' sunk several Japanese ships in 1941. However, there were also losses in this theater, both HNLMS ''O 16'' and ''K XVII'' were sunk in December 1941. Around the world Dutch naval units were responsible for troop transport, for example during Operation Dynamo in Dunkirk and
D-Day The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...
, they escorted convoys and attacked enemy targets. During the war the navy suffered heavy losses, especially in defence of the Dutch East Indies against the Japanese in the
Battle of the Java Sea The Battle of the Java Sea ( id, Pertempuran Laut Jawa, ja, スラバヤ沖海戦, Surabaya oki kaisen, Surabaya open-sea battle, Javanese : ꦥꦼꦫꦁ​ꦱꦼꦒꦫꦗꦮ, romanized: ''Perang Segara Jawa'') was a decisive naval battle o ...
(February 1942) in which rear admiral
Karel Doorman Karel Willem Frederik Marie Doorman (23 April 1889 – 28 February 1942) was a Dutch naval officer who during World War II commanded remnants of the short-lived American-British-Dutch-Australian Command naval strike forces in the Battle ...
went down with most of his ships and with 2,300 of his crew. The first women were employed as non-combatants in 1944, and took on combat functions in 1980. In 1946, the Netherlands had a total of seven operational submarines in service; HNLMS ''O 21'', ''O 23'', ''O 24'', ''O 27'', ''Dolfijn'', ''Zwaardvisch'' and ''Tijgerhaai''. Since the home port at
Den Helder Den Helder () is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. Den Helder occupies the northernmost point of the North Holland peninsula. It is home to the country's main naval base. From here the Royal TESO ...
was in ruins, these submarines were for the time being using the Waalhaven in Rotterdam as base.Ibidem. After the war, the relations between the Netherlands and its colonies also changed dramatically. The establishment of the
Republic of Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guinea. In ...
two days after the Japanese surrender cooled the Dutch plans for re-establishing its colonial authority. It took four years of war before the Netherlands acknowledged the independence of Indonesia. The Dutch navy was stationed in
Western New Guinea Western New Guinea, also known as Papua, Indonesian New Guinea, or Indonesian Papua, is the western half of the Melanesian island of New Guinea which is administered by Indonesia. Since the island is alternatively named as Papua, the region ...
until that too was turned over to the Indonesians in 1962, due to diplomatic intervention of the US and UN.


Cold War and NATO cooperation

At the time of the creation of the
North Atlantic Treaty Organization The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
(NATO), the military focus was on the army and air force; it was not until the
Korean War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Korean War , partof = the Cold War and the Korean conflict , image = Korean War Montage 2.png , image_size = 300px , caption = Clockwise from top:{ ...
(1950–1953) that the navy got more recognition. The government allowed the creation of a balanced fleet consisting of two naval squadrons. Apart from the carrier , the Dutch navy consisted of four s, two s, eight s, four s, six s and a large number of
minesweeper A minesweeper is a small warship designed to remove or detonate naval mines. Using various mechanisms intended to counter the threat posed by naval mines, minesweepers keep waterways clear for safe shipping. History The earliest known usage of ...
s. The Netherlands developed its defence policy in close cooperation with other NATO members. The establishment of the
Warsaw Pact The Warsaw Pact (WP) or Treaty of Warsaw, formally the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, was a collective defense treaty signed in Warsaw, Poland, between the Soviet Union and seven other Eastern Bloc socialist republi ...
in 1955 intensified the arms race between West and East. Technical innovations rapidly emerged; the introduction of radar, sonar and guided missiles was particularly relevant for the navy. The
Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...
-dominated Warsaw Pact was perceived as the main permanent threat; this made a fixed military strategy useful. From 1965 onwards the Netherlands joined certain permanent NATO squadrons like the
Standing Naval Force Atlantic Standing NATO Maritime Group One (SNMG1) is one of NATO's standing naval maritime immediate reaction forces. SNMG1 consists of four to six destroyers and frigates. Its role is to provide NATO with an immediate operational response capability. Hi ...
. In the 1960s the Soviet Union abandoned its traditional land based strategy and built up a navy with worldwide impact, with many submarines and even an aircraft carrier. The main task of NATO navies was the protection of shipping lanes across the Northern Atlantic between the NATO-allies in North America and western Europe.


Current navy

After the fall of the
Berlin Wall The Berlin Wall (german: Berliner Mauer, ) was a guarded concrete barrier that encircled West Berlin from 1961 to 1989, separating it from East Berlin and East Germany (GDR). Construction of the Berlin Wall was commenced by the gover ...
in November 1989 the international military situation changed drastically. Globally, new conflicts emerged and the borders between friend and foe seemed to gradually fade. NATO's reorientation of the organisation's goals created a more prominent role for the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoni ...
as international peacekeepers. From 1990 onwards navy units were engaged in conflicts in
Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand ...
,
Eritrea Eritrea ( ; ti, ኤርትራ, Ertra, ; ar, إرتريا, ʾIritriyā), officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of Eastern Africa, with its capital and largest city at Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopi ...
,
Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
,
Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
,
Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is borde ...
,
Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus lie ...
but also the
Gulf War The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...
and the Yugoslavian conflict. The new goals of the Dutch navy were now changed to an expeditionary peacekeeping and peace enforcing force.


Gallery of famous Dutch sea battles

The tradition of maritime painting was strong in the Netherlands, especially in the
Golden Age The term Golden Age comes from Greek mythology, particularly the '' Works and Days'' of Hesiod, and is part of the description of temporal decline of the state of peoples through five Ages, Gold being the first and the one during which the G ...
, and one of the favourite topics was celebrating Dutch Naval victories. File:Battle of Scheveningen (Slag bij Ter Heijde)(Jan Abrahamsz. Beerstraten).jpg, The
Battle of Scheveningen The Battle of Scheveningen (also known as the Battle of Ter Heijde) was the final naval battle of the First Anglo-Dutch War. It took place on 31 July 1653 (10 August on the Gregorian calendar), between the fleets of the Commonwealth of Englan ...
, 31 July 1653 during the First Anglo-Dutch War (1652–54) by Jan Abrahamsz. Beerstraaten (1622–1666) File:De slag bij Terheide - The Battle of Schevening - August 10 1653 (Willem van de Velde I, 1657).jpg, The Battle of Terheide, 10 August 1653: episode from the First Anglo-Dutch War (1652–54) by Willem van de Velde the elder, 1657 File:De krijgsraad aan boord van de 'De Zeven Provinciën', het admiraalschip van Michiel Adriaensz de Ruyter, 10 juni 1666 (Willem van de Velde I, 1693).jpg, The Four Days' Battle Council on board the "Zeven Provincien", the flagship of Admiral de Ruyter, 10 June 1666, by Villem van de Velde the elder, 1693. File:Van Soest, Four Days Battle.jpg, The Four Days Battle (June 1666) by Pieter Cornelisz. van Soest (fl. 1642–1667) File:Storck, Four Days Battle.jpg, The famous painting of the Four Days Battle (June 1666) by Abraham Storck (1644–1708) showing de Ruyter's flagship, ''De Zeven Provincien'' engaged with the English flagship, ''Royal Prince''. File:Veroverde Engelse schepen na de Vierdaagse Zeeslag Rijksmuseum SK-A-439.jpeg, The four captured men-of-war - ‘Swiftsure,’ ‘Seven Oaks,’ ‘Loyal George,’ and ‘Convertine’ - brought into the Goereese Gat after the Four Day Battle at Sea, 11–14 June 1666: episode from the Second Anglo-Dutch War (1665–67) by Willem van de Velde the Younger (1633–1707) File:De ruyter de witt texel img 9310.jpg, Embarkment of
Michiel de Ruyter Michiel Adriaenszoon de Ruyter (; 24 March 1607 – 29 April 1676) was a Dutch admiral. Widely celebrated and regarded as one of the most skilled admirals in history, De Ruyter is arguably most famous for his achievements with the Dutch N ...
and
Cornelis de Witt Cornelis de Witt (; 15 June 1623 – 20 August 1672) was a Dutch politician and naval commendant of the Golden Age. During the First Stadtholderless Period De Witt was an influential member of the Dutch States Party, and was in opposition to t ...
at Texel for the attack on the Medway by Eugène Isabey (1804–1886) File:Van Soest, Attack on the Medway.jpg, Dutch Attack on the Medway, June 1667 by Pieter Cornelisz van Soest, painted c. 1667. The captured ship Royal Charles is right of center. File:Van de Velde, Battle of Schooneveld.jpg, The First Battle of Schooneveld, 28 May 1673 during the
Third Anglo-Dutch War The Third Anglo-Dutch War ( nl, Derde Engels-Nederlandse Oorlog), 27 March 1672 to 19 February 1674, was a naval conflict between the Dutch Republic and England, in alliance with France. It is considered a subsidiary of the wider 1672 to 1678 ...
.


See also

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Royal Netherlands Navy The Royal Netherlands Navy ( nl, Koninklijke Marine, links=no) is the naval force of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. During the 17th century, the navy of the Dutch Republic (1581–1795) was one of the most powerful naval forces in the world an ...
*
Royal Netherlands Navy Submarine Service The Royal Netherlands Navy Submarine Service ( nl, Onderzeedienst, link=no; OZD) is a department within the Royal Netherlands Navy that is responsible for the deployment of Dutch submarines. It was established out of the Netherlands Torpedo Se ...


References

Sources: * * * * * {{Europe topic , Maritime history of