The foreign policy of the Netherlands is based on four basic commitments: to the Atlantic cooperation, to European integration, to international development and to international law. While historically the Kingdom of the Netherlands was a neutral state, since 1945 it has become a member of NATO, the United Nations, the European Union and many other international organizations. The Dutch economy is very open and relies on international trade. During and after the 17th century—its Golden Age—the Dutch built up a commercial and colonial empire. It was a leading shipping and naval power and was often at war with England, its main rival. Its main colonial holding was Indonesia, which fought for and achieved independence after 1945. The historical ties inherited from its colonial past still influence the foreign relations of the Netherlands. Foreign trade policy is handled by the European Union. The Dutch have been active in international peacekeeping roles.
The Hague is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in 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 of the Netherlands is Amsterdam, The Hague has been described as the country's de facto capital since the time of the Dutch Republic.
North Brabant, also unofficially called Brabant, is a province in the south of the Netherlands. It borders the provinces of South Holland and Gelderland to the north, Limburg to the east, Zeeland to the west, and the Flemish provinces of Antwerp and Limburg to the south. The northern border follows the Meuse westward to its mouth in the Hollands Diep strait, part of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta. North Brabant had a population of about 2,626,000 as of January 2023. Major cities in North Brabant are Eindhoven, Tilburg, Breda, its provincial capital 's-Hertogenbosch, and Helmond
Gelderland, also known as Guelders in English, is a province of the Netherlands, occupying the centre-east of the country. With a total area of 5,136 km2 (1,983 sq mi) of which 176 km2 (68 sq mi) is water, it is the largest province of the Netherlands by land area, and second by total area. Gelderland shares borders with six other provinces and the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia.
Dordrecht, historically known in English as Dordt or Dort, is a city and municipality in the Western Netherlands, located in the province of South Holland. It is the province's fifth-largest city after Rotterdam, The Hague, Zoetermeer and Leiden, with a population of 119,115.
Wageningen is a municipality and a historic city in the central Netherlands, in the province of Gelderland. It is famous for Wageningen University, which specialises in life sciences. The municipality had a population of 39,635 in 2021, of which many thousands are students from over 150 countries.
Tiel is a municipality and a town in the middle of the Netherlands. The town is enclosed by the Waal river and the Linge river to the South and the North, and the Amsterdam-Rhine Canal to the East. Tiel comprises the population centres Kapel-Avezaath, Tiel and Wadenoijen. The city was founded in the 5th century CE.
J-Stars was a Dutch ska music band, formed by Johan Steevens and played from 2004 to 2008. Their music is described as up-tempo ska. Their lyrics are all written in Dutch.
Beesd is a village in the Netherlands province of Gelderland. It is a part of the municipality of West Betuwe, and lies about 16 km west of Tiel. It is situated near the river Linge and has a railway station on the railway from Dordrecht to Geldermalsen.
Spinvis is a Dutch one-man music project centred on Erik de Jong. Using experimental, lo-fi music, Spinvis has earned two gold records in the Netherlands, and performed sold-out tours in both the Netherlands and Belgium.
The Diamond Film is a film award recognising domestic box office achievements in the Netherlands. The Diamond Film is awarded to films from the Netherlands once they have sold 1,000,000 cinema tickets or more during the original circulation. The award is initiated by the Netherlands Film Festival and the Netherlands Film Fund in addition to the Golden Film for 100,000 visitors, the Platinum Film for 400,000 visitors, and the Crystal Film for 10,000 visitors of a documentary film.
The Netherlands national football team has represented the Netherlands in international men's football matches since 1905. The men's national team is controlled by the Royal Dutch Football Association (KNVB), the governing body for football in the Netherlands, which is a part of UEFA, under the jurisdiction of FIFA. Most of the Netherlands home matches are played at the Johan Cruyff Arena, De Kuip, Philips Stadion, and De Grolsch Veste.
Cornelus Bernardus Rijvers was a Dutch footballer who was active as a midfielder and later as coach for PSV Eindhoven and the Netherlands national team.
ESNS is an annual four-day music showcase festival and conference held in January in Groningen, the Netherlands. The first three days of the festival (Eurosonic) feature artists from all over Europe, the last day of the festival (Noorderslag) features only Dutch artists. The conference is held during all four days of the event. Several awards are presented during Eurosonic Noorderslag: the Music Moves Europe Talent Awards, the European Festivals Awards, the Buma Cultuur Pop Award (Popprijs), the Pop Media Award, The Feather, the "Iron Venue and Festival Animals" and the Buma Music Meets Tech Award.
Het Grote Songfestivalfeest is a Dutch television concert programme starring artists of the Eurovision Song Contest, produced by PilotStudio in collaboration with the Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS and held at the Ziggo Dome in Amsterdam. Three editions of the show have been held, on 15 December 2019, 17 November 2022 and 16 November 2023.
The COVID-19 pandemic in the Netherlands has resulted in 8,635,672 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 22,986 deaths.
ProVeg Nederland, known as Viva Las Vega's (VLV) from 2011 to 2017, is a Dutch foundation that aims to accelerate the transition towards a plant-based food system. The foundation's stated goal is to make it easier for consumers to eat plant-based more often and also to help companies address the growing demand in plant-based products. ProVeg Nederland is a member of the international ProVeg International.
Big Brother is the Dutch & Belgian cooperation version of the international reality television franchise Big Brother produced by Endemol. The show aired in Netherlands on RTL5 and in the Flemish Region on VIER/Play4 and has had a total of three seasons. The first season of the show aired in 2021. A fourth season will air in 2024.
The 2021 Dutch curfew riots were a series of riots in the Netherlands that initiated as protests against the government's COVID-19 prevention measures and specifically the 21:00–4:30 curfew that was introduced on 23 January 2021. The police have described the riots as the worst in the country since the 1980 coronation riots.
