The Netherlands Antilles was a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The country consisted of several island territories located in the Caribbean Sea. The islands were also informally known as the Dutch Antilles. The country came into being in 1954 as the autonomous successor of the Dutch colony of Curaçao and Dependencies and was dissolved in 2010. The Dutch colony of Surinam, although it was relatively close by on the continent of South America, did not become part of the Netherlands Antilles but became a separate autonomous country in 1954. All the island territories that belonged to the Netherlands Antilles remain part of the kingdom today, although the legal status of each differs. As a group they are still commonly called the Dutch Caribbean, regardless of their legal status. People from this former territory continue to be called Antilleans (Antillianen) in the Netherlands.
With the constitutional reform of 1848, the nobles lost their constitutional role with regards to selecting members for the States-Provincial. Thereafter, the only privileges currently enjoyed by the nobility are the carrying of titles and the grant of coats of arms by royal decree.
The coat of arms of Amsterdam is the official coat of arms symbol of the city of Amsterdam. It consists of a red shield and a black pale with three silver Saint Andrew's Crosses, the Imperial Crown of Austria, two golden lions, and the motto of Amsterdam. Several heraldic elements have their basis in the history of Amsterdam. The crosses and the crown can be found as decorations on different locations in the city.
The Netherlands Antilles was an autonomous Caribbean country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It was dissolved on 10 October 2010.
The current Crown of the Netherlands is of relatively modern origin. In 1813 the new "Sovereign Ruler" of the Netherlands, Prince Willem of Orange, son and heir of the exiled Stadtholder Willem V of Orange, was sworn in as Dutch monarch in Amsterdam. There was no crown present at the ceremony.
The Kingdom of the Netherlands, is a country and constitutional monarchy with the large majority of its territory in Western Europe and with several small West Indian island territories in the Caribbean. The four parts of the Kingdom—Aruba, Curaçao, the Netherlands, and Sint Maarten—are constituent countries and participate on a basis of equality as partners in the Kingdom.
A heraldic authority is defined as an office or institution which has been established by a reigning monarch or a government to deal with heraldry in the country concerned. It does not include private societies or enterprises which design and/or register coats of arms. Over the centuries, many countries have established heraldic authorities, and several still flourish today.
The study of Dutch heraldry focuses on the use of coats of arms and other insignia in the country of the Netherlands. Dutch heraldry is characterised by its simple and rather sober style, and in this sense, is closer to its medieval origins than the elaborate styles which developed in other heraldic traditions.
The Caribbean Netherlands are the three special municipalities of the Netherlands that are located in the Caribbean Sea. They consist of the islands of Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba, although the term "Caribbean Netherlands" is sometimes used to refer to all of the islands in the Dutch Caribbean. In legislation, the three islands are also known as Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba or the BES islands. The islands are currently classified as public bodies in the Netherlands and as overseas countries and territories of the European Union; thus, EU law does not automatically apply.
The coat of arms of the Orange Free State was the official heraldic symbol of the Orange Free State as a republic from 1857 to 1902, and later, from 1937 to 1994, as a province of South Africa. It is now obsolete.
The coat of arms of Rotterdam is the official symbol of the city of Rotterdam. It consists of a shield and has a green band of the original weapon of Weena, bisected by a white band symbolizes the Rotte, two golden lions, and four lions, two black and two red on a gold field, and the motto of Rotterdam.
The Identity card BES is a uniform identity card for residents in the Caribbean Netherlands introduced upon the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles in 2010. The cards are machine-readable and have the size of a credit card. The front contains the words Identiteitskaart followed by the island names Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba. The card also contains the coat of arms of the island of issue.
The coat of arms of Sint Eustatius consists of a shield and the motto. It was established on 9 November 2004 by the Island council of Sint Eustatius, when it was still part of the Netherlands Antilles. It remained the coat of arms of Sint Eustatius after the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles and the subsequent change of Sint Eustatius's constitutional status into a special municipality of the Netherlands in 2010.
The coat of arms of Bonaire was established in 1986 by the island council, when Bonaire was still part of the Netherlands Antilles. It remained the coat of arms of Bonaire after the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles and the subsequent change of Bonaire's constitutional status into a special municipality of the Netherlands in 2010.
The coat of arms of Hoorn is a coat of arms that has been in use since the middle ages. Although over time it underwent some changes, there has been no change to the coat of arms since it was acknowledged in use by the High Council of Nobility in 1816. At present, in the original form, it is the coat of arms of the municipality of Hoorn. The current municipality was formed in 1979 by merging the city of Hoorn with the villages Zwaag and Westerblokker; it was decided to use the old coat of arms as coat of arms of the new municipality.
The coat of arms of Zaanstad has been formally acknowledged since 27 February 1974. The coat of arms was previously that of the jurisdictional area of Westsane en Crommenie, which now form the municipality of Zaanstad. These two areas were on the same areas as the municipalities who fused in 1974 to become the municipality of Zaanstad. The municipality of Assendelft alone used a coat of arms who didn't look like those of the other municipalities. The other municipalities and places used a coat of arms with four lions in it.
The flag of Scheveningen is in azure with three right swimming herrings of silver, each herring with a three-leaved yellow crown, floating above the head. The origin of the coat of arms is a matter of debate because Scheveningen is not, and never has been, an autonomous municipality. Since the village was founded in 1284, Scheveningen has always been a part of the municipality of The Hague.
The coat of arms of Groningen is an official symbol of the province. It was designed when the region was united in 1595 and formally approved in 1947 by Queen Wilhelmina. The coat of arms consists of two lions supporting a crowned shield which is decorated with the shields of the city of Groningen and of the Ommelanden.
The coat of arms of Enkhuizen has been the coat of arms ever since Enkhuizen received borough rights in 1355. The coat of arms was acknowledged in 1816 by the High Council of Nobility, the coat of arms has not been changed ever since.
This page shows the coats of arms, heraldic achievements, and heraldic flags of the House of Nassau.
