The red, white, and blue flag of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Have these colors always been like the same? A little history. The original flag of the republic, officially adopted in 1599, was the banner of the Prince of Orange with his family colors: orange, white, and blue. That is, the flag looked exactly as it does today, but with orange instead of red. Previously, the participants in the anti-Spanish revolution in the Netherlands used 6-9 striped flags with the same color combination.
At the end of the 18th century, following revolutionary upheavals, the orange monarchical stripe was replaced with a red one. This flag remained as the national flag even after the Netherlands became a monarchy in 1815. All this makes the Dutch flag possibly the oldest tricolor flag in continuous use!
Incidentally, there’s a fairly popular belief that the flag’s change from orange to red also had a practical purpose: orange faded faster than red on naval flags. Some experts believe the flag’s change in appearance is linked to Napoleon’s conquests and the founding of the Batavian Republic.
To put an end to all discussion, a royal decree in 1937 established the colors of the Dutch flag as follows: “The colors of the flag of the Kingdom of the Netherlands are red, white, and blue” (Dutch: De kleuren van de vlag van het Koninkrijk der Nederlanden zijn rood, wit en blauw). This became the shortest decree in history, and it was issued by Queen Wilhelmina on February 19, 1937.
The modern flag of the Netherlands can be seen flying above government buildings, naval bases, and military bases. The national symbol is actively used by young people during school and university graduation ceremonies. On these days, school bags and backpacks may be hung out along with the flag (which local residents constantly see in many of their neighbors…)
