Flag of the Netherlands

What the flag means

• 🔴Red, white and blue — originally orange (the Prince of Orange), later changed to red

Design set by: ⁨Koninklijk Besluit van 19 februari 1937 houdende vaststelling van de kleuren van de vlag van het Koninkrijk der Nederlanden⁩ · Adopted 1937

Highlights

• 🌷 Tulips and windmill scenery
• 🚲 A cyclist's paradise
• 🎨 Masters Van Gogh and Rembrandt
• 💧 Land reclaimed from the sea
• 🧀 A rich and varied cheese culture

Quick facts

Region

Europe · Western Europe

Population

18,087,633 people (2025)

Area

41,850 km²

Capital

Amsterdam

Languages

Dutch, English

Currency

Euro (EUR)

Organizations

United Nations, European Union, NATO, OECD

Neighboring countries

• Belgium
• Germany

Land neighbors, approximated from simplified map outlines.

Symbols in History (1)

Coats of arms and emblems whose historic seat lies within this country’s present-day territory.

• 

  Arms of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the version used since 1907

  Kingdom of the Netherlands · 1815–present · current kingdom arms

  OriginSince 1907 the arms of the Kingdom of the Netherlands have shown gold rectangles on a blue field with a crowned gold lion, the lion holding a sword and seven arrows.

  DescriptionGold rectangles are scattered over a blue field, and a crowned gold lion stands on its hind legs holding a sword in one forepaw and a bundle of arrows in the other. Two gold lions support the shield on either side, below is a blue ribbon reading 'JE MAINTIENDRAI', and behind it are a purple mantle lined with ermine and a crown.

  Source: Royal House of the Netherlands - Coats of arms · Image source: Wikimedia Commons — Royal coat of arms of the Netherlands.svg · Licence: CC BY-SA 3.0 · Sodacan

State & regional flags (12)

• 

  Drenthe

  A white field crossed by two red stripes, with a black castle tower at the centre. The six red stars, three to each side of the tower, stand for the six self-governing judicial districts into which old Drenthe was divided.

• 

  Flevoland

  A white fleur-de-lis sits on the blue hoist, a yellow wave crosses the middle, and green lies below. Blue is water, yellow the line where reclaimed land emerged, green the new farmland.

• 

  Friesland

  Diagonal blue and white stripes with seven red heart-shaped water-lily leaves (pompeblêden), representing the seven medieval Frisian sea-lands.

• 

  Gelderland

  Three horizontal stripes of blue, yellow, and black, derived from the coat of arms of the historic Duchy of Guelders.

• 

  Groningen

  A green and white central cross superimposed on red and blue quarters, combining the colors of the City of Groningen and the Ommelanden region.

• 

  Limburg

  White and yellow horizontal bands separated by a narrow blue stripe representing the Meuse River, with the red double-tailed lion of Limburg on the hoist.

• 

  North Brabant

  A red and white checkered pattern of 24 squares (Brabants bont), derived from the historic war banner of the medieval Duchy of Brabant.

• 

  North Holland

  Three horizontal stripes of yellow, red, and blue, combining the historical colors of the coats of arms of Holland and West Friesland.

• 

  Overijssel

  Red bands run along the top and bottom edges with yellow bands inside them, and a blue wavy stripe crosses the middle between the yellow bands. The wave is the IJssel, the river that gave the province its name.

• 

  South Holland

  A yellow field with a red lion outlined in black, rearing towards the hoist. Its tongue is the same red as its body; the lion is carried down from the arms of the old County of Holland.

• 

  Utrecht

  A horizontal bicolour, white over red, with a red canton in the upper hoist bearing a white cross. The white cross on red is carried down from the Bishopric of Utrecht.

• 

  Zeeland

  Seven wavy bands of blue and white alternate, and at the centre a red lion rises out of the water. The waves are sea-girt Zeeland, the lion its long struggle against the water.