The Dutch monarchy

The present and only native royal family of the Netherlands, the house of Orange-Nassau was established in 1815 at the [Congress of Vienna]? as part of the rearrangment of Europe after the fall of Napoleon Bonaparte. They were given the modern-day Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg to rule. Previous to the [Napoleonic War]?, the Netherlands had stadholders? from the same family although the government was a republic. The first king of the constitutional monarchy the Netherlands, Willem I, was a descendant of [William the Silent]? and his son William of Orange, who from 1568 on had led the Dutch in their eighty-year struggle for independence from Spain. His family had been an important power in Dutch politics. They came from Dillenburg, Germany, home of the Nassau family. William's title 'Prince of Orange' was aquired through his possession of the county 'Orange', located south of Valence in France.

Successive Dutch kings and queens:

• [William I]? 1815-1840 (Belgium seceded during his reign)
• [William II]? 1840-1849
• [William III]? 1849-1890
• Wilhelmina? 1890-1948
• Juliana 1948-1980
• Beatrix 1980-

Luxembourg seceded when Wilhelmina came to the throne in 1890 at age 10 -- her mother, Queen Emma, acted as regent until Wilhelmina became 18 -- because at the time they were not willing to accept a queen. Instead a family member, Adolf, former Duke of Nassau, became the first grandduke of Luxembourg.

Also Napoleon set up [Louis Napoleon]? as king over the Netherlands, called the Kingdom of Holland, from 1806-1810.

The Dutch royal family today is much larger than it has ever been. Queen Beatrix and her husband, Prince Claus, have three sons, Willem-Alexander, Johan Friso and Constantijn (married to princess Laurentien). Her sister Margriet and her spouse prince Pieter van Vollenhoven have four sons: Maurits, Bernhard, Pieter-Christiaan and Floris. These seven princes as well as Margriet, are all (potentially) legal heirs to the throne, although the first right goes to the crownprince, and after him to his brothers. The two other sisters of Beatrix, Irene and Christina, have renounced their rights to the throne due to marriages which were not officially approved by the Dutch government.

The crown prince is Willem-Alexander (born 1967), prince of Oranje-Nassau. His fiancée is [Maxima Zorreguieta Cerruti]?, whose father was a minister of agriculture in the dictatorial regime under general Vidéla in Argentina.

Abdication of the throne has occured several times. Queen Wilhemina and Queen Juliana both abdicated in favor of their daughters and Willem I abdicated in favor of his son.