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| 2205 King Willem-Alexander with his wife, his mother, and his three daughters, in 2013, soon after coronation. |
The Kingdom of the Netherlands has been an independent monarchy since 16 March 1815, but has been hereditarily "governed" by members of House of Orange-Nassau since 1559, when Philip II of Spain appointed William of Orange as stadtholder. William became the leader of the Dutch Revolt and the independent Dutch Republic. He was followed by several of his descendants, and during the 18th century, the function of stadtholder developed into a hereditary head of state. The last stadtholder was William V, and his son William I became the first king.
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