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| 2205 King Willem-Alexander with his wife, his mother, and his three daughters, in 2013, soon after coronation. |
Posted on 10.01.2016, 19.02.2016
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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| 2307 King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima of the Netherlands |
The current King of the Netherlands is Willem-Alexander (full name Willem-Alexander Claus George Ferdinand; born 27 April 1967), the oldest child of Beatrix of the Netherlands and German diplomat Claus van Amsberg. He went to public primary and secondary schools, served in the Royal Netherlands Navy, studied history at Leiden University, and is interested in sports and international water management issues. He is the first male monarch of the Netherlands since the death of his great-great-grandfather King William III in 1890.
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