The coat of arms of the

Kingdom of the Netherlands The Kingdom of the Netherlands (, ;, , ), commonly known simply as the Netherlands, is a sovereign state consisting of a collection of constituent territories united under the monarch of the Netherlands, who functions as head of state. The re ...

was originally adopted in 1815 and later modified in 1907. The arms are a composite of the arms of the former

Dutch Republic The United Provinces of the Netherlands, commonly referred to in historiography as the Dutch Republic, was a confederation that existed from 1579 until the Batavian Revolution in 1795. It was a predecessor state of the present-day Netherlands ...

and the arms of the

House of Nassau The House of Nassau is the name of a European aristocratic dynasty. The name originated with a lordship associated with Nassau Castle, which is located in what is now Nassau, Rhineland-Palatinate, Nassau in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. With t ...

, it features a checkered shield with a lion grasping a sword in one hand and a bundle of arrows in the other and is the heraldic symbol of the

monarch A monarch () is a head of stateWebster's II New College Dictionary. "Monarch". Houghton Mifflin. Boston. 2001. p. 707. Life tenure, for life or until abdication, and therefore the head of state of a monarchy. A monarch may exercise the highest ...

(

King Willem-Alexander Willem-Alexander (; Willem-Alexander Claus George Ferdinand; born 27 April 1967) is King of the Netherlands since 30 April 2013. Willem-Alexander was born in Utrecht during the reign of his maternal grandmother, Queen Juliana, as the eldest ch ...

) and the country. The monarch uses a version of the arms with a mantle () while the

government of the Netherlands The Netherlands is a Parliamentary system, parliamentary representative democracy. A constitutional monarchy, the country is organised as a Decentralization, decentralised unitary state.''Civil service systems in Western Europe'' edited by A. ...

uses a smaller version without the mantle (cloak) or the pavilion, sometimes only the shield and crown are used (). The components of the coats of arms were regulated by

Queen Wilhelmina Wilhelmina (; Wilhelmina Helena Pauline Maria; 31 August 1880 – 28 November 1962) was Queen of the Netherlands from 1890 until her abdication in 1948. She reigned for nearly 58 years, making her the longest-reigning monarch in Dutch history, as ...

in a royal decree of 10 July 1907, affirmed by

Queen Juliana Juliana (; Juliana Louise Emma Marie Wilhelmina; 30 April 1909 – 20 March 2004) was List of monarchs of the Netherlands, Queen of the Netherlands from 1948 until her abdication in 1980. Juliana was the only child of Queen Wilhelmina and Duke ...

in a royal decree of 23 April 1980.

Description

The

blazon In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct an accurate image. The verb ''to blazon'' means to create such a description. The visual d ...

is as follows: ''

Azure Azure may refer to: Color * Azure (color), a hue of blue ** Azure (heraldry) ** Shades of azure, shades and variations Arts and media * ''Azure'' (Art Farmer and Fritz Pauer album), 1987 * Azure (Gary Peacock and Marilyn Crispell album), 2013 * ...

, billetty Or a

lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'', native to Sub-Saharan Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body (biology), body; a short, rounded head; round ears; and a dark, hairy tuft at the ...

with a

coronet In British heraldry, a coronet is a type of crown that is a mark of rank of non-reigning members of the royal family and peers. In other languages, this distinction is not made, and usually the same word for ''crown'' is used irrespective of ra ...

Or armed and langued

Gules In heraldry, gules () is the tincture with the colour red. It is one of the class of five dark tinctures called "colours", the others being azure (blue), sable (black), vert (green) and purpure (purple). Gules is portrayed in heraldic hatch ...

holding in his dexter paw a

sword A sword is an edged and bladed weapons, edged, bladed weapon intended for manual cutting or thrusting. Its blade, longer than a knife or dagger, is attached to a hilt and can be straight or curved. A thrusting sword tends to have a straighter ...

Argent In heraldry, argent () is the tincture of silver, and belongs to the class of light tinctures called "metals". It is very frequently depicted as white and usually considered interchangeable with it. In engravings and line drawings, regions to b ...

hilted Or and in the sinister paw seven

arrow An arrow is a fin-stabilized projectile launched by a bow. A typical arrow usually consists of a long, stiff, straight shaft with a weighty (and usually sharp and pointed) arrowhead attached to the front end, multiple fin-like stabilizers c ...

s Argent pointed and bound together Or. (The seven arrows stand for the seven provinces of the Union of Utrecht.) The

shield A shield is a piece of personal armour held in the hand, which may or may not be strapped to the wrist or forearm. Shields are used to intercept specific attacks, whether from close-ranged weaponry like spears or long ranged projectiles suc ...

is crowned with the (Dutch) royal

crown A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, parti ...

and supported by two lions Or armed and langued gules. They stand on a scroll Azure with the text (Or) "Je Maintiendrai" (, French for "I shall maintain".)'' The monarch places this coat of arms on a mantle ''gules'' lined with ermine. Above the mantle is a pavilion ''gules'' again topped with the royal crown. In the royal decree, it is stated that male successors may replace the crown on the shield with a helm with the crest of Nassau.

History and origin of the coat of arms

This version of the coat of arms has been in use since 1907 but differs only slightly from the version that was adopted in 1815. From 1815 until 1907 all the lions wore the royal crown and the supporting lions were facing. The royal arms were adopted by the first king of The

William I William I may refer to: Kings * William the Conqueror (–1087), also known as William I, King of England * William I of Sicily (died 1166) * William I of Scotland (died 1214), known as William the Lion * William I of the Netherlands and Luxembour ...

, when he became king after the

Congress of Vienna The Congress of Vienna of 1814–1815 was a series of international diplomatic meetings to discuss and agree upon a possible new layout of the European political and constitutional order after the downfall of the French Emperor Napoleon, Napol ...

in 1815. As king, he adopted a coat of arms that combined elements of his family's ( Orange-Nassau) coat of arms and that of the former

that existed from 1581 until 1795. From his family arms he used the ''azure, billetty or'' with ''a lion rampant or'' of Nassau (blue shield, lion, billets). The "Je Maintiendrai" motto represents the Orange family since it came into the family with the princedom of Orange as "Je Maintiendrai Châlons". These elements are also found in the arms of king

William III William III or William the Third may refer to: Kings * William III of Sicily () * William III of England and Ireland or William III of Orange or William II of Scotland (1650–1702) * William III of the Netherlands and Luxembourg (1817–1890) N ...

, who was also king of England, Scotland & Ireland (1689–1702). From the arms of the former States General of the

Republic of the United Provinces The United Provinces of the Netherlands, commonly referred to in historiography as the Dutch Republic, was a confederation that existed from 1579 until the Batavian Revolution in 1795. It was a predecessor state of the present-day Netherland ...

he took the lion with a coronet, sword and arrows. The arrows symbolize the seven provinces that made up the Republic, the sword the determination to defend their liberty, and the coronet their sovereignty. William replaced the coronet with a royal crown. In 1907,

returned to an open coronet.

Counts of Nassau

The arms of Nassau has existed since about 1250. There are two versions of the Nassau arms, representing the two main branches. This is a result of two brothers, count Walram II and count Otto I, agreeing to divide their father's (

Henry II Henry II may refer to: Kings * Saint Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor (972–1024), crowned King of Germany in 1002, of Italy in 1004 and Emperor in 1014 *Henry II of England (1133–89), reigned from 1154 *Henry II of Jerusalem and Cyprus (1271–1 ...

) lands between them in 1255. The line of Walram added a crown to the lion in the Nassau arms to make it different from the lion used by the line of Otto. The kings and queens of the Netherlands are descendants of count Otto. The Grand Dukes of Luxemburg are descendants of count Walram. They also still use "Nassau" in their arms. Both lines are now extinct in the male line. The helm and crest that can be used in the royal arms by the male successors to the throne (and is in fact being used by some male members of the royal family) is: "On a (ceremonial) helmet, with bars and decoration Or and

mantling In heraldry, mantling or "lambrequin" (its name in French) is drapery tied to the helmet above the shield. In paper heraldry it is a depiction of the protective cloth covering (often of linen) worn by knights from their helmets to stave off the ...

Azure and Or, issuing from a

Or, a pair of wings joined

Sable The sable (''Martes zibellina'') is a species of marten, a small omnivorous mammal primarily inhabiting the forest environments of Russia, from the Ural Mountains throughout Siberia, and northern Mongolia. Its habitat also borders eastern Kaz ...

each with an arched bend Argent charged with three leaves of the lime-tree stems upward

Vert Vert or Verts may refer to: * Vert (heraldry), the colour green in heraldry * Vert (music producer) (born 1972), pseudonym of Adam Butler, an English music producer * Vert (river), in southern France * Vert (sport), a competition in extreme versio ...

". This crest is used by the descendants of Otto and differs from the crest used by the descendants of Walram. But in the royal decree of 1815 the crest issuing from a crown on the Dutch royal arms was the one used by the Walram line. Why this was done is not sure. Maybe due to the "mistake" this crest was hardly used. The crest of the Walram-line is: Between two trunks Azure billetty Or a sitting lion Or. The trunks are probably a misinterpretation of two cow horns, a crest that is frequently used in

German heraldry German heraldry is the tradition and style of heraldic achievements in Germany and the Holy Roman Empire, including national and civic arms, noble and burgher arms, ecclesiastical heraldry, heraldic displays and heraldic descriptions. German her ...

. On the Grand Coat of Arms of the Grand Duke of Luxemburg the lion is crowned, armed and langued Gules.

The Princedom of Orange

The motto has been used by every "ruling" member of the Nassau family, who was also the prince of Orange since it came into the family with the Princedom of Orange in 1530. Count

Henry III of Nassau-Breda Count Henry III of Nassau-Dillenburg-Dietz (12 January 1483 – 14 September 1538), Lord (from 1530 Baron) of Breda, Lord of the Lek, of Dietz, etc. was a count of the House of Nassau. He was born in Siegen, the son of Count John V of Nassau- ...

, who was living in the Low Countries, was married to Claudia Orange-Châlon. Her brother,

Philibert of Châlon Philibert de Chalon (18 March 1502 – 3 August 1530) was the last Prince of Orange from the House of Chalon. Biography Born at Nozeroy to John IV of Chalon-Arlay, Philibert served Emperor Charles V as commander in Italy, fighting in the War ...

, was the last Prince of Orange from the House of Châlon. When he died in 1530, Henry's and Claudia's son René of Nassau-Breda inherited the Princedom on condition that he used the name and coat of arms of the Châlon family. History knows him therefore as

René of Châlon René (''born again'' or ''reborn'' in French) is a common first name in French-speaking, Spanish-speaking, and German-speaking countries. It derives from the Latin name Renatus. René is the masculine form of the name (Renée being the feminine ...

. With this inheritance came the "Je Maintiendrai Châlons" motto into the Nassau family. René died in 1544 without leaving a child. His cousin William of Nassau-Dillenburg inherited all of René's lands. William became William of Orange (in English better known under his nickname

William the Silent William the Silent or William the Taciturn (; 24 April 153310 July 1584), more commonly known in the Netherlands as William of Orange (), was the leader of the Dutch revolt against the Spanish Habsburg Netherlands, Habsburgs that set off the ...

) and the founder of the

House of Orange-Nassau The House of Orange-Nassau (, ), also known as the House of Orange because of the prestige of the princely title of Orange, also referred to as the Fourth House of Orange in comparison with the other noble houses that held the Principality of Or ...

. William first changed the motto to "Je Maintiendrai Nassau". Later he (or his sons) dropped the family name from the motto.

The Dutch Republic

The sword and arrows originated from the

Habsburg The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout Europe d ...

rulers.

Gouda Arms of Dutch republic County Holland Kingdom The Netherlands

The lion, as representing the

Burgundian Netherlands The Burgundian Netherlands were those parts of the Low Countries ruled by the Dukes of Burgundy during the Burgundian Age between 1384 and 1482. Within their Burgundian State, which itself belonged partly to the Holy Roman Empire and partly t ...

, first appears as a crest on the tomb of

Philip the Handsome Philip the Handsome (22 June/July 1478 – 25 September 1506), also called the Fair, was ruler of the Burgundian Netherlands and titular Duke of Burgundy from 1482 to 1506, as well as the first Habsburg King of Castile (as Philip I) for a brief ...

. Later

Charles V Charles V may refer to: Kings and Emperors * Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (1500–1558) * Charles V of Naples (1661–1700), better known as Charles II of Spain * Charles V of France (1338–1380), called the Wise Others * Charles V, Duke ...

added the sword. The arrows were used, on coins etc., since the early 16th century to represent the

Seventeen Provinces The Seventeen Provinces were the Imperial states of the Habsburg Netherlands in the 16th century. They roughly covered the Low Countries, i.e., what is now the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, and most of the France, French Departments of Franc ...

in the

Low Countries The Low Countries (; ), historically also known as the Netherlands (), is a coastal lowland region in Northwestern Europe forming the lower Drainage basin, basin of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta and consisting today of the three modern "Bene ...

under control of Charles V. In 1578, during the

Eighty Years' War The Eighty Years' War or Dutch Revolt (; 1566/1568–1648) was an armed conflict in the Habsburg Netherlands between disparate groups of rebels and the Spanish Empire, Spanish government. The Origins of the Eighty Years' War, causes of the w ...

, the States General ordered a new great seal representing the lion, the sword and the 17 arrows combined. Although only seven provinces remained free from Spain, this seal stayed in use until 1795. After the completion of its forming in 1584 the

Republic of the Seven United Provinces A republic, based on the Latin phrase ''res publica'' ('public affair' or 'people's affair'), is a state in which political power rests with the public (people), typically through their representatives—in contrast to a monarchy. Although a ...

used as its arms: Or a crowned lion Gules armed and langued Azure, holding in his dexter paw a sword and in the sinister paw seven arrows tight together Azure. The colours of this version where derived from the most important of the seven provinces, the county of Holland (its arms are still in use since being adopted by the

counts of Holland The counts of Holland ruled over the County of Holland in the Low Countries between the 10th and the 16th century. The Frisian origins While the Frisian kingdom had comprised most of the present day Netherlands, the later province of Friesland ...

). After the colours where reversed and the arms became ''Gules a crowned lion Or armed and langued Azure holding in his dexter paw a sword Argent hilted Or and in the sinister paw seven arrows Argent pointed and tight together Or.'' The arrows symbolize the seven provinces that made up the Republic, the sword the determination to defend their liberty, and the coronet their sovereignty.

1795–1815 Revolution, Napoleonic years and Restoration

In 1795, with French help, the last

Stadholder In the Low Countries, a stadtholder ( ) was a steward, first appointed as a medieval official and ultimately functioning as a national leader. The ''stadtholder'' was the replacement of the duke or count of a province during the Burgundian and ...

William V William V may refer to: * William V, Duke of Aquitaine (969–1030) * William V of Montpellier (1075–1121) * William V, Marquess of Montferrat (1191) * William V, Count of Nevers (before 11751181) * William V, Duke of Jülich (1299–1361) * Will ...

was forced to flee and the

Batavian Republic The Batavian Republic (; ) was the Succession of states, successor state to the Dutch Republic, Republic of the Seven United Netherlands. It was proclaimed on 19 January 1795 after the Batavian Revolution and ended on 5 June 1806, with the acce ...

(1795–1806) was proclaimed. At first this had no influence on the use of the arms of the former Republic. Then in the following year the lion, that had served for approximately 280 years, was replaced by an allegoric image of a "Dutch maiden of Freedom". In 1802 the Batavian Republic reverted to the Republican lion, although it does not carry seven arrows. With the replacement of the Batavian Republic with the

Kingdom of Holland The Kingdom of Holland ( (contemporary), (modern); ) was the successor state of the Batavian Republic. It was created by Napoleon Bonaparte in March 1806 in order to strengthen control over the Netherlands by replacing the republican governmen ...

(1806–1810), the lion of the States General was again adopted. Louis Napoleon Bonaparte (brother of the French Emperor

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

) used as King Louis I a coat of arms that quartered the Dutch lion with the

French Imperial Eagle The French Imperial Eagle (, ) was a figure carried into battle as a standard by the ''Grande Armée'' of Napoleon I during the Napoleonic Wars. Although they were presented with regimental colours, Napoleon's regiments tended to carry at their ...

. After the emperor Napoleon abolished the Kingdom of Holland in 1810 the lion again had to leave the stage and the Imperial Eagle was the only image in use. In 1813 the French were forced out of the Netherlands and the son of the last Stadholder, William VI/I, was proclaimed 'Sovereign Prince' (1813–1815). To symbolize his new status he assumed a new coat of arms. In it the old lion with the sword and arrows made his second reappearance, now with a royal crown upon his head. Again it was placed in the prime locations of a quartered shield (I and IV quarters). In the II and III quarters were the arms of Châlon-Orange-Geneve. The arms of Nassau (Otto) were placed on an escutcheon in the center of the shield. The final retirement of the Republican lion came in 1815 with the establishment of the "

United Kingdom of the Netherlands The United Kingdom of the Netherlands is the unofficial name given to the Kingdom of the Netherlands as it existed from 1815 to 1839. The United Netherlands was created in the aftermath of the Napoleonic Wars through the fusion of territories t ...

". Because this new kingdom comprised not only the lands of the former Dutch Republic but also of the former Austrian or

Southern Netherlands The Southern Netherlands, also called the Catholic Netherlands, were the parts of the Low Countries belonging to the Holy Roman Empire which were at first largely controlled by Habsburg Spain (Spanish Netherlands, 1556–1714) and later by the ...

, it was also not appropriate to continue the use of the old arms. First a combination with the arms of Brabant (Sable a Lion Or, now the

coat of arms of Belgium The coat of arms of Belgium bears a Lion (heraldry), lion Or (heraldry), or, known as Leo Belgicus (Latin for ''the Belgian lion''), as its Charge (heraldry), charge. This is in accordance with article 193 (originally 125) of the Constitution of B ...

) was considered. In the end the attributes, the sword, arrows and crown, were placed in the care of his older "colleague" from Nassau to symbolize the union between the (now Royal) House of Nassau and the Netherlands. As seen above, this is still the basis of the current coat of arms.

Versions and variants

Government

Various versions of the Dutch royal arms are used by

Government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

, the

Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

and courts. Government and its agencies generally use a simplified version of the royal arms without the mantle, the pavilion and the topped royal crown. This simplified royal arms also feature on the cover of

passports A passport is an official travel document issued by a government that certifies a person's identity and nationality for international travel. A passport allows its bearer to enter and temporarily reside in a foreign country, access local aid ...

, embassies and consulates. The versions used by the legislature and its chambers show the royal arms with the royal crown and a buckled dark-blue strap that bears the name of the parliament or each chamber ''Staten-Generaal'' ( States General), ''Eerste Kamer der Staten-Generaal'' (

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

), ''Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal'' (

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

) in gold letters surrounding the shield.

Royal family

Members of the

Dutch royal family The monarchy of the Netherlands is governed by the country's charter and constitution, roughly a third of which explains the mechanics of succession, accession, and abdication; the roles and duties of the monarch; the formalities of communica ...

receive their own personalised arms which are based on the royal arms. For more details see Wapen van Nassau, Tak van Otto (in Dutch).

References

External links

Rijkswapen en Koninklijk wapen
– webpage on the High Council of Nobility's official website {{Coats of arms of Europe 1815 establishments in the Netherlands Symbols introduced in 1815 Monarchy of the Netherlands

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

National symbols of the Netherlands

William I of the Netherlands