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About The Netherlands
The Netherlands are located in north-west Europe. The Netherlands borders the North Sea (north and west), Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east. The capital is Amsterdam and the government is seated in The Hague.
The Netherlands are also often referred to as Holland, although North and South Holland are actually only two of its twelve provinces. The word Dutch is used to refer to the people and language. There isn’t a specific Dutch cuisine, but “poffertjes” (small pancakes with butter and powdered sugar), “stroopwafels” (round biscuits with syrup in between) and “kroketten” (a roll of ragout, encased in breadcrumbs and deep-fried in oil) are popular Dutch snacks. Contrary to what many people believe, Dutch people don't regularly wear wooden shoes, live in windmills or wear old-fashioned clothing.
The Netherlands are a geographically low-lying country, with about 20% of its area and 21% of its population located below sea level. The country is divided into two main parts by three large rivers, the Rhine (Rijn) and its main distributaries, the Waal and the Meuse (Maas). The predominant wind direction in The Netherlands is southwest, which causes a moderate maritime climate, with cool summers and mild winters. Average temperature in August is between 25 and 30 degrees Celsius.
After the war, the Dutch economy prospered gaining closer ties with neighbouring states. The Netherlands were one of the founding members of the Benelux (Belgium, The Netherlands and Luxembourg), were among the twelve founding members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), and were among the six founding members of the European Coal and Steel Community, which would later evolve into the European Union.
The Netherlands have the oldest standing army in Europe. It was first established by Maurice of Nassau. After 1830, it was deployed mainly in the Dutch colonies, as the Netherlands remained neutral in European wars (including WWI), until the Netherlands were invaded in WWII and quickly conquered by Germany in May 1940.
After WWII, the Netherlands dropped their neutrality, and the Dutch army became part of NATO. In 1996 conscription was ended, and the Dutch army transformed into a professional army. Since the 1990s the Dutch army has been involved in the Bosnian War, the Kosovo War, Iraq and Afghanistan.
The military is composed of four branches, all of which carry the prefix Koninklijke (Royal):
- Koninklijke Landmacht(KL), the Royal Netherlands Army
- Koninklijke Marine(KM), the Royal Netherlands Navy, including the Naval Air Service and Marine Corps
- Koninklijke Luchtmacht(KLu), the Royal Netherlands Air Force
- Koninklijke Marechaussee(KMar), the Royal Military Police, tasks include military police and border control
General Peter van Uhm is the current Commander of the Netherlands armed forces. The Dutch Ministry of Defence employs almost 70,000 personnel, including over 20,000 civilian and over 50,000 military personnel.
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