Het verhaal van Nederland

After the Ice Age, the Netherlands gradually takes on its current form. Due to climate changes, the first inhabitants have to adapt to their new living conditions.

The story of the Netherlands follows the trail of the Romans in the Netherlands. It is Julius Caesar who describes our country and its inhabitants for the first time. But the arrival is not without a struggle.

In the early Middle Ages, the Frisians inhabited the coastal region of the Netherlands. They believed in nature gods and even in human sacrifice.

In the thirteenth century, our first king, Willem II, fell in battle against the West Frisians. At this time, the Netherlands was a patchwork of counties and duchies.

In the fourteenth century, Europe was ravaged by a terrible disease that claimed millions of victims: the plague. The church viewed this Black Death as a punishment from God.

In the sixteenth century, the Eighty Years' War broke out. A struggle forever linked to the name of Willem of Orange.

The Netherlands became a world power in the 17th century, thanks to a spirit of trade, but primarily through plunder and war. A small elite became fabulously wealthy through the exploitation and oppression of others.

At the end of the 18th century, our country is torn apart by a civil war. Will our country become a monarchy or a democratic republic?

In the 19th century, the Netherlands experienced the Industrial Revolution. It was a time of new inventions and technological progress.

During the Second World War, war crimes were committed before our eyes. Not only by Germans, but also by ourselves.