THE NETHERLANDS : THE HAGUE (Den Haag)
Between 1230 and 1280,
a castle was built
where the Binnenhof now stands
in The Hague. Though it started off as a small hunting lodge, it was
extended under successive counts, including Floris V. In the fourteenth
century a settlement known as 's-Gravenhage (abbreviated to "Den Haag")
grew up around the castle. Because of the court's presence, the
settlement soon became a prosperous village and a modest centre of
industry (textiles and beer brewing). The history of The Hague was made by the
successive leaders and administrators who took up residence there. The
Hague was where
monarchs, stadholders and counts
lived and where the
representatives of the cities and provinces met, just as the members of
parliament do today.
The Hague is still the heart of political power
in the Netherlands. Over
the years it has also acquired importance as an international political
centre. Aside from the residence of the Queen, the government and the
foreign embassies, it also boasts several international institutions,
such as the Permanent Court of Arbitration, the International Court of
Justice, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and
the Yugoslavia Tribunal (ICTY), and in future it will house the
International Criminal Court. The Hague has therefore justly been dubbed
the judicial capital of the world.
Not only is The Hague the official seat of parliament, it is also the
home of Holland’s Royal Family. If the flag is raised at Huis Ten Bosch
Palace, Queen Beatrix is in residence. The Queen has
her offices in Noordeinde Palace, in the city center. Every year, on the
third Tuesday of September, the Royal Family rides in the Golden Coach
to the Binnenhof. Queen Beatrix officially opens the new parliamentary
year by making her annual address from the throne at the Ridderzaal.
Over the years, The Hague has grown into a cosmopolitan city; it's now
the site of no fewer than three royal palaces, some 64 foreign
embassies, and European headquarters for innumerable international
engineering, oil, and chemical concerns. The lush greenery of its
original hunting grounds remains in the large parks, gardens, and woods
that continue to thrive within the city limits.
History of The Hague
Between 1230 and 1280,
a castle was built
where the Binnenhof now stands
in The Hague. Though it started off as a small hunting lodge, it was
extended under successive counts, including Floris V. In the fourteenth
century a settlement known as 's-Gravenhage (abbreviated to "Den Haag")
grew up around the castle. Because of the court's presence, the
settlement soon became a prosperous village and a modest centre of
industry (textiles and beer brewing). The history of The Hague was made by the
successive leaders and administrators who took up residence there. The
Hague was where
monarchs, stadholders and counts
lived and where the
representatives of the cities and provinces met, just as the members of
parliament do today.
The Hague is still the heart of political power
in the Netherlands. Over
the years it has also acquired importance as an international political
centre. Aside from the residence of the Queen, the government and the
foreign embassies, it also boasts several international institutions,
such as the Permanent Court of Arbitration, the International Court of
Justice, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and
the Yugoslavia Tribunal (ICTY), and in future it will house the
International Criminal Court. The Hague has therefore justly been dubbed
the judicial capital of the world.
Not only is The Hague the official seat of parliament, it is also the
home of Holland’s Royal Family. If the flag is raised at Huis Ten Bosch
Palace, Queen Beatrix is in residence. The Queen has
her offices in Noordeinde Palace, in the city center. Every year, on the
third Tuesday of September, the Royal Family rides in the Golden Coach
to the Binnenhof. Queen Beatrix officially opens the new parliamentary
year by making her annual address from the throne at the Ridderzaal.
Over the years, The Hague has grown into a cosmopolitan city; it's now
the site of no fewer than three royal palaces, some 64 foreign
embassies, and European headquarters for innumerable international
engineering, oil, and chemical concerns. The lush greenery of its
original hunting grounds remains in the large parks, gardens, and woods
that continue to thrive within the city limits.
