Last modified: 2000-11-03 by mark sensen
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![[Royal flag of the Netherlands]](../images/n/nl-konin.gif)
from Shipmate's Flagchart
See also:
The royal standard (or royal flag as it's called officially) consists of a square orange field with a Nassau-blue cross (1/5th of the width) all over. In each quarter a bugle of blue, garnished with silver and hanging on a red cord. In the center of the cross the shield of the national/royal arms (including the royal crown), surrounded by the ribbon and badge of the Military Order of William. Adopted 27 august 1908.
Mark Sensen, 3 May 1997 and 17 March 1999
"The Royal Standard of the Netherlands was established on 27 August 1908. The field is square and orange, charged with a cross over all of 'Nassau'
blue. In each quarter is a 'Nassau' blue bugle, garnished with silver and hung on red cords. In the centre is the royal shield, which is blue with a
rampant lion holding a sword in one paw and a bundle of arrows in the other, and strewn with billets, all in gold, surrounded by the ribbon and
badge of the Order of William and ensigned with the Royal Crown."
Santiago Dotor 16 February 2000
"In addition to the Royal Standard there is also a Coronation Standard, only used at Coronation ceremonies, consisting of a white banner charged with the Royal Arms."
Santiago Dotor 16 February 2000
![[Former royal flag of the Netherlands]](../images/n/nl-kon18.gif)
from Shipmate's Flagchart
Before the present design the national tricolour with the royal arms (including crown and 2 supporting lions) was used.
Mark Sensen, 3 May 1997
Santiago Dotor 16 February 2000
"The Standard of Princess Beatrix [nowadays Queen Beatrix], established on 10 November 1956, is the same shape as the others [sic -- 'the others' are different in shape!] but has a triangle cut out of the fly. The field is likewise orange with a blue cross and has the crowned shield on an orange disc in the centre. In the first quarter is a Nassau bugle as in the Royal Standard, and in the lower hoist a red rose of Lippe [standing for Queen Beatrix' parents Arms]." (Also illustrated)
Santiago Dotor 16 February 2000
"The flag formerly used by Princess Beatrix is still in use by her royal sisters. A flag for the heir-presumptive, Prince Willem-Alexander, is being designed [at the time this was written in 1981, so nowadays it will be known -- any idea?]." Source: [bcr81], page 246.
Santiago Dotor 16 February 2000
Even though Princess Juliana was an only child, Princess Beatrix wasn't. And her sisters had children as well. Princess Margriet married
Pieter van Vollenhoven, who did not receive a title of Prins (Prince) at that wedding, though considering the currently laws he now has that title, and
probably is not represented by a standard because of that.
Their sons, Prins Maurits and his brothers, are represented by yet another standard, orange with cross pierced disk-shaped Nassau blue,
crowned shield inside the gap, horns of Oranje, and ... a white star (six-pointed) for Van
Vollenhoven.
That's as far as my knowledge goes. Recently Prins Maurits married, but whether this has caused a new standard I don't know.
Santiago Dotor 16 February 2000
"The Standard of Prince Claus of Amsberg, her consort [nowadays the royal consort], was introduced soon after their marriage in 1966. It is the same shape as the other standards [sic -- which of the three shapes! -- I would guess that of Prince Bernhard], but blue with an orange cross, and in the centre the crowned shield. In the first and fourth quarters is the lion from the Royal Arms, and in the other two a white tower, from the Prince's Arms." Source of all the above information: [bcr81], page 131, illustrations pp. 131 and 132.
Santiago Dotor 16 February 2000
Santiago Dotor 16 February 2000
"On 30 April 1980 Queen Juliana of the Netherlands abdicated in favour of her daughter Beatrix. She [Juliana] then became a Princess again, and reverted to the flag she had used before ascending the throne. This is like the flag used by Princess Beatrix, but with a black bull's head, representing Mecklenburg, in the lower hoist canton." (The father of the former Queen was Prince Henry of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, consort to Queen Wilhelmina.)
Santiago Dotor 16 February 2000
Santiago Dotor 16 February 2000
"The Standard of Prince Bernhard [von Lippe-Biesterfeld], the royal consort [at the time this was originally written, 1978, Queen Juliana had not yet
abdicated, more on this below], was established on 18 June 1937. The field is five by six, and is charged with an orange cross and with the royal
shield and crown, but not the Order, in the centre. The first and fourth [quarters] are blue and bear a lion as in the Arms, and the second and
third are white and bear a red rose, from the Arms of Lippe-Biesterfeld."
(Also illustrated)
Santiago Dotor 16 February 2000
Santiago's proposal for Prince Willem-Alexander's standard
Santiago Dotor 16 February 2000
Finally, a bit of vexillography. I have made my own hypothesis for Prince Willem-Alexander's standard, considering/supposing that (a) princes use 5:6 rectangular flags, while princesses use swallow tailed ones and that (b) princes and princesses of the blood use a blue cross on orange with a hunting horn in the upper hoist and their parental arms in the lower hoist, while princes-consort use an orange cross on blue with the Orange-Nassau lion in the upper hoist and lower fly and their own Arms in the other cantons. Sent separately as: nl!pwill.gif Standard of Prince Willem-Alexander (proposal)
Santiago Dotor 16 February 2000
Santiago Dotor 16 February 2000
But, even though Princess Juliana was an only child, Princess Beatrix wasn't. And her sisters had children as well. Princess Margriet married
Pieter van Vollenhoven, who did not receive a title of Prins at that wedding, though considering the currently laws he now has that title, and
probably is not represented by a standard because of that.
Their sons, Prins Maurits and his brothers, are represented by yet another
standard, orange with cross pierced disk-shaped Nassau blue, crowned shield
inside the gap, horns of Oranje, and ... a white star (six-pointed) for Van
Vollenhoven.
I GIFfed that one too, sent separately as: nl_pmaur.gif Standard of HH Prince Maurits
(also used by his brothers Bernhard, Pieter-Christiaan and Floris)
Santiago Dotor 16 February 2000
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