THE NETHERLANDS

The Netherlands is the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which consists of the Netherlands, the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba in the Caribbean. The Netherlands is a parliamentary democratic constitutional monarchy, located in Western Europe. It is bordered by the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east.

The Netherlands is often called Holland. This is formally incorrect as North and South Holland in the western Netherlands are only two of the country's twelve provinces. As a matter of fact, many Dutch people colloquially use Holland as a synecdoche, being well aware of the widespread use of this name.

The Netherlands is a geographically low-lying and densely populated country. A remarkable aspect of the Netherlands is its flatness. Hilly landscapes can be found only in the south-eastern tip of the country on the foothills of the Ardennes

HISTORY:

Various Germanic tribes controlled the region (known today as the Netherlands) until just before the 1st century AD, when it entered into an alliance with the Roman Empire. Beginning in the 4th century, the Franks assumed control of the region, and held it until it was absolved into Charlemagne’s Empire in the 8th Century. Throughout the next few hundred years, control of the region changed hands various times, and in the 16th century ended up under Spanish rule.

Protestant and Catholic relations eventually led to regional division with the seven Northern provinces breaking from Spain and creating the United Provinces of the Netherlands. Rising conflict between these two regions eventually led to the Thirty Years War (1618 to 1648).

The Netherlands independence was finally recognized following the thirty years war in 1648. During the reign of William III, the northern (Holland) and southern (Belgium) provinces were united, but in 1830, the southern provinces seceded and officially formed the kingdom of Belgium. A new, liberal constitution was adopted by the Netherlands in 1848.

The Netherlands remained neutral during World War I, but despite this, the Nazi’s still invaded in 1940. It was later liberated in 1945.

Today, the country has very liberal social policies. Drugs and prostitution have been legalized, euthanasia is freely practiced, and same-sex marriages are legitimate in the Netherlands.

RELIGION:

It is estimated that 45% of the Dutch population is not member of any religious community; while the other 55% are distributed over a diversity of religions. The largest group, 26,6%, is Roman Catholic. 20% is distributed over a multitude of Protestant churches. The largest of which is the Protestant Church in the Netherlands, which in fact is an alliance of three Churches, two Calvinist and one Lutheran. Some 12% of the population is member of this Church. Smaller Churches have either been the result of conflicts within the Calvinist Church or been imported, mainly from the United States. The remaining 10% of the population is member of another religion, including Islam, Hinduism and Buddhism.