The Hague, a Royal City

A visitor to The Hague at the beginning of the nineteenth century would have found that the town offered many attractions. The fact that The Hague has the image of a ‘green town' and a ‘special town'is all due to the fact that for 750 years it has been the town where first the Counts of Holland and later the Stadholders and the Kings of the House of Orange Nassau have lived. Ever since 1517 members of the princely House of Nassau, or later Orange Nassau had lived, either temporarily or permanently, in The Hague. After a brief interregnum The Hague once again became both a residence for the House of Orange and the seat of government — and has remained so until today. The centuries-old sense of identification which the people feel with the House of Orange and the royal character of The Hague are still thoroughly visible.