The flag of the Netherlands is a horizontal tricolour of red, white and blue. It developed during the Dutch Revolt and is one of the oldest tricolour traditions in Europe.

What does the Dutch flag look like?

The flag has three equal horizontal bands: red at the top, white in the centre and blue at the bottom.

From orange to red

During the struggle for independence from Spain in the late sixteenth century, supporters of William of Orange used an orange-white-blue banner known as the Prince’s Flag. Over the seventeenth century red increasingly replaced orange on Dutch flags. The reason was likely a combination of practical dye considerations and changing political usage rather than one single event.

Modern standardisation

The red-white-blue tricolour became firmly established as the Dutch national flag. A royal decree in 1937 confirmed red, white and blue as the official colors, ending periodic debate about whether orange should return.

Netherlands flag facts

• Colors: red, white and blue
• Design: horizontal tricolour
• Predecessor: orange-white-blue Prince’s Flag
• Colors confirmed by royal decree: 1937

Reference

Reference: Dutch royal decrees and the documented history of the Prince’s Flag and red-white-blue tricolour.