The Royal Netherlands Navy

The Royal Netherlands Navy (Dutch: Koninklijke Marine) is the navy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands It is the oldest and one of the four armed forces in the Netherlands. Its motto is: “worldwide safety at and from the sea“.

Wars, privateering and piracy have been a threat to trading and fishing since ancient times. In the Middle Ages, Dutch traders and fishermen took measures to protect themselves against threats. A convoy was often set up to provide protection and accompanied by an armed ship. One of the skippers became leader of the convoy and was given the title of “Admiral”. The term ‘Admiral’ probably arose during the period of the Crusades. It is a corruption of the Arabic amir al-bah, which literally means ‘commander of the sea’.

On January 8, 1488, Maximilian issued the ‘Ordination on the Admiralty’. Here the admiral’s duties were clearly defined and he became official head of the fleet. By establishing this Admiralty, the organization of Dutch defense at sea was permanently established and centralized. Only in 1815, when the Netherlands became a kingdom, was the term ‘Royal’ added to the navy by King Willem I and we call it the Royal Netherlands Navy.

Around 1860 the transition from wood to iron and steel as construction material for ships took place. A new type of warships like Ironclads, Monitors, Gunboats and Cruisers for the Royal Netherlands Navy were born.