Kingdom of Holland

The Kingdom of Holland was a country created by Napoleon Bonaparte in March 1806. It replaced the Batavian Republic with a monarchy to make it easier for France to control the Netherlands. Napoleon put his brother, Louis Bonaparte, in charge as king.

The kingdom included most of what is now the Netherlands and some areas in Germany, like East Frisia and Jever. However, King Louis tried to look out for Dutch interests rather than always following Napoleon’s orders. This did not please Napoleon.

In 1810, the Kingdom of Holland ended when France took over the Netherlands. The area stayed under French control until 1813. This was the first time the Netherlands had a formal monarchy since 1581, when it was part of the Spanish Netherlands. For the present-day nation, see the Netherlands and the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

Coat of arms

Napoléon’s brother Louis Bonaparte became the 'King of Holland' on 5 June 1806. At first, the kingdom’s symbol was planned to look like the Kingdom of Italy, with an eagle holding a shield that showed the arms of the United Netherlands, including a lion with a crown.

In December 1806, a new design was made in Paris. It combined the Napoléonic eagle with the Dutch lion. The shield was surrounded by the French Order of the Grand Eagle, and behind it were crossed sceptres. Above the shield was Napoleon’s star.

A few months later, on 20 May 1807, King Louis changed the design. He added a helmet, removed his brother’s star, and replaced the Grand Eagle with his own Dutch Order of the Union. He also added the old Dutch phrase "Unity makes strength" around the shield. Two hands came out from behind the shield holding swords, showing King Louis as Connétable de France.

History

The Batavian Republic changed its name to the Batavian Commonwealth in 1801, giving more power to local areas and less to the central government in The Hague. However, Napoleon Bonaparte thought this system was too weak.

In 1806, Napoleon decided to change the government of the Netherlands to a monarchy. He chose his brother, Louis Bonaparte, to be the new king. Louis arrived in The Hague in June 1806 and worked to improve the country. He learned the Dutch language, introduced new laws, and helped people during disasters. Many Dutch people began to see him as a good king.

However, Louis sometimes disagreed with Napoleon. He did not want to force young men to join the army or strictly control trade, which upset Napoleon. Eventually, Napoleon took over the Netherlands, ending the Kingdom of Holland in 1810.

Administrative division

In 1807, the Kingdom of Holland was split into eleven departments. Each department was further divided into smaller parts called quarters, districts, and cities. This way of organizing the country was inspired by rules from France.

The departments were:

• Department Amstelland [nl]
• Department Brabant [nl]
• Department Drenthe [nl]
• Department East-Friesland [nl]
• Department Friesland [nl]
• Department Gelderland [nl]
• Department Groningen [nl]
• Department Maasland [nl]
• Department Overijssel [nl]
• Department Utrecht [nl]
• Department Zeeland [nl]