The Hague

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This article is about the city in the Netherlands; there is also a region known as (the) Hague in France.

Template:Infobox Dutch municipality 4 Image:Logo den haag.gif Image:Denhaag.gif The Hague (with capital T; Dutch: officially Image:Ltspkr.png's-Gravenhage, commonly Image:Ltspkr.pngDen Haag) is the third-largest city in the Netherlands after Amsterdam and Rotterdam, with a population of 472,087 (January 1 2005) (700,000 in the greater metropolitan area) and an area of approximately 100 km². It is located in the west of the country, in the province South Holland, of which it is also the provincial capital.

The Hague is the seat of government, but, somewhat anomalously, not the official capital of the Netherlands, a role set aside by the Dutch constitution for Amsterdam. The Hague hosts the Eerste Kamer (literally "First Chamber") or "Senaat" and the Tweede Kamer (literally "Second Chamber"), respectively the upper and lower houses forming the Dutch parliament. The Dutch Queen Beatrix lives and works in The Hague as well. All foreign embassies and most government ministries are located in the city, as well as the Supreme Court and many lobbying organisations.

1 History
2 The city
3 Business
4 International organisations
5 Culture
6 Sport
7 Annual events
8 Transportation
9 Famous people from The Hague
10 Population
11 Subdivisions
12 Nearby towns
13 External links

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History

Image:Binnenhof.jpgThe Hague was founded in 1248 by William II, Count of Holland and King of Germany, who was supposed to become Holy Roman Emperor. He started the construction of a castle in a forest near the sea in Holland, where he intended to live after his coronation. He died in battle before he could be crowned. His castle was not finished, but parts of it remain and are now called the Ridderzaal (Knights' Hall). It is still in use for political events, such as the annual speech from the throne by the monarch.

Later, the counts of Holland used The Hague as their administrative center. 'Des Graven Hage' literally means "the counts' hedge" or "the count's private enclosure". The powerful cities of Holland, like Leiden, Delft, and Dordrecht, struck a compromise to choose the then small and unimportant The Hague as their administrative center. This policy was never changed, and The Hague is to this day the center of government but not the official capital.

To keep The Hague small it wasn't allowed city rights or allowed to build city walls. When city walls were finally allowed in the 1500s, the population decided to use the money to build a city hall instead of city walls. This proved disastrous during the Eighty Years' War, as it allowed the Spanish troops to easily occupy the town.

The Hague was finally named a city by the French occupation force in 1806, centuries after other Dutch cities had received similar rights. All this has led to the urban legend that The Hague is not a city but a village.

Because of its history it lacks a large historical inner city like the nearby cities of Leiden and Delft. But when the government started playing a more prominent role in Dutch society after 1850, The Hague quickly expanded. The older parts of the city are therefore mostly from the 19^th century and the early 20^th century.

Parts of the city sustained heavy damage during World War II. The Atlantic Wall was built through part of the city, causing whole neighbourhoods to be torn down by the German occupiers. On March 3, 1945, the Royal Air Force bombed the Bezuidenhout district. The target was an installation of V-2 rockets in a nearby park. Due to navigational errors, the bombs fell on a heavily populated part of the city. Over 500 people died and the scars in the city can still be seen today.

After the war The Hague was at a point the largest building site in Europe. The city expanded massively in the southwest. The destroyed areas were also quickly rebuilt. The population peaked at 600.000 inhabitants around 1965.

In the 1970s and 1980s the mostly white middle classes moved to neighbouring towns like Voorburg, Leidschendam, Rijswijk and most of all Zoetermeer. This led to the traditional pattern of an impoverished inner city and more prosperous suburbs. Attempts to include parts of the suburbs in The Hague were highly controversial. In the 1990s, with the consent of the Dutch Parliament, The Hague did succeed in annexing fairly large areas from its neighboring towns on which complete new residential areas were built and are still being built.

The stork is the symbol of Den Haag.

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The city

Image:Thehague 4.jpg Image:The Hague Hoftoren.jpg

Image:Den Haag stadhuis april 2004.JPGCity life concentrates around the Hofvijver and the Binnenhof, which is where the Parliament is located.

The city's image is often one of a "boring" city characterised by a large number of civil servants and diplomats (see below). In fact, the number of foreign residents (especially the expats) means the city is culturally quite diverse, with many foreign pubs, shops and events. Amongst other things this meant that for a time the city centre was known to have the most diverse selections of shops in the country, including for instance an English "expat-shop".

The Hague is the largest Dutch city on the North Sea and comprises two distinct beach towns. The main beach resort Scheveningen, in the northwestern part of the city, is a popular destination for tourists and young people. With 10 million visitors a year it is the most popular beach town in the Benelux. It's perhaps for this reason that many, even some Dutch people, mistakenly believe Scheveningen is a city in its own right. That is not the case: Scheveningen is one of The Hague's eight districts ("stadsdelen"). Kijkduin, in the southwest, is The Hague's other beach resort. It is a lot smaller and attracts mainly local people.

The former Dutch colony of Netherlands East Indies ("Nederlands-Indië", current-day Indonesia) has left its mark on The Hague. Many streets are named after places in the Netherlands East Indies and there is a sizable "Indisch(e)" and "Indo" (i.e. mixed Dutch-Indonesian) community. Since the loss of these Dutch possessions in December 1949, "Indisch(e)" and "Indo" people often refer to The Hague as "the Widow of the Indies".

The older parts of the town usually have characteristically wide and long streets. Houses are generally low-rise (not more than 3 floors), and quite elegant. The layout of the city is more spacious than other Dutch cities. There are almost no canals in The Hague, as most of them were drained in the late 1800s.

Some of the most prosperous and some of the poorest neighbourhoods of the Netherlands can be found in The Hague. The wealthier areas (The Vogelwijk, Statenkwartier, Belgisch Park and Benoordenhout) are generally located in the northwest part of the city. The poorer areas (Transvaal, Moerwijk, the Schilderswijk) can be found in the southern and eastern areas. (The last of these, the Schilderswijk, was the poorest city district in Western Europe for much of the 1980s). This division is reflected in the local accent: The more affluent citizens are usually called "Hagenaars" and speak so-called "bekakt Haags" ("Bekakt" is Dutch for "stuck-up"). This contrasts with the "Hagenezen", who speak "plat Haags" ("plat" meaning "flat" or "common"). There is relatively little social interaction between these groups.

The tallest building is the Hoftoren (see image).

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Business

Professional life in The Hague is dominated by the large number of civil servants and diplomats who work in the city. Government ministries and public institutions are almost all located in The Hague. Added to that several large and international businesses have their headquarters in The Hague:

Royal Dutch-Shell, one of the largest oil companies in the world
KPN (Koninklijke PTT Nederland), the Dutch national telephone company (fixed and mobile divisions)
AEGON, one of the world’s leading insurance companies
Nationale Nederlanden, an insurance company that is part of the ING Group (shared HQ with Rotterdam)
TPG Post, the national provider of postal and logistical services. Part of TNT N.V.

There has never been any large-scale industrial activity in The Hague, with the possible exception of the fishing harbour in Scheveningen. Many of the city’s logistical and minor-industrial services are located in the Binckhorst district, which contains many large warehouses.

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International organisations

As a result of its rich legacy in international politics, The Hague is home to over 150 international (legal) organisations. These include the Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia and the International Court of Justice.

The foundation of The Hague as an "international city of peace and justice" was laid over a hundred years ago in 1899, when the world's first Peace Conference took place in The Hague, followed by a second in 1907. A direct result of these meetings was the establishment of the world's first organisation for the settlement of international disputes: the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA). Shortly thereafter the Scottish-American millionare Andrew Carnegie made the necessary funds available to build the Peace Palace (“Vredespaleis”) to house the PCA.

After the establishment of the League of Nations, The Hague became the seat of the Permanent Court of International Justice, which was replaced by the UN's International Court of Justice after the Second World War. The establishment of the Iran-US Claims Tribunal (1981), the ICTY (1993) and the ICC (2002) in the city further consolidated the role of The Hague as a centre for international legal arbitration.

Currently the city authority is seeking to establish an image of the city as the "justice capital of the world" and "international city of peace and justice". This includes the rebuilding of the city's Congress Centre as a "World Forum", which will house the ICTY, the ICC, Europol and an international convention centre.

Major international organisations based in The Hague include:

International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, (ICTY)
Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, (OPCW)
International Court of Justice, located in the Peace Palace.
International Criminal Court, (ICC).
European Police Office
Hague Academy of International Law, center for high-level education in both public and private international law.
Permanent Court of Arbitration, the oldest institution for international dispute resolution.
The Iran-United States Claims Tribunal
Eurojust, European Union body composed of national prosecutors.
The Carnegie Foundation

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Culture

The Hague has its share of museums and cultural institutions, such as:

Madurodam is a miniature city, containing hundreds of scale-models of Dutch landmarks in a typically Dutch miniature landscape.

The Mauritshuis exhibits many paintings by Johannes Vermeer, Rembrandt van Rijn and Paulus Potter.

The Escher Museum is located in the former Royal Palace on the Lange Voorhout.

The "Haags Historisch museum" showcases the history of the city from the Middle Ages to the present day.

The "Museum Bredius" houses part of the collection of 19^th century art historian Abraham Bredius, containing antique furniture, silverware and porcelain.

Museum "de Gevangenpoort" (the "Prison Gate") is a 15th former prison housed in an old gatehouse, with real Medieaval dungeons and torture chambers.

The Gemeentemuseum is home to the world’s largest collection of works by the Dutch painter Piet Mondriaan as well as other modern art.

The Museon is an interactive and historical science museum.

The Omniversum is Holland’s first 360° cinema and planterarium.

Panorama Mesdag houses a cylindrical 360° 'panoramic' painting, 14 meters high by 120 meters long, depicting the sea-front at Scheveningen in the late 19^th century, made by Hendrik Willem Mesdag. It is presented in such a way that it is almost as if one is looking at a real scene instead of a painting.

The "Museum for Communication" (formerly the PTT Museum) is the national postal museum and houses interactive exhibits as well as one of the country’s best collections of stamps.

The Louis Couperus Museum is devoted to the life and works of the great author (1863-1923).

The museum Beelden aan Zee in Scheveningen has a large collection of sculptures, mainly from 20^th century artists.

The Hague hosts the annual North Sea Jazz Festival. However, the festival organisation intends to move to Rotterdam in the near future.

The "Koninklijke Schouwburg" ("Royal Theatre"), located on the Korte Voorhout, is the home of the "Nationaal Toneel" ("National theatre-group").

The Lucent Danstheater is home to the celebrated Nederlands Dans Theatre, a modern dance company. The building was designed by the Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas in 1988.

Other tourist attractions and landmarks in The Hague include:

The historic Binnenhof ("Inner Court") and Medieaval Ridderzaal ("Knights’ Hall"), which now contains the Houses of Parliament and government offices. A good view can be obtained from the leafy Lange Vijverberg on the other side if the adjacent Hofvijver (lit. "Court Pond") lake.

The Lange Voorhout is a wide avenue containing many splendid houses (now home to several embassies) as well as the Hagues oldest and narrowest house and the famous "Hotel des Indes", the city’s most luxurious hotel.

The "Passage" was The Netherlands’ first covered shopping mall. Dating from the late 19^th century it contains many expensive and specialist shops.

The Clingendael Park is an old landed estate with a famous Japanese Garden. Nearby one also finds the home of the Clingendael Instituut for European research

The "Paleis Noordeinde" is Queen Beatrix’ official work-palace. It is closed to the public but the Palace Gardens ("Paleistuin") forms an oasis of calm in the city.

The Hague does not have a reputation for a bustling night life, most probably because it has no university and thus little student life. What night life there is centres around the three main squares in the city centre: "Het Plein" (lit. "The Square"), the Grote Markt (lit. "Large Market") and the "Buitenhof" (lit. the "Outer Court", which lies just outside the Binnenhof ). The Buitenhof contains the popular Pathé Buitenhof cinema and a handful of bars and restaurants in the immediate vicinity. A similar pattern of night life centers on the cinema in Scheveningen, although, especially in summer, night-life concentrated around the sea-front boulevard with its bars, restaurants, gambling halls and other entertainment.

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Sport

The local Football (i.e. Soccer) club is called ADO Den Haag. It is playing in the Eredivisie (The top division in Holland) since 2003.

The local Rugby club is Haagsche Rugby Club (a.k.a. HRC) and has been in the Guinness book of records for becoming Dutch champion so often (in adult and youth).

The local American football club is Den Hague Raiders 99 and have climbed up from last to first class of Holland in very little time.

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Annual events

January: The Hague International Model United Nations (THIMUN) is the oldest and largest high school United Nations simulation in the world.
29 April: "Koninginnenach" ("Queen's Night", pronounced with a "plat Haags" accent) is held the night before "Koninginnedag"; there are several open air concerts in the city and young people flock from all over the country to drink and party.
30 April: "Koninginnedag" ("Queen's Day") is a Dutch national holiday held on the birthday of former Queen Juliana. On this day the colour of Orange predominates at a funfair (which sells orange cotton candy) and scores of informal street markets. The day is a "vrijmarkt" (lit. "free market"), which means no license is needed for streetvending; children traditionally use this day to sell old unwanted toys.
May & June: The Pasar Malam Besar is one of the largest Eurasian (Indian) cultural festivals in Europe.
The last Sunday in June: Parkpop is the largest free open air pop concert in Europe.
July & August: The city hosts a series of weekly firework displays by the seafront in Scheveningen, as part of an international fireworks festival and competition.
August: Ha-Schi-Ba (Haagse Schilderswijk Bazar) is multicultural festival held in the Schilderswijk attracting over 100000 visitors.
The third Tuesday in September: "Prinsjesdag" (lit. "Princes' Day") is the Dutch State Opening of Parliament when the Queen reads the "speech from the throne" ("Troonrede"). The day is popular among monarchists and tourists who are out to see Queen Beatrix and the royal family in the Golden State Coach ("de Gouden Koets").

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Transportation

See also public transport connecting to The Hague.

Public transportation in The Hague consists of a sizeable number of tram and bus routes, operated by the Haagsche Tramwegmaatschappij, or HTM. Plans for a subway were shelved in the early 1970s. However, in 2004 a tunnel was built under the city centre with two underground tram stations ("Spui" and "Grote Markt"); it is shared by tram routes 2, 3 and 6.

A regional light rail system called Randstadrail [1] is currently under construction; it will connect The Hague, Rotterdam, Zoetermeer and their suburbs. In The Hague, Randstadrail will connect up with the present tram network at the central station. It will then run through the tunnel under the city centre and out to the suburbs on specially converted tram routes.

There are two main train stations in The Hague: Den Haag Hollands Spoor (gv) and Den Haag Centraal (gvc). It is somewhat confusing that many trains bypass the central station because it is a terminus. For instance, the international Thalys and Benelux trains to Paris and Brussels stop at Hollands Spoor. The central station does, however, offer good connections with the rest of the country, with direct services to most major cities. With the inception of the Dutch High Speed Line (HSL-Zuid) in 2008/9, high speed trains will run from the central station to Breda, Antwerp and Brussels; Hollands Spoor station, however, will lose its direct connection with Paris and hourly service to Brussels.

The nearest airport to The Hague is Rotterdam Airport. It is, however, not easily reachable by public transport. With four direct trains per hour from Hollands Spoor or Centraal, Amsterdam Schiphol Airport is more frequently used by people travelling to and from The Hague by airplane.

Major motorways (freeways) connecting to The Hague include the A12 (the first motorway in The Netherlands), running to Utrecht and the German border. The A12 runs directly into the heart of the city in a cut. Built in the 1970s, this section of motorway (the "Utrechtse Baan") is now heavily overburdened. Plans for a second artery road into the city (the "Trekvliettracé") have continually been put on hold. Other connecting motorways are the A4, which connects the city with Amsterdam, and the A13, which runs to Rotterdam and goes toward the Belgian border.

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Famous people from The Hague

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Politicians

Willem Drees - former prime minister
Jaap de Hoop Scheffer - Secretary-General of NATO
Wim Deetman - former Speaker of the Dutch parliament. Currently Mayor of The Hague
Jozias van Aartsen - former foreign minister

See also: List of mayors of The Hague

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Royalty (actual heads of state only)

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Arts

Anouk Teeuwe - singer
Sjaak Bral - writer and comedian
Ferdinand Bordewijk - writer
Louis Couperus - writer
Wieteke van Dort - actress, singer
Golden Earring - music group
Gruppo Sportivo - music group
Kane - music group
Di-rect - music group
Constantijn Huygens - Poet
Paul Verhoeven - movie director
Harrie Jekkers - singer
Van Kooten en De Bie - humorists
Shocking Blue - music group, famous for the song "Venus".
Remco Campert - writer
Simon Carmiggelt - writer
Bart Chabot - writer
Hendrik Berlage - architect
Jurriaan Andriessen - composer

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Sports

Dick Advocaat - Former coach of the Dutch national football (soccer) team.
Raymond van Barneveld - Four times Embassy/Lakeside Darts champion.
Peter Blangé - One of the leading members of the Dutch volleyball team that won the gold medal at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta.
Michael Boogerd - Cyclist; winner of two stages of the Tour de France.
Martin Jol - football player; currently the coach of Tottenham Hotspur F.C.
Ties Kruize - International hockey player
Alex Lely ("The Plague from The Hague") - Pool Player. 2003 World Pool Masters Champion; ranked #2 in Europe.
Aad Mansveld - football player
Erica Terpstra - 1964 Olympic Swimming Champion, former Sports minister and current President of the Dutch Olympic Committee.
Bart Veldkamp - 1992 Olympic Speed Skating Champion (10km).

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Miscellaneous

Erwin Krol - weatherman
Christian Huygens - 17th century astronomer, physicist, mathematician. Member of the Royal Society, inventor of the pendulum clock and the pocket watch.
Jan Tinbergen - economist, won the Nobel Prize for economy in 1969
Peter Timofeeff - weatherman

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