Study links other European royal houses to colonialism

A study commissioned by King Willem-Alexander has concluded that the House of Orange-Nassau was involved in colonialism with conviction and without substantial reservations. Lead researcher Gert Oostindie presented the findings in Leiden on 2 October. [2] [3]

Oostindie said the stadholders, kings and queens up to and including Wilhelmina considered colonialism legitimate and important to the Netherlands. He said they regarded colonial wars and the violent suppression of uprisings as justified. His statement about slavery was narrower: he said the stadholders and King Willem I showed no objection to the trade in enslaved people or to slavery. [2]

The king initiated the research in 2022. About 60 researchers worked on five books, including a volume for the general public covering the royal house’s colonial history from 1600 to 2025. [1] Oostindie said criticism of colonialism did not come from Orange palaces until Juliana. The researchers also described forms of royal involvement that included employing Black servants, assembling exotic collections and maintaining hierarchical ties with rulers in the colonies. [2]

Willem-Alexander described the findings as unvarnished and profound. He said the absence of dissenting leadership in his family was painful and confronting. [2]

Update

The finding extends research into the Dutch royal house’s colonial past. Oostindie said royal support for colonialism broadly reflected state interests — economic, geopolitical and prestige — as well as dynastic interests. He said no royal house had distanced itself from colonialism or opposed it at the time. [4]

The researchers also noted that some families came to the throne only after their countries had acquired colonies or after slavery had been abolished. They suggested this could affect how individual monarchs feel about personal responsibility for the colonial past.