1. Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of 24 August 1815 and its successors.
2. The government has its seat in the Hague. The next photo shows a part of the Houses of Parliament.
3. The Dutch speak Dutch. It's the official language we learn at home and at school. Only the Friesians in Friesland speak Friesian, but they still have to learn Dutch and use it in official legal matters. The Friesian language is different from Dutch.
4. Well we have been a kingdom since 1806 when Napoleon made his brother Louis king of the Netherlands. When Napoleon was defeated in 1815 we got a Dutch king of the House of Orange and we remained a kingdom till today. So far we had three kings and since 1880 three queens. Queen Beatrix is the ruling queen of today.
5. So that answers this question: the Queen is officially the head of state.
6. We have 12 provinces.
7. Rotterdam is the most important harbour and it was even the largest harbour in the world right after the war.
8. We have 16,750,000 inhabitants
9. The Netherlands are a bit larger than Belgium, and Luxembourg is by far the smallest.
10.Gouda produces cheese and candles. That was a difficult one, and only a few had this right.
Every second Tuesday in December the citycentre is lit by candlelight only.
11 comments:
You are such a good teacher, Wil. You make learning fun.
And I learned some things here. I'd love to see Gouda illuminated by only candles.
Thanks Wil. The geography question surprised me. I hadn't realised that the Netherlands and Belgium were so close in size.
Great post Wil. What a pity I missed your last post.
Have a great weekend.
Hopefully you grade on the curve. I only had a couple correct out right and went hunting for the rest. I needed more time as my server was down most of yesterday.
Actually, you have told us these facts at one time or another, I just didn't retain the information. Sorry, that is an age thing I guess.
Enjoyed the quiz and think some things have really sunk in.
Thanks for providing the answers to the questions about the population and the number of provinces. I didn't know the answers to those questions, although I will admit I guessed about Gouda and the candles (I knew about the cheese).
Thanks for two interesting and informative posts about Holland.
The quiz was such fun and I think I might just send it to some of my friends who are proud of their Dutch heritage! See how much they know...lol
The answers of course are very interesting and informative! Thank you so much for posting this quiz! I remember as a girl loving the movie (and then the book) Desiree and knowing that Napoleon placed one of his commanders, Bernadotte as regent of Sweden, I think. Desiree of course was his wife, and their son, Oscar, ruled as an adult, if I remember it all correctly. That Napoleon! Placing his brother on the throne of the Netherlands. You have a lovely country! I would love to visit there someday!
Thank you for the answers Wil - and the lovely photos to go with them.
I didn't do the quiz Will but I have learned a lot from reading the answers.
As children my sisters and I were brought up on a mixed farm with black and white Fresian cows! maybe the name originated in your beautiful country.
Thank you for asking. My sister is undergoing a 6 week course of chemo and radiation therapy. The side-effects are not pleasant and the worst for me is that I cannot leave the Prof, wallowing in a fog of dementia, on his own to go and be with her. Apart from that, my heart has decided to go on strike, as has my hip and I have to have a moral and wisdom tooth out. I guess I am not a very happy bunny just now.
I am glad I know the answers now. So well presented with pictures. Thanks!
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