 | The Dutch Marines, or as they are referred to in modernity, the “Netherlands Marine Corps” are one of the Netherlands’ most elite infantry units which enjoys an esteemed and lengthy history dating back to 1665. They were established in 1665 during the 2nd Anglo Dutch War, upon their establishment by Prime Minister Johan de Witt, and took part in the Raid of the Medway (1667), a decisive victory. The war would ultimately result in a Dutch victory at the Treaty of Breda securing many key trade routes for the Lowland union.
They took part in several other conflicts throughout the 17th century serving with battle honors at Kijkduin and Seneffe during the Franco-Dutch War (1673-74), as well as joining forces with a British unit under Prince George of Hesse-Darmstadt to capture Gibraltar from Bourbon Spain in the War of Spanish Succession (1704). In the latter half of the 18th century they also saw service against the British once more as part of the 4th Anglo-Dutch War, a sub-conflict of the American Revolutionary War, partaking in the Battle of Dogger Bank (1781).
The Netherlands became highly divided around the French Revolution. Orangist monarchists aligned themselves with Britain and the Princes of Orange, whereas Patriot republicans saw allegiance to the rebellious France and the Americans. In 1787 the Patriots who began occupying major cities were squashed by the allied Prussian armies and exiled to France and Belgium where they took part in rebellions there.
From 1792-1795, the Revolutionary French government attacked the Low Countries in the Flanders Campaign of the War of the First Coalition, primarily directed at Austrian holdings there. The end result was a resounding French victory, in which they annexed the Austrian Lowlands, Liège, and also puppeted the Dutch government, creating the Batavian Republic (1795-1806) which served as a rather autonomous vassal of France; it was governed by 6 separate governments in a span of 11 years, much akin to the Revolutionary changes in France earlier. Under the Batavian Republic, the Dutch Marines would also be reformed and tailored to French design.
In 1806, Emperor Napoleon saw the government, which was now under the control of Grand Pensionary Schimmelpenninck, as too independent for his liking. As such, he dismantled the former Dutch government and, in a shining example of Napoleonic nepotism, as well as his ambition to turn all his client states into monarchies, installed his brother Louis on the throne, who had not a semblance of knowledge of the Dutch language or culture, even purportedly mispronouncing his own title. Our unit represents the Dutch Marines as they served in the Kingdom of Holland (1806-1810), founded 14 August 1806 and loyal to King Louis Bonaparte, which can be seen on the left side of the page.
Strangely however Louis did his best to assimilate to Dutch culture, adopting the Dutch name Lodewijk, and as time went on, also gained favor with the Dutch themselves; many Dutch people embraced their new monarch or, at least, did not dislike or oppose him. To his credit, Louis took his new position seriously and tried to be a good king. That, however, ultimately led to Dutch troubles with Napoleon (again). King Lodewijk was supposed to be little more than a puppet, but he soon swung more in favor of Dutch interests than that of his brothers’, and smuggling soon became rampant, thus violating Napoleon’s Continental System. As such, Louis was ousted and the Netherlands was directly annexed by France in 1810, bringing an end to the Kingdom of Holland as well as the military history of our unit. Louis fled to Austria where he would live out the rest of his life, and the Dutch would remain part of France until liberation in 1813 as part of the War of the Sixth Coalition.
The Marines were once again reformed in 1814, this time under the Orangist monarchy which remains in power into the contemporary era. Since the time of the Napoleonic Wars, they served with distinction in the Bombardment of Algiers (1816), the Aceh War (1873-76) and, perhaps most notably, against Axis invasion in World War II, fighting against the Nazis at Rotterdam, and after occupation, the Japanese throughout the Dutch East Indies. In recent years, they were also deployed to New Guinea (1962), Cambodia (1992-93), Yugoslavia (1990s), Eritrea (2000-03), and to Iraq and Afghanistan in the 2000s. They remain the oldest branch of the Dutch armed forces to date, now serving as a rapid reaction and special operation force.
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