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King of the Netherlands apologizes for slavery
King Willem-Alexander apologizes for Dutch royals’ role during slavery photo
© Peter Dejong/AP POOL/dpa
The Netherlands commemorates the end of slavery in their colonies 150 years ago. The colonial legacy is brutal. Now the king himself apologizes for the atrocities.
The king has now personally and publicly endorsed an apology that Prime Minister Mark Rutte made on behalf of the Netherlands and the king at the end of last year.
Willem-Alexander’s statement was greeted with great applause by those attending the event, including Rutte and numerous other government officials. At the end of 2022, Willem-Alexander commissioned an investigation into the role of the royal house of Oranje-Nassau during the colonial period.
The Netherlands were one of the largest colonial powers from the 17th century. In more than 200 years, they enslaved an estimated 600,000 people and transported them from Africa to the other side of the Atlantic on Dutch ships.
About 75,000 of them did not survive the crossing, as the king explained. Officially, the kingdom was one of the last countries in Europe to abolish slavery on July 1, 1863.