Capital of the Netherlands Capital of the Netherlands Amsterdam is the capital of the Netherlands according to the Constitution of the Netherlands, although the States General and the Executive Branch have been situated in The Hague since 1588, along with the Supreme Court and the Council of State. Since the 1983 revision of the Constitution of the Netherlands, Article 32 mentions that "the King shall be sworn in and inaugurated as soon as possible in the capital city, Amsterdam". It is the only reference in the document stating that Amsterdam is the capital. Only once during its history was Amsterdam both "capital" and seat
Second city of the United Kingdom claims have been made on behalf of Cardiff and Belfast due to their status as the respective capital cities of Wales and Northern Ireland. Furthermore, a number of opinion polls have been conducted since 2000 and complicate the issue further, with public response showing a consistent view amongst the British population that Manchester is the second city. Birmingham is technically the United Kingdom's most populous city; the City of London has fewer than 10,000 inhabitants, and Greater London is not recognized as a city. Since the formation of the United Kingdom, several places have been described as the "second city".