Capital of the Netherlands but also for royal weddings (note though that royal burials take place in Delft), and also because of its dominant position in Dutch history. From the end of the 16th century the city grew rapidly to become the largest and most powerful city in the Netherlands and the main centre of trade, commerce, finance and culture. The origins of the split between Amsterdam as capital city and The Hague as seat of government lay in the peculiar Dutch constitutional history. From the middle-ages to the sixteenth century, The Hague had been the seat of government of the County of Holland
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".