History of the Netherlands The post-war years saw rapid economic recovery (helped by the American Marshall Plan), followed by the introduction of a welfare state during an era of peace and prosperity. The Netherlands formed a new economic alliance with Belgium and Luxembourg, the Benelux, and all three became founding members of the European Union and NATO. In recent decades, the Dutch economy has been closely linked to that of Germany, and is highly prosperous. The four countries adopted the Euro on 1 January 2002, along with eight other EU member states. The prehistory of the area that is now the Netherlands was largely
Belgium–Netherlands relations to host the 2018 World Cup football. The Duke of Brabant was invited to attend the inauguration of King Willem Alexander and Queen mathilde is a godmother of Princess Alexia of the Netherlands. Queen Beatrix attended the state Funerals of King Baudouin and Queen Fabiola. Queen Juliana attended the Wedding of King Baudoin and Queen Fabiola in 1960. Belgium–Netherlands relations Belgian–Dutch relations refer to interstate relations between the Belgium and the Netherlands. It can be seen as one of the closest international relationships in existence, marked by shared history, culture, institutions and language, extensive people-to-people links, aligned security interests, sporting