Golden Coach

Introduction

After the wedding ceremony, Prince Willem-Alexander and Princess Máxima toured through Amsterdam in the Golden Coach. This Coach has been used for the same purpose a number of times in the past: in 1966 for the wedding of the present Queen Beatrix and Prince Claus, in 1937 for the wedding of Princess Juliana and Prince Bernhard, and in 1901 for the wedding of Queen Wilhelmina and Prince Hendrik. The Royal Family have also used the Golden Coach on several occasions at Royal christenings. Princess Beatrix and Princess Juliana were carried to their christenings in the church in the Golden Coach.

The Golden Coach has appeared in Amsterdam on other occasions. Queen Juliana used it following her investiture in 1948; Queen Wilhelmina rode in the Coach to mark the Silver Jubilee of her reign in 1923, and Queen Emma rode in the Coach in 1929 during the ceremonies to commemorate the 50th anniversary of her taking Dutch nationality.

History

On 7 September 1898 the young Queen Wilhelmina accepted the gift of a remarkable state coach, the Golden Coach, a tribute from the city of Amsterdam. This "fairy-tale" coach was the result of an initiative by a small group of people from a working-class neighbourhood of Amsterdam, calling themselves the Friends of the House of Orange. Their idea was taken up with enthusiasm by the entire population of the city and the realisation of the plan became possible thanks to the generosity of the citizens, who wished to offer a token of loyalty to their sovereign on the occasion of her investiture. The Presentation Committee faced one major problem: before her investiture, Queen Wilhelmina had announced that she would accept no gifts to mark the occasion. No exception could be made, not even for the Golden Coach. Only after a deluge of letters and telegrams and endless meetings to discuss the matter did the Queen consent to accept the Coach after all. However, the presentation was not to take place during the investiture celebrations, but at a later date. This "later date" was in fact fixed for the day after the investiture, 7 September 1898.

Construction

The construction of the Coach placed heavy demands on the skill of the designers and builders. Amsterdam, however, had a long tradition of coach-building, and the city had a fund of expertise to draw upon. Handsome carriages had been built for Stadholders, the States-General and the City Fathers, and indeed for such foreign sovereigns as the Great Elector of Brandenburg and Queen Elizabeth I of England.

The commission to build the Golden Coach went to the firm of Spijker, later famous for its motor cars. The commission was a tremendous challenge to the builders, for there were many problems to be solved in the design. The coach had to be constructed in such a way as to afford the Queen a clear view of her people and the people a clear view of their Queen. The roof had to be high enough to allow the Queen to stand up in the coach, but low enough for it to pass through low, narrow gateways such as the entrance to Binnenhof in The Hague. A further specification was that it could be driven at walking pace on ceremonial occasions, and that the horses could be reined in at will. In most carriages movements of this sort set the body of the vehicle, which is suspended on straps from a set of springs, rocking like a ship in a heavy swell. A way had to be found of reducing the risk of seasickness for the Golden Coach's occupants.

Another difficulty was that in the traditional design using straps and springs, the front and rear axles were connected by a long shaft which made it virtually impossible for the coach to negotiate sharp corners. A coach of this kind was only suitable for use on broad, straight roads, but such restrictions were of course unacceptable for the Golden Coach. A new improved system was therefore devised. By placing a shaft along each side of the coach instead of a single central shaft, the designers ensured the necessary manoeuvrability while preserving stability. This design had the added advantage that the folding steps could be attached to the shafts.

Spijker Brothers based their design on the traditional ceremonial state coach common in the nineteenth century, but at the same time incorporated the most modern techniques of carriage-building. Thus the Golden Coach was fitted with heavy rubber tyres and electric lighting.

The name of the Golden Coach is misleading. It is in fact built of teak from Java, the wood being partly painted and partly coated in gold leaf. It is to this gold leaf that the Coach owes its name. Other materials used in its construction also came from different parts of the Kingdom and its overseas territories: flax from the province of Zeeland, leather from the province of Brabant and ivory from Sumatra.

The coach is decorated in Dutch Renaissance style reminiscent of the Golden Age. Professor N. van der Waay of the National Academy of Art oversaw the painting, and Van den Bossche and Crevels designed the groups of sculpted figures. The Coach was to be rich in ornamentation and symbolism. Plants, animals, emblems and symbols from antiquity and legend were used for the allegorical representation of the good wishes and blessings bestowed by the Dutch people on their sovereign. Each element was to convey its own message, while contributing to a harmonious whole. The wheel-hubs are decorated with painted suns representing the illustrious yet benevolent monarchy, with the spokes like shining rays ending in the firmament portrayed by the signs of the zodiac on the wheel rims. The hinges and handles of the doors are decorated with emblems of dogs and owls, symbols of loyalty and vigilance. The steps are painted with water lilies to symbolise prudence, while the water birds which support the coachman's box represent swiftness.

Further imagery is provided by the four panels of the carriage: the front panel symbolises the future, with on the right a painting representing "education for the people" and on the left, "justice protecting the needy", showing an injured labourer, an old, blind man, a widow and orphans. The painting clearly reflects the hope of improvements in the inadequate social provisions of the time. Below these pictures is a bas-relief representing "life insurance".

The side panels of the coach depict "Tribute of the Netherlands" on the right, and "Tribute of the Colonies" on the left. The rear of the coach portrays "History". It shows a view of Amsterdam in the background, with the Royal Palace on the Dam and the neighbouring Nieuwe Kerk church, and in the distance shipping on the rivers IJ and Amstel. In the foreground the Muse of History immortalises in the book of Time the nation's homage to Queen Wilhelmina on the occasion of her investiture.

On the roof of the coach a group of allegorical figures, representing the four activities on which the prosperity of the nation depends, support the Crown resting on a cushion with the Sceptre and Sword of State. These activities are Commerce, symbolised by a mace and a lion; Labour, with a hammer and a salamander, the symbol of fire; Agriculture, represented by a sheaf and a sickle and a sheep for animal husbandry; and Shipping, symbolised by a sextant and a dolphin.

At the four corners of the roof are miniature figures of children wreathing the Royal Arms with laurel, while cherubs plait triumphal wreaths round the Royal initials above the doors. The cornice bears the coats of arms of the (then) eleven provinces. As the proud donor of the coach, Amsterdam saw to it that the arms of the province of North Holland and of the city itself were larger than the rest.

The corners of the cornice are supported by four mythical figures holding lanterns surmounted by a crown. These lanterns were designed in such a way that they could also be used for electric lighting, still a rarity at the end of the nineteenth century. A frieze runs under the windows with symbolic figures in relief, representing Religion, the Army, Justice, Art, Science and Labour. Further ornamentation includes cornucopias, court jesters holding ivory handles, lilies and roses - symbols of Loyalty - and a cartouche showing the year 1898.

The upholstery of the coach was embroidered entirely by hand. Fifteen million tiny stitches went into the pattern of orange blossom and cherubs on an ivory-coloured background. The roof-lining was divided into sections to enable as many women as possible to share in the work. The sections are enclosed in gilded arches converging to a centrepiece formed by the initials of the Queen surrounded by a laurel crown and illuminated by a matt gold sun. The lining of the coach walls is embroidered with the arms of the Provinces and the State, and with the present and former coats of arms of the city of Amsterdam. The carpet has a pattern of tulips, narcissi and hyacinths symbolising the path of the young Queen strewn with flowers typical of her country. Despite the profusion of figures and animals, flowers and colours, the overall impression is not chaotic. The elegant lines, uniform golden background, delicate colours and light paintwork combine to bestow a harmony on the whole design.

Horses

The Golden Coach was designed to be drawn by eight horses. This explains the unusually high box, constructed to enable the coachman to see the whole team.

Ceremonial use at the State opening of Parliament

It was not until 7 February 1901 that the Golden Coach was first put into use, on the occasion of Queen Wilhelmina's marriage to Prince Hendrik. In 1903 it was used for the first time to convey the Queen and Prince to the Parliament buildings at Binnenhof on the State opening of Parliament, thus ushering in a new tradition. The Coach was not, however, invariably used on this occasion: for fear of damage to the Golden Coach, the Glass Coach was at first used in its place in bad weather. Nor was the Golden Coach used for the State opening of Parliament in the first years after the Second World War; in keeping with the austerity and economic hardship of this period, Queen Wilhelmina attended the ceremony in an ordinary car. After her investiture in 1948, Queen Juliana reintroduced the tradition of driving to Binnenhof in the Golden Coach. Since then this tradition has been broken only once, in 1974, when owing to the siege at the French embassy, close to Binnenhof in The Hague, it was deemed wiser to use cars instead. 

For most of the year the Golden Coach stands in the Royal Stables behind Noordeinde Palace in The Hague. It is only taken out for the State opening of Parliament each year, when it travels just a few kilometres to the Parliament buildings at Binnenhof and back again. It is only on very special occasions that it is possible to view the Golden Coach from close by. From 17 November 2001 until 20 January 2002 the Coach could be admired at the "Ja ik wil" ("I do") Royal Wedding exhibition in the Nieuwe Kerk church in Amsterdam.