Leiden study: Dutch royal house profited from colonialism and backed slavery

Mixed · 2A Leiden University study commissioned by King Willem-Alexander found that the Dutch royal house actively supported colonialism and slavery for centuries and profited from the colonial system. It was presented on Friday 2 October 2026. 1 2 Mixed · 2Arab News described it as a five-volume study that the king commissioned in 2022. Al Jazeera described it as a three-year study covering the period from 1600 to the present, carried out by Dutch historians and human rights experts. 1 2 Mixed · 2Arab News reported that the royal family made a sum equivalent to 500 million euros ($565 million) through its links to the Dutch East India Company and the colonies. Al Jazeera reported that profits came mostly from trade in the Dutch East Indies, now Indonesia, and that in the 19th century they accumulated to about $650m in modern terms. 1 2

Left · 1According to Al Jazeera, the research found the family earned "almost nothing" from the slave trade itself. The study said the House of Orange shares responsibility for the survival of the Dutch slave trade and slavery over the centuries, and noted that most rulers showed no objection to slavery. 2 Right · 1Commission head Gert Oostindie, a historian, said the royal family gave "active and unscrupulous" support to the colonial system, including slavery. The researchers also said the family only rarely shaped colonial policy and mainly gave symbolic legitimacy to the empire in the eyes of the public. 1 Mixed · 2The 59-year-old king called the conclusions "explicit and striking" and said: "It is a painful and confronting conclusion. A conclusion that affects me, even though I am three generations removed." He pointed to his ancestors' lack of "counter-current leadership" and said he was determined to pursue "healing" and "reconciliation". He had apologised in 2023 for his ancestors' lack of action against slavery. 1 2

Left · 1Al Jazeera added that the findings could revive the debate over reparations in the Netherlands. The government apologised in 2022 for the Dutch state's responsibility for transatlantic slavery but ruled out reparations, creating a 200 million euro fund for social initiatives that anti-racism campaigners have dismissed as insufficient. 2 Left · 1The National Institute for the Dutch Slavery Past and Heritage (NiNsee) praised the king for commissioning the study but said it should lead to a next phase. Its director, Bianca Groen Gallant, cited school curriculum changes and the conversation about "reparatory justice". 2