Recent burials
As recently as 2002 and 2004, successively Prince Claus, Queen Juliana and Prince Bernhard found their final resting place in Delft's Nieuwe Kerk.
Prince Claus
Every royal funeral adds a personal touch alongside strict protocols. At that of Prince Claus of Amsberg on 15 October 2002 - the first in 40 years - Princess Beatrix opted for a sober but modern ceremony. All flower arrangements were green and white, after the colours of the Von Amsbergs' family crest.
Queen Juliana
After Prince Claus, the first to be interred in the New Church was his mother-in-law Juliana, mother of Beatrix, on 30 March 2004. At her own request, white was the predominant colour; a symbol of resurrection. Juliana's parents Wilhelmina and Hendrik also had a white funeral. During the service, daughter Christina sang the song 'It's a gift to be simple'.
Prince Bernhard
The most recent funeral (11 December 2004) had a military character. The coffin carrying Prince Bernhard, father of Beatrix, was transported on a mounted affair. The Royal Air Force paid tribute to him by flying over three F16 jet fighters and a Spitfire aircraft as they entered the church in a so-called missing man formation. Bernhard's interment brings the total number of remains in the royal tombs to forty-six.
Discover more about the House of Orange
Royal house
Delft en het Nederlandse Koninklijk Huis zijn onlosmakelijk met elkaar verbonden. Sinds Willem van Oranje worden bijna alle leden daarvan bijgezet in de koninklijke grafkelders in de Nieuwe Kerk. In 2002 en 2004 nog, vonden drie leden van de Koninklijke Familie hier hun laatste rustplaats.
William of Orange
William of Orange; the 'Father of the Fatherland'. That his name was associated with Delft and the Nieuwe Kerk is purely coincidental. After his sudden death in the Prinsenhof in Delft, his family tomb in Breda was inaccessible....
Tomb of William of Orange
The mausoleum of William of Orange is perhaps the Nieuwe Kerk's biggest crowd puller. The artwork contains a lot of fascinating symbolism and shows great respect for the 'Father of the Fatherland'.
Interments of the Oranges
Since William of Orange, the founding father of the Van Oranje-Nassau family, almost all deceased members of the Dutch royal family have been interred in the royal tombs of the Nieuwe Kerk.
Royal tombs
Since William of Orange, almost all members of the Dutch royal family have been buried in the Nieuwe Kerk in Delft. The tombs are not open to the public. What exactly they look like is still, therefore, generally unknown.
Recent burials
As recently as 2002 and 2004, successively Prince Claus, Queen Juliana and Prince Bernhard found their final resting place in Delft's Nieuwe Kerk.