NETHERLANDS

NETHERLANDS / NEDERLAND.

500th Anniversary of the Central Administration of Friesland.
Map of Friesland Province in 1498.
Stamp issued on 09.06.1998.
Face value: 80 cents of Dutch guilder.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Size: 37 x 26 mm.

Catalogs
- AFA No. 1662.
- Michel No. 1660.
- NVPH No. 1767.
- Scott No. 998.
- StampWorld No. 1660.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1885.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 1633.

Friesland (Friesian: Fryslân) is one of the twelve provinces that make up the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It occupies the western part of the historical region of Friesland. The capital is Leeuwarden (Friesian: Ljouwert). After centuries of wars and internal conflicts, during the Middle Ages Friesland achieved what is historically called “Friese Freedom”. In 1498 the region was submitted to Albert III, Duke of Saxony, governor of the Habsburg Netherlands, who established a central administration. Only in 1648, by the Peace of Münster, Friesland became a full member of the independent Dutch Republic, a federation of provinces.