Before the establishment of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the term government was used for the governors or re gents (and their councils) and for (sovereign) city governments as well. During the period of the Republic, the provincial States and the States General could be regarded as governments, too, because they claimed to be sovereign bodies in the absence of a prince. Nowadays, the government officially consists of the king or queen and the cabinet of ministers. Following World War II, the Netherlands has been governed by cabinets that were supported by different coali tions of political parties in Parliament (see appendixes A–C).
Historical Dictionary of the Netherlands. EdwART. 2012.