page_title: Unity makes strength
section_title: Netherlands
hierarchical_section_title: Unity makes strength / Uses / Netherlands
caption_attribution_description: English: Arms of the "Republic of the Seven United Provinces" (the Netherlands between 1581 - 1795). Relief in Dordrecht Nederlands: wapen van de Republiek der Zeven Verenigde Nederlanden (1581 tot 1795). Relief in Dordrecht
context_page_description: "Unity makes strength" is a motto that has been used by various states and entities throughout history. It is used by Bulgaria and Haiti on their coats of arms and is the national motto of Belgium, Bolivia, Georgia and Bulgaria.
  The motto was originally used by the Dutch Republic. It was derived from the Latin phrase concordia res parvae crescunt, used in the Bellum Iugurthinum of Roman Republican writer Sallust.
  The similar moral of the Aesopic fable "The Old Man and his Sons" has been rendered in various related ways: "All power is weak unless united", "Unity makes strength, strife wastes", "Strength lies in union", "Strength is in unity", "Unity is strength", "Union gives strength", "Union is strength", "In unity is strength"; although older versions are more specific: "Brotherly love is the greatest good in life and often lifts the humble higher", "Just as concord supplies potency in human affairs, so a quarrelsome life deprives people of their strength".
context_section_description: This was the motto of the Dutch Republic (1581-1795) and during most of the Napoleonic times (1802-10). It continued to be used in the country until 1816 when it was replaced by the current Dutch motto Je maintiendrai. "Unity makes strength" was recorded for the first time in the Netherlands in the book Gemeene Duytsche Spreekwoorden ("Common Dutch Proverbs") in 1550, whilst the area was still within the Spanish Empire and under the rule of Charles V. After the Dutch gained independence, the new Dutch Republic took over the phrase as its motto and it appeared on several of its coins and coats of arms, usually in the original Latin form, Concordia res parvae crescunt (literally "together the small will grow"), referring to the new state's initially small territorial size. From the late 16th century onwards the start of the motto was frequently used on Dutch coinage, such as the Leicester-rijksdaalder in 1586.
  The French occupied the Netherlands from 1795 to 1813, first as the Batavian Republic, then the Kingdom of Holland, then as an annexed part of France itself. Early in the occupation the national motto was changed to "Gelykheid, Vryheid, Broederschap" (Equality, Liberty, Fraternity), but from 1802 to 1810 'Unity makes strength' was re-introduced. It remained in use until the institution of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands when, in 1816, it switched to the House of Orange motto Je maintiendrai.
caption: Former coat of arms of the Netherlands
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