The Royal Stables possesses six State Berlins. The carriages get their name from the city of Berlin, where they originated in 1662. Berlins are closed carriages that seat four passengers.
The carriages are painted black and oxblood red, and drawn by two or four horses. They are in regular use, for example to convey foreign ambassadors when they come to present their credentials to the King at Noordeinde Palace.
Glass State Berlin
The Glass State Berlin is the oldest royal Berlin, having been built in 1836 for the Prince of Orange, the later King Willem II, by the London firm of Pearce & Co. The interior walls are upholstered in red cloth, and the carpeting is red velvet.
The carriage owes its name to the fact that its side panels were replaced with glass in 1967, so that the crowds would have a good view of Princess Margriet and Pieter van Vollenhoven on their wedding day. The couple subsequently made use of the Glass State Berlin every year on Prinsjesdag (the State Opening of Parliament), a tradition that was taken over by Prince Constantijn and Princess Laurentien in 2013.