Queen Wilhelmina received the Golden Coach at her 1898
investiture as a tribute from the citizens of
Amsterdam. The coach was designed and built by the
Spijker brothers. Because Queen Wilhelmina wished not to receive gifts on the day of her inauguration on September 6, 1898, she actually took receipt of the Golden Coach the following day. The vehicle was first used on the occasion of the marriage of
Queen Wilhelmina and
Prince Hendrik on February 7, 1901. Since 1903 it has mainly been used once a year, in The Hague, on the third Tuesday in September, , on the occasion of the Monarch's Address. In 1974 however the coach was not used for security reasons, due to the
French Embassy siege. Other occasions when the carriage has been used are: • the wedding of
Princess Juliana and
Prince Bernhard (The Hague, 1937) • the baptism of
Princess Beatrix (1938) • the
inauguration of
Queen Juliana (Amsterdam, 1948) • the
wedding of Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands and Claus van Amsberg (Amsterdam, 1966) • the
wedding of Willem-Alexander, Prince of Orange, and Máxima Zorreguieta Cerruti (Amsterdam, 2002) At the wedding of Willem-Alexander and Máxima someone threw some white paint on the coach. He was immediately arrested, while the wet paint was quickly wiped away by a footman. On Prinsjesdag in 2010 a man threw a tea light holder against the Golden Coach, causing minor scratches to the paintwork. The man was convicted of insulting the Queen, damaging the Golden Coach, and assaulting the coach's footmen—he was found to be mentally incapable and was sentenced to a year in a psychiatric clinic. In September 2015, it was announced that the coach would undergo a major refit for the next three to four years and that the
Glass Coach would be substituted during the refit. == Controversy over artwork ==