This programme was recorded in Dutch for broadcast by the Dutch-language section of Radio Netherlands to mark the bicentennial of Dutch-American relations in 1982. The Dutch Republic was, after France, the first country to officially recognise the United States of America as an independent nation in 1782. In that same year, John Adams, who later succeeded George Washington as the president of the United States, presented his credentials as ambassador to the Netherlands and a treaty of friendship was signed. This programme discusses the close economic, cultural and political ties between the Netherlands and the U.S. and the various events and celebrations to mark the Bicentennial.
The programme includes some historic English-language material: Queen Juliana, the first monarch to address the U.S. Congress from +/- 10’42” to 11’35, and U.S. ambassador to the Netherlands, William Dyess, from +/- 12’00 to 13’15”.