Carnegie Foundation

The Peace Palace, the premises on which it stands and the Library are the property of the Carnegie Foundation. The Foundation encourages the organisation of seminars and other initiatives to foster the peace ideal and is part of the international philanthropic network of Carnegie Institutions.

Andrew Carnegie was a wealthy Scottish-American steel magnate turned philanthropist. In 1903 he donated the astronomical sum of $1.5 million to the Kingdom of the Netherlands for the construction of a building to house the newly-formed Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA): the now famous Peace Palace. His condition was that it would not only house the PCA but also a legal library that would meet the highest possible standards. 

In 1904 a special foundation was set up to manage the funds and the preparations of the construction. Nowadays the Carnegie Foundation receives financial support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands but remains the owner and manager of the grounds and buildings, including the Peace Palace Library.

The foundation also awards the annual Wateler Peace Prize to private individuals or institutions which have furthered the cause of peace. Some famous names among these prize winners include Lord Baden Powell, Mrs. Martin Luther King, Max van der Stoel and Peace One Day.

For more information, you can download the PDF about the Carnegie Foundation.

Carnegie Foundation

Peace Palace
Carnegieplein 2
2517 KJ The Hague

Telephone: 070 302 42 42
Email: carnegie@carnegie-stichting.nl
Website: www.vredespaleis.nl

For guided tours of the Peace Palace

Telephone: 070 302 41 37
Email: guidedtours@carnegie-stichting.nl