For the elections of 1952 Drees served as the only '' Lijsttrekker '' . The Labour Party made small win , gaining 3 seats and became for the first time largest party and now had 30 seats in the House of Representatives . Following a formation period a coalition agreement with the Catholic People 's Party ( KVP ) , Christian Historical Union ( CHU ) and the People 's Party for Freedom and Democracy ( VVD ) was made which resulted in the formation of the Cabinet Drees I , with Drees continuing as Prime Minister and Minister of General Affairs , taking office on 15 March 1951 . The Cabinet Drees I fell one year into its term on 25 June 1952 and a new coalition agreement was made with the Anti-Revolutionary Party ( ARP ) replacing the People 's Party for Freedom and Democracy , the Cabinet Drees II took office on 2 September 1952 . For the elections of 1956 Drees served for a fourth and final time as Lijsttrekker . The Labour Party won the election , gaining 20 seats and remained the largest party and now had 50 seats in the House of Representatives . The following cabinet formation resulted in a continuing coalition agreement with the Catholic People 's Party , Anti-Revolutionary Party and the Christian Historical Union to form a Cabinet Drees III with Drees continuing as Prime Minister and Minister of General Affairs , taking office on 13 October 1956 . The Cabinet Drees III fell on 11 December 1958 and shortly after that Drees announced his retirement from national politics and that he would not stand for the election of 1959 . He remained as Prime Minister until the Cabinet Beel II was installed on 22 December 1958 with Drees granted the honorary title of Minister of State on his last day in office . Drees most notably led the country through the North Sea flood of 1953 and was the second oldest person who served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands after Johan Rudolph Thorbecke , who died in office at the age of seventy-four . He remained a very active observer of Dutch politics , publishing a substantial number of books and articles until the age of ninety-seven . Willem Drees was the longest-lived Dutch Prime Minister , dying at the age of , on 14 May 1988 in The Hague . He is praised by many as the most important Dutch politician after World War II for his important contributions and social reforms laws and seen as the father of the modern welfare state in the Netherlands . Drees was chosen as the best Prime Minister of the Netherlands after World War II after an opinion polling conducted by the VPRO in 2006
North Sea flood of 1953
North Sea flood of 1953
Willem Drees