European Kingdoms

Second Stadhouderless Era (Netherlands) (Low Countries)
AD 1702 - 1747

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In the Low Countries the Tweede Stadhouderloze Tijdperk (the 'Second Stadhouderless Era') interrupted the first phase of the 'Republic of the Seven United Netherlands'.

(Information by Peter Kessler, Drs Dirk van Duijvenbode, and William Willems, with additional information from External Links: History Extra, and A Short History of Holland, Belgium & Luxembourg (available for download as a PDF from Stanford University), and Encyclopaedia Britannica.)

1702 - 1720

This is the Tweede Stadhouderloze Tijdperk (the 'Second Stadhouderless Era'). No stadhouder is elected by the Staten-Generaal until 1747. This is true even during the War of the Quadruple Alliance, when King Philip V of Spain, unhappy with the arrangements set at the end of the War of Succession, occupies Sardinia and Sicily. The war begins with Philip's first actions of 1717, and is formally declared in 1718. Austria, Britain, France, and Holland unite to defeat Spain, and peace is again declared with the Treaty of The Hague which is signed in 1720.

The Battle of Glenshiel in 1719 was the second and final defeat of a doomed small-scale Spanish-supported invasion of Scotland, part of the War of the Quadruple Alliance

1713 - 1714

The War of the Spanish Succession comes to an end with the signing of the Treaties of Utrecht. Neither the British nor the Dutch will allow the other to control the southern (formerly Spanish) Netherlands, which therefore become the Austrian Netherlands, with Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI from the House of Habsburg as sovereign.

1715

The Austrian-Dutch 'Antwerp Barrier Treaty' sees six barrier towns and one fortress on the territory of the new Austrian Netherlands - including Dutch garrisons, part of the Dutch defence system - being retained with the agreement of France. The closing of the Scheldt for all non-Dutch ships to trade with Antwerp is once again confirmed. At times, the number of Dutch troops is larger than the Austrian contingent in the Austrian Netherlands. The Dutch republic has effectively bankrupted itself to create this very costly barrier fortresses which ends up providing only illusory security. The fortresses are quickly overrun during the War of the Austrian Succession (1740-1748).

The frozen River Schelde divides a warming fire from the Dutch town of Antwerp in the near distance, painted in 1593 by Lucas van Valckenborch

1722

The first European explorer to reach Easter Island is Jacob Roggeveen, a Dutch captain who arrives there on Easter Sunday 1722. He names the island on that basis. Captain James Cook, the English explorer, reaches the island in 1774. The arrival of Europeans introduces disease and slave-trading which further reduces an already stressed population.

1738

Hessen-Homburg's minimal finances remain perilous, and the landgraviate's debt has continued to grow. Landgrave Frederick III is forced by an imperial debit commission to return to the service of the Dutch in 1738. He is made governor of the city of Liège in that year, being promoted to Breda in 1741 until his death in 1746.

1747

The French invade the province of Zeeland in the Netherlands, capturing the barrier fortress of Bergen op Zoom. The call goes up for the restoration of the stadtholderate and, eventually, the Staten-Generaal popularly elects a member of the House of Orange to lead the country's defence.

A remote cousin of William III, William of Nassau, stadhouder of Friesland, is chosen to fill the post. In honour of his predecessors he assumes the name 'Orange-Nassau' to govern the second phase of the 'Republic of the Seven United Netherlands'.