European Kingdoms

Stadhouder Princes of Holland (House of Orange-Nassau) (Netherlands) (Low Countries)
AD 1747 - 1795

Low Countries All Modern States British Isles Germanic Tribes Western Europe

In the Low Countries the Tweede Stadhouderloze Tijdperk (the 'Second Stadhouderless Era') had been triggered within the 'Republic of the Seven United Netherlands' by the death of William III in England in 1702. He died without an heir and no stadhouder was elected in the Netherlands by the Staten-Generaal to succeed him.

The dire financial situation - due mainly to William III's borrowing - combined with a declining economy caused the Dutch republic to resign voluntarily from its growing position as a world power, and it lost its primacy in world trade which had been created in the seventeen century.

The republic now embarked upon a policy of neutralism which would last until the end of the Second Stadhouderless Era in 1747. In that year, during the Austrian War of Succession, the French invaded Zeeland and captured the barrier fortress of Bergen op Zoom, giving them control of the entire length of the River Scheldt. The city was key to opening up both the Dutch republic and Hanover to a potential French invasion. The call went up for the restoration of the stadtholderate. Following  unrest, demonstrations by Orangist adherents, rioting, and several episodes of mob violence, all seven provinces gradually turn back to the stadtholderate - an episode known as the Orangist Revolution.

A remote cousin of William III's, William of Nassau (formerly Nassau-Dillenberg), stadhouder of Friesland, was elected to the post of stadhoulder-general of all seven United Provinces. In honour of his predecessors he took the name 'Orange-Nassau' (the principality of Orange had been returned to France with the Treaties of Utrecht in 1713, but the title had remained with the Dutch). The elected title of stadhouder was changed to erfstadhouder (hereditary stadhouder: 'erf' or 'erven', which means 'inherit'). The Netherlands remained a republic until the French conquest of 1795.

(Information by Peter Kessler, Drs Dirk van Duijvenbode, and William Willems, with additional information from Foreign Policy and the French Revolution: Charles-François Dumouriez, Pierre LeBrun, and the Belgian Plan, 1789-1793, Patricia Howe (Palgrave Macmillan, 2008), and from External Links: A Short History of Holland, Belgium & Luxembourg (available for download as a PDF from Stanford University), and Encyclopaedia Britannica, and Belgium from Revolution to the War of the Sixth Coalition 1789-1814, Dale Pappas (The Napoleon Series Archive).)

1747 - 1751

Former stadhouder of Friesland (now 1 of seven provinces).

1748 - 1751

Despite the events of 1747, the reformed erfstadhouder regime has yet to be put in place, Calvinist followers of the Orangist ideology begin to express their fury against their leading representatives (with Calvinists so far having been tolerated locally by Catholics). Anti-Catholics riots and mob violence follow.

Once granted power the new stadholderate acquires near-dictatorial powers and the situation in the country does not improve. As a matter of fact, while William is at first popular with the people, he was also director-general of the 'Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie' (VOC, the Dutch East India Company), and his alliance with the business class deepens while the disparity between rich and poor grows. But then William IV dies suddenly in 1751.

1751 - 1795

Son. Declared war on France (1793). Fled to England (1795).

1751 - 1766

Mother and regent. Dau of George II of England.

1751

William V accedes at the tender age of three. His mother Anne acts as regent until his maturity in 1766 when he becomes stadholder-general, the last to hold that office. His long period of regency is marked by corruption and misrule. He proves to be a weak and incompetent ruler, but still manages to guide his family through the difficult French-Batavian period at the end of the century.

The newly formed Patriot Party - an anti-Orangist group - emerges out of the former Staten-Generaal Party and hostility against the Orangists is growing in general. The Patriots are mainly supported by the middle class, seeking a more democratic form of government while also aiming to reduce corruption and the level of power held by William.

1780 - 1784

The Fourth Anglo-Dutch War pits the Netherlands against Britain over disagreements regarding the legality and conduct of Dutch trade with Britain's enemies (France and Spain) during the American War of Independence. When the British discover a secret commercial treaty between the city of Amsterdam and the rebellious colonies in America, they declare war against the Dutch republic. Most Dutch colonial possessions in the East and West Indies are lost to Britain. A British blockade of the Dutch coast further weakens the Dutch economy and the war turns out to be financially disastrous for the Dutch. The Treaties of Paris are signed in 1783 and 1784 to end the conflict.

1785 - 1787

After the signing of the Treaties of Paris, there is growing sense of unrest in the impoverished Dutch republic. A political and economic crisis is the result, resulting in open rebellion by anti-Orangists. At this time Dutch banks still hold much of the world's financial capital, but the Patriots are sympathetic to France, opposing the Anglophile House of Orange and the bankers. Moreover, they draw inspiration from the 1780 'Declaration of Independence' by the America colonies.

The Patriot Revolution - the first popular democratic revolution on continental Europe - takes the form of an armed insurrection by local militias in certain Dutch towns. The goal is to remove government officials and to force new elections. Seen as a whole this revolution is considered as a forerunner of the French Revolution.

In 1787 William V has to bring in Prussian troops and a small contingent of British troops to intervene in order to maintain his authority. For a while, no one dares to appear in public without an orange cockade to show their support for Orangism. This severe military response overwhelms the Patriots and puts the stadhouder firmly back in control. Many Patriots, perhaps around 40,000 in all, flee to Brabant and to Flemish-speaking northern France. The situation remains unchanged until 1795.

1793 - 1794

In February, the French army invades the Austrian Netherlands (Belgium) and the territory is annexed for a short period. Militarily, France's fortunes look shaky when Great Britain, Naples, the Netherlands, and Spain join Austria and Prussia in the First Coalition. The French are defeated at the Battle of Neerwinden (East Flanders) on 18 March 1793. The French position in the Austrian Netherlands swiftly collapses, only to be renewed on a permanent basis in 1794.

1795

The French Directory is established on 3 November 1795, headed by Paul Barras. France's Revolutionary Wars against the monarchies of Europe begins to carve out a new empire for the country.

Just a year after joining the First Coalition (in 1974), the Netherlands is invaded and the puppet 'Batavian Republic' is set up. William V is forced to flee, heading for England, the country of his mother.