Orangism (Dutch Republic)

This article is about pre-1795 Dutch Orangism. For monarchism in the Netherlands, seeOrangism (Kingdom of the Netherlands).For other uses, seeOrangism.

Cornelis Trompby Abraham Evertsz. van Westerveld (ca. 1666). Tromp is pictured in Roman costume. His orangist sympathies are reflected by the color of his mantle.

In the history of theDutch Republic,Orangismorprinsgezindheid( "pro-prince stance" ) was a political force opposing theStaatsgezinde(pro-Republic) party. Orangists supported thePrinces of OrangeasStadtholders(a position held by members of theHouse of Orange) and military commanders of the Republic, as a check on the power of theregenten.The Orangist party drew its adherents largely fromtraditionalists– mostly farmers, soldiers,noblemenand orthodox Protestant preachers, though its support fluctuated heavily over the course of the Republic's history and there were never clear-cut socioeconomic divisions.

History

The coup of stadtholder Maurice against Oldenbarnevelt

Main article:Twelve Years' Truce

Orangism can be seen as a continuation of the political opposition between theremonstrantsandcounter-remonstrantsduring theTwelve Years' Truce(1609-1621). The Remonstrants were tolerant and republican, with a liberal view on biblical interpretation, no belief inpredestinationand were led by men likeJohan van OldenbarneveltandHugo Grotius.StadtholderMaurice of Nassau, Prince of Orangerelied on the counter-remonstrants to oppose van Oldenbarnevelt and support his own policies, and things got so bad that civil war threatened. Oldenbarnevelt was executed after a sham trial in 1619 and Grotius sentenced to life in prison, and for a number of years the Orangists were in charge under Maurice and later his brotherFrederick Henry, Prince of Orange.

First Stadtholderless Period and Orange Restoration of 1672

Main articles:First Stadtholderless PeriodandRampjaar

Orangists such as theVice-AdmiralJohan Evertsenbacked the appointment ofWilliam III,Prince of Orange,the posthumously-born son ofWilliam II, Prince of Orange,to the office of stadtholder of the Holland and Zeeland. The office had been vacant since the death of William II in 1650. The pro-RepublicDutch States Partywas marked by caution (especially in all matters that could harm trade), led byGrand pensionaryJohan de Wittand had supporters among the ruling class, theregentenwhich included his relative from Amsterdam,Cornelis de Graeff.It was de Witt who, in the1654 peace with Englandand its leaderOliver Cromwell,agreed to include the secretAct of Seclusionbarring the infant William III from the stadtholderate. De Witt then put pressure on all seven of the Republic's provinces to uphold this ban. The Orangist party was eventually led by the young Prince of Orange himself and by men such asCornelis Tromp.It played an important part in the expulsion of the de Witt brothers (Cornelis de Wittand Johan de Witt), which culminated during theRampjaarwith William III's appointment as stadtholder on 28 June 1672 followed by an organisedlynchingof the brothers at theGevangenpoortin the Hague on 20 August.

Second Stadtholderless Period and Orange Restoration of 1747

Main article:Second Stadtholderless Period

After the death of William III in 1702 his Dutch ministers decided again to keep the office of stadtholder vacant, mainly because there was no clear successor available (the claim ofJohn William Friso, Prince of Orange,a minor at this time, to the title of Prince of Orange was disputed by his cousinFrederick I of Prussia), though Friso was recognised by theStates of Frieslandas their stadtholder. Friso died in 1711, and his sonWilliam IV, Prince of Orangealso was born posthumously. William IV was appointed stadtholder of Friesland, Groningen, and Gelderland at his majority in 1731, but the other provinces kept the office vacant, until in 1747a popular revolt by Orangistsforced the States of the other four provinces to follow suit and appoint him their stadtholder also. This was the first time that all stadtholder's offices in the Dutch Republic were in the same hand. William IV received almost dictatorial powers under the so-called Government Regulations of 1748. Hopes of democratic political reform were, however, dashed. After his early death, at age 40, in 1751, the stadtholderate (that had been declared hereditary) passed to his infant sonWilliam V, Prince of Orange,but actual power was exercised byRegents,like his motherAnne, Princess Royal and Princess of Orangeuntil his majority in 1766.

Patriottentijd

Main article:Patriottentijd

In the second half of the 18th century the anti-Orangist party became known as thePatriots.These Patriots strongly opposed both the Prince of Orange, and the British connection. Many of their numbers were drawn from those with commercial and maritime interests who saw Britain as a natural rival of the Dutch, and generally supported the French. At various times the Princes of Orange tried to counter this by moving closer or further away from the British alliance. Events came to a head in the period 1785–1787, when most of the dictatorial powers of the stadtholder were taken away by the Patriots. However, Anglo-Prussian military intervention in thePrussian invasion of Hollandof 1787 gave the upper hand to the Orangists, who drove their Patriot opponents into exile. The powers of the stadtholder were now enshrined in the so-calledAct of Guaranteeof 1788, and guaranteed by Britain and Prussia "in perpetuity." Perpetuity in this case lasted seven years.

Batavian Republic and Exile

Main article:Batavian Republic

Following the French invasion of theDutch Republicand theBatavian Revolutionin 1795, resulting in the founding of theBatavian Republic,William V, Prince of Orangefled to Britain. At the request of the British he wrote the so-calledKew Letters,intended to hand the Dutch colonies to the British without a fight. At theAnglo-Russian invasion of Hollandin 1799 the youngErfprinsWillem Frederikmade an not-unsuccessful attempt to get theBatavian Navyto defect to the British in theVlieter Incident.But the invasion itself was unsuccessful, because the hoped-for Orangist insurrection failed to materialize. At thePeace of Amiensof 1802 William V gave up his claims to the stadtholderate in exchange for thePrincipality of Nassau-Orange-Fulda.This so discouraged his followers in the Batavian Republic that many made their peace with the new regime, and some, likeCarel Hendrik Ver Huell,went over to the French emperorNapoleoncompletely, becoming staunch supporters of his autocratic regime, during the period 1810-1813 during which the Netherlands was annexed to theFirst French Empire.

Founding of the Kingdom of the Netherlands

In 1813, when the French retreated from the Netherlands, old Orangist partisans, led byGijsbert Karel van Hogendorp,managed to put the son of William V on a newly-invented throne, first of a principality, and soon of the newly-foundedKingdom of the Netherlands.

Political theory

The stadtholderate was never a well-defined concept in theconstitutionof the Dutch Republic, instead being a patchwork of responsibilities. Likewise, Orangism never became a consistent political theory. In particular, the Orangists never formulated a desire for absolute sovereignty in the hands of the princes, even though they "lean[ed] heavily on the concept ofmonarchy",since this would have been problematic in the Republic that wrested its independence from the kings of Spain underWilliam of Orange. Instead, they stated their views in terms ofrepublicanliberty, sharing the idiom of their States Party opponents.

Attempts to introduce elements ofJohn Locke'snatural lawandMontesquieu'sseparation of powers(byElie Luzac) failed when these same theories were taken over by the opposingPatriotfaction in the 1780s.

See also

• Politics and government of the Netherlands (1581–1795)

Sources

• Davies, Norman; "Europe: a history." Pimlico, 1997.
• Israel, J.I.(1995),The Dutch Republic: Its Rise, Greatness and Fall, 1477–1806,Oxford University Press,ISBN0-19-873072-1hardback,ISBN0-19-820734-4paperback