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Monday
September 11, 2006
   The Netherlands
  How a vassal state became a sovereign nation
 


Millennia ago on the Northsea shores around the mouthes of the rivers Schelde, Meuse and Rhine there grew peices of soil, the flat lands. In these nether lands between and above the rivers the Batavi, Kaninefates, Tubants, Friesians and Celtic tribes settled down. From the first half of the century before our calender Rome ruled these low lands until the fifth century. In his work De Bello Gallico the roman emperor Julius Ceasar mentioned the Belgae of Gallica Belgica as one of the people he conquered in the north. From that moment on it is supposed these tribes assimilated in the German clans that came to the western low lands while in this area finally a Low German germanian language developed.

Until the twelfth century these low lands knew no political borders and in fact the watery surfaces were far more extended than the dry lands. Finally by marriages and deaths in the nobility of Europe in the sixteenth century these nether lands became a part of the Spanish kingdom. For the Habsburg Imperium in 1548 conquered the provinces of the low countries and they now became officially an apart, quasi autonome region that in the meantime also was indicated as the Netherlands. But in 1555 Charles V resigned as holy emperor of this European big power and he gave Spain and the Netherlands as heritage to his sun Pilips II, who reigned from the Spanish capital of Madrid. Thus this country became as the Spanish Netherlands a vassal state. In principle the native nobility, the executive power under a Spanish lady regent, did not rebel against the situation. This becomes clear by the words of the by Spain outlawed - rebel - William of Orange, William the Silent and the father of the fatherland, in the hymn that he 'always had honoured the king of Spain'. The nobility and officials in the Low Countries only asked for more respect for its country like more liberties on diverse terrains and this now was neglected by Spain and seen as rebellion.

But these were rural times, as well in Germany, in the Netherlands, as in Spain. In Holland the Dutch Revolt started in 1568 and in this second half of the sixteens century the Spanish king Philip II did send an ambassador to the southern low lands to regain order, the notorious Duke of Alba. He acted so harsh that even the Spain loyal cities turned against him and the anti-Spanish atmosphere grew and resulted in a revolution that reached a historic culmination in 1581 when the northern provinces of the Netherlands signed the Act of Abandonation in which they swor off Philip II. This also formed the set up to the birth of the Republic of the United Netherlands in 1588 when the Dutch Estates General and Maurice prince of Orange did gave up nominating a king. This political solo-acting of the Netherlands ment uptil then a historically unknown an unique bold action. Finally the Spanish king would have sighed later on that this man [Alva] had cost him the Netherlands. In the beginning of the following seventeenth Dutch Golden Age the war agains Spain continued, but in the mean time the Seven provinces of Holland had become the economic and dictating world power and even came in the possession of colonies in the East and the West. Because of this the Nation even on sea had to do with warfare against Spain and uprising England.
But the power of Spain weakened and France and Germany did have enough handling thier own internal problems. Also because of events elsewhere one saw itself compelled to restore quietness in Europe and this gave an opportunistic chance to the verry selfconcientious Low Countries.

For a verry big breakthrough became the Treaty of M�nster in 1648 at the end of the so called 80-years' war and the German 30-years' war. There in Germany half Europe set at the table and when the Treaty had been signed by all representatives this meant an almost definit decision of the face of Europe. Modern ages had come into existence. The founding - by the revolt against a.o. the Spanish tenth penny tax - of the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands was triumphantly and clearly shown on the world map. Via this Treaty, along since a long time with many other European nations, also Spains Philip IV after eighty years of revolt recognized the Republic as a selfdepending sovereign nation, but the southern Netherlands still were part of Spanish territory. Fact remains that the small northern country had been able to withdraw from political, military and economical influence of the larges as Spain, Germany and England and it was recognized as a selfgoverning independent sovereign - and armed - power.

But after this it went not on the fly. At the end of the eighteenth century the French general Napoleon brought back the unrest in Europe and the Netherlands became as a political more efficient working Batave Republic (1795-1806) a French vassal state. In 1806 even a French king was nominated in the Low Countries. However, also this period of domination came to an end and well by the Congress of Vienna in 1815 that brought a necessary political reordening in Europe, since the French Revolution in this part of the world had caused rather some changes in manny ways. Here the Allies again redraw the map of Europe which, because of strategic and emotional reasons, also provided in the founding of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands under the sovereignty of the house of Orange. William I's reign started. These Netherlands also included the Southern Netherlands that spanned Luxemburg. Fianally in 1830 Belgium seperated from the Netherlands as a kingdom after the September Revolution and in 1839 Luxemburg disconnected from Belgium by the First Treaty of London, written by the big powers, and became the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg with Dutch kings as head of state in a personal union. The Netherlands remain as it is now and are ruled by a parlementary monarchy via an in 1848 composed Constitution.

After William II and III as kings in the nineteenth century in 1890 queen Wilhelmina came to the throne. At this time in Luxemburg a male heir became grand duke and the personal union ended. In the twentieth century Wilhelmina saw the first world war threaten the Netherlands in 1940, but the country stayed neutral, however she had to flee abroad by the second world war in 1940. The Netherland were overruled by the Germans. After being freed by the Americans and Canadians in 1945 rest was restored in Europe and Wilhelmina returned to the Netherlands. She was followed up by respectively queen Juliana and Beatrix. In 1949 under enormous anti-colonialism political pressure of America the East-Indies were given up and Indonesia came into existance, and in 1975 the West-Indies colony Surinam became an independend country. The Low Countries stayed a kingdom.

Until this day in the twentyoneth century the Netherlands as a small country in a miraculous way have managed to maintain its sovereignity as a little nation in a large world.

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