2.3 The Dutch revolt

• History
• Middelbare school
• vwo
• Leerjaar 2

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This lesson:

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• explanation 2.3
• Quiz
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Goals for this lesson

At the end of this lesson you...

• Understand how the Netherlands became a republic
• Understand how the Dutch were able to gain independence

The war begins

Even though Alva drove the Dutch people to the edge of revolt, the Low Countries did not instantly rise up in revolt against him. The two main reasons for this were:

• many people were not ready to betray their king.They believed a king was appointed by God, so he had a divine right to rule.
  
• most cities feared that Alva’s troops would act brutally if they openly resisted him.

In exile in Germany, William used all his money to form a mercenary army. In 1568, he invaded the Low Countries at Heiligerlee (Groningen). This battle, a minor victory for William, is commonly seen as the start of the Dutch Revolt, also known as “The Eighty Year War”. 

William's second invasion failed because he had no money left to pay for more mercenaries. A lot of Dutch cities did not rise up along with William, because they were not convinced that he would be able to win against Alva. And without their support, William was powerless to continue his fight. 

Below: in 2012 a statue was revealed to commemorate the 444th birthday of the battle of Heiligerlee

The tide turns

This all changed on 1st April 1572, when a group 

of Geuzen ended up outside the town of Den Briel (now called Brielle) in Zeeland. The Geuzen were Protestants who also had fled from Alva's Council of Troubles. Now they supported William of Orange in his rebellion. The most successful group of them operated at sea. That is why they were called Watergeuzen ('Sea Beggars'). 

A local fisherman told the Geuzen that there were only a few Spanish soldiers left in the town. The Geuzen walked into the city, and overpowered the Spanish guards. The Geuzen then claimed the city in the name of William of Orange and raised his flag above Den Briel. 

With this success against Alva the tide really turned. More cities now supported William and gave him money to hire mercenaries.

The conquering of Den Briel by the Watergeuzen on 

April 1st, 1572.

left: the admiral of the Watergeuzen fleet: admiral Lumey.

1572- Den Briel

• First city captured by Dutch rebels.

1572-1574 Important sieges

Haarlem                      Alkmaar                  Leiden

1572-1574 End of the sieges

Haarlem                      Alkmaar                  Leiden

This lesson

• Explanation 2.3
• quiz
• Work on PA

Flooding the land 

When the Spanish laid siege to Leiden in 1573, they nearly starved the city to the point of giving up. However, the Geuzen were able to get food inside in 1574, so the resistance would Last Long enough for William's men to arrive. 

The Geuzen broke the siege by breaching the dikes and flooding the area. This has been a favourite military tactic of the Dutch for centuries. This tactic stopped Spanish advances and in cases like Leiden, it turned the city into an island, making it impossible for the Spanish land army to maintain the siege.

top: schoolposter from 1969 depicting the liberation of Leiden.

right: every year on the 3rd of October in Leiden people celebrate the liberation, which they call "Het Leids ontzet". On this day they eat herring and white bread, like in 1574.

1570's: Spanish army starts to plunder and murder 

The Dutch break with Spain 

In 1579, the 7 northern provinces of the Low Countries signed the Union of Utrecht, formally promising to support each other in the war against Spain. The southern provinces signed the Union of Atrecht that same year, promising Philip II that they were still loyal to him and that they would help fight the revolt. In 1581, something unthinkable for this time happened. The States General of the Netherlands, the provinces who had signed the Union of Utrecht, created and signed the Act of Abjuration (‘Plakkaat van Verlatinge'). In this Act they wrote that Philip II had, by oppressing his people and their rights, given up his right to rule the Low Countries. This meant that they declared independence from the king and from Spain.

Official document of the Act of Abjuration

the murder of William of Orange

Philip II was hugely upset by the Act of Abjuration and declared William of Orange to be an outlaw. This meant that anyone in his kingdom could murder William and would not get punished. In fact he would reward them with 25,000 crowns for the murder. 

Balthasar Gerards, a Catholic and religious fanatic, would take up this task. On 10th July 1584, he shot William of Orange on the stairs of William's home in Delft, where the two bullet holes can still be seen. Gerards was caught and executed in a brutal fashion. William's last words are said to have been: 'My God, have pity on my soul; my God have pity on this poor nation'. 

top: 16th century drawing of the murder of William of Orange.

left: a forensic expert investigates the bullet holes at the murder location.

A Republic

Officially after the Act of Abjuration, the Union of Utrecht became the United Provinces. They would search for a new king or queen without success. Both the French king and British queen refused to become the monarch of Philip's arch enemy.

In 1588 they officially declared themselves the Dutch Republic ('Republiek der Zeven Verenigde Nederlanden'). 

This did not mean the end of the war. The new republic would still continue to fight Spain for another 60 years. But despite the war, the Dutch Republic developed into a rich, powerful and confident nation in the 17th century which became known as the “Golden Age”.

Map of the Dutch Republic of the United Netherlands

in 1588.

Brabant and Zeeland were later added to the Republic.

below: coat of arms of the Dutch Republic in the 17th century

Below two statements:
1. The governor ruled the Low Countries from Madrid.
2. There where 17 gewesten in the Low Countries.

1. 1 & 2 are true
2. 1 & 2 are false
3. 1= true; 2=false
4. 1= false; 2= true

Stadtholder

Governor

Lord of the Low Countries

Gewest

Charles V

William of Orange

Margarethof Parma

Independent province

Den Briel

Heiligerlee

Brussels

Dillenburg kasteel

Engeland

First city taken by Dutch rebels

Base for the watergeuzen (pirates)

Place of the first battle in the 80-years war.

Base for William of Orange

Capital of the habsburg Netherlands

What was NOT a cause of the Dutch Revolt?

1. Rising food prices due to food shortages thanks to bad harvests
2. Religious conflict between Roman Catholics and Protestants
3. Centralisation of the Spanish king
4. Unequal amount of tax money being spend on what was considered 'Spanish' affaires (like fighting the Ottomans)

What was the Comprise of the Nobles (or the humble petition)?

1. A request to Alba to moderate the measures against the Protestants
2. A request to Margaret of Parma to moderate the measures against the Protestants
3. A request to William of Orange to moderate the measures against the Catholics

The picture here shows the effects of...

1. the Iconoclastic Fury
2. the Spanish Fury
3. the battle in Heiligerlee
4. the conquering of Den Briel by the Watergeuzen

What is NOT a task that the Duke of Alva has to do?

1. To centralise the provinces of the Netherlands
2. To built catholic churches
3. To punish revolting people
4. To persecute protestants

Which position was the highest within a province?

1. the king
2. governor
3. stadholder
4. mayor

Political cause

Economic cause

Cultural cause

Protestantism

Higher taxes

Centralisation

Privileges

Inquisition

Wealthy cities

 Luther

Charles V

Margaret of Parma

William of Orange

Pope

Duke of Alva

Philip II

Watergeuzen

Heretic

Calvin

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