5.5: the prelude to the Dutch Revolt -T-

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• Middelbare school
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• Leerjaar 2

5. The Time of Discoverers and Reformers

5.5. Prelude to the Dutch Revolt 

THEORY

In this lesson:

• Philip II succeeded his father Charles V and became king of Spain & the Netherlands.
• Philip came with unpopular plans:

               - more taxes
               - centralisation
               - more Inquisition

• Dutch nobles, including William of Orange, did not agree with Philip's policy.
• They asked Margaret of Parma in a Petition to stop the plans.
• Protestants attacked Catholic Churches (Iconoclastic Fury)
• An angry Philip sent Alva to the Netherlands to restore order and to punish iconoclasts. (Council of Troubles)
• William fled to Germany

Main Questions

1. What political and religious changes did Charles V want to make in his empire?
2. What were the Low Countries like in the 16th century?
3. What were the Dutch nobles' reasons to write the Petition?
4. What were the events leading to Philip II sending an army to the Netherlands?

people in this lesson

Margareth of Parma

Philip II

Charles V

emperor Holy Roman Empire

governor of king Philip II in the Netherlands

 king of Spain and the Netherlands

Important dates in this lesson:

1555: Charles V abdicates the throne

1555: Philip II becomes king of Spain and the Netherlands

1566: The Petition (Compromise of Nobles)

1566: Iconoclastic Fury (Beeldenstorm)

1567: Alva arrives in the Netherlands

Word Duty

KEY WORDS

Gewesten: the seventeen provinces that formed the Low Countries (the Netherlands)

States General: a meeting of representatives from the 17 Provinces.

centralisation: different areas whom at first were separated are brought 

together and are now ruled by 1 person. 

Governor: the person who rules an area for the King while he is away

Tolerance: to allow things that are forbidden by the government of your country, or that are not common

Stadtholder: a nobleman who represented the king in one or more provinces

to abdicate: a monarch stepping down from the throne

Petition (or: Petition of Nobles): a document that 200 nobles handed to Margaret of Parma, asking the king to end the inquisition, lower taxes and give back more power to the Dutch nobles.

Geuzen (Beggars): protestants who fled from Alva and supported William of Orange and his rebellion.

compromise: a deal in which both sides give in a little to reach an agreement.

Iconoclasm (Beeldenstorm): the event in which Protestants destroyed images and statues in Catholic Churches in 1566.

Council of Troubles: special court that dealt with the punishment of iconoclasts

Centralising the Low Countries 

During the sixteenth century, the seventeen provinces – ‘gewesten’ in Dutch - that made up the Low Countries were far from the united whole they are today. Every province had its own laws and even their own currency. The only time they would come together was when they each sent representatives to the States General. This general meeting was first created in 1386 with the direct goal of gathering more money. However, under Charles V these meetings only were arranged when he called them together, which rarely happened. The provinces and their nobles were very pleased with their personal control and power. Their lord, Charles V, had different opinions on this matter. All that power and control had to be brought to one place in the Low Countries and put firmly in Charles’s hands. We call this centralisation. He chose Brussels as his capital. Here he appointed a governor to rule in his name. He mainly did this to have more control over his provinces so he could ask for more taxes.

a meeting of the States General in "de Ridderzaal" the 17th century

"de Ridderzaal" in 2017. During the "Troonrede" the king always starts with the words: "leden der Staten Generaal..."

a session of the "Tweede Kamer der Staten Generaal" in The Hague.

STATES GENERAL

Religion and politics

The Low Countries were however not Charles’s only priority and he failed to create the order he wanted. This was because his attention was constantly drawn away by the wars he was fighting with France and Italy, or in stopping the advancing Ottoman Turks in Eastern Europe. This was also felt in the Low Countries in the form of high taxes.

In the 1540s, Protestantism arrived in the Low Countries and proved to be quite popular. Charles V swore to make the Low Countries Catholic again. Despite this, the measures taken against these Protestants were quite mild. By the time Philip II rose to the throne, the provinces had Catholics and Protestants living together in peace. The Dutch practised tolerance.

a woman is being publicely burned after she was found guilty of herecy by the Inquisition.

graph of the Inquisition in Flanders

The government of Philip II

Philip II continued the plans of his father to centralise the Low Countries, but he was a lot more fanatical. In this he ignored the nobles and their rights. This upset them, as their individual power and control were absorbed by a central government. This central government was filled with Spanish and foreign members, not the Dutch nobles. Philip II appointed his half sister Margaret of Parma as governor and ruler of this government. Philip also appointed stadtholders. A stadtholder was a nobleman who represented the monarch in one or more provinces. William of Orange for example was stadtholder of Holland, Zeeland and Utrecht. The stadtholders also took power away from the Dutch nobles.

Philip II was involved in many wars, especially with France. He relied on the Low Countries for its wealth. He set very high taxes to cover the costs of the wars. This was hard to accept for the people of the Low Countries, especially for those in the provinces that traded over sea, like Holland. Philip would regularly be involved in wars against important trading partners, just like his farther.

Top: The empire that Philip II inherited from his father, Charles V.

Bottom left: Margaret of Parma. She was Philip's half sister.

Bottom right: Philip II of Spain, painted by Sofonisba Anguissola (1565).

The highest Dutch nobles (mostly counts and dukes) ruled a province  (gewest) in the function of "Stadtholder".  They had sworn  loyalty to their king (Philip II) and had promised to execute the king's policies in the Low Countries.

Margaret of Parma was appointed to be the governor (landvoogdes) of the Low Countries.  She was the king's representative and was responsible that:

- there was peace in the provinces

- the taxes were paid.

- protestants were persecuted by the Inquisition

King Philip II ruled Spain and the Low Countries. Because he lived in Spain he left his half sister Margaret in charge of the Low Countries.

Inquisition and the Petition of Nobles

Like his father, Philip was a devout Catholic. He put even more pressure behind the Inquisition in the Low Countries, burning more and more heretics. In 1564 he created new laws called the Placards, which outlawed all Protestants. These laws were so severe that both Catholics and Protestants opposed them.

These changes in government and especially the persecution of Protestants caused a lot of unrest in the Low Countries. Because of this, the count of Egmont was sent to ask Philip to ease up his laws. Philip reacted negatively, and thus in 1566 the lower nobles gathered and wrote a petition. In it they asked for a reduction of taxes, a return of some of the power to the provinces and and end to the persecution of protestants. This petition is known as the Petition of Nobles (‘Smeekschrift der edelen’), or the Petition, for short. They presented it to Margaret of Parma, with 300 signatures present. Margaret promised to send the Petition to King Philip in Spain. And until the king came with an answer she promised to stop the Inquisition. So, she made a compromise.

Dutch nobles hand the Petition to Margaret of Parma at her palace in Brussels.

you must STOP THE INQUISITION !!

You must KILL THE HERETICS !!

stadtholders

governor

king / monarch

When the Petition was presented, a member of her council said to Margaret of Parma: 'N'ayez pas peur Madame, ce ne sont que de gueux', which means: 'Don't worry madame, they are but beggars.' The nobles took this name as a title of honor, calling themselves: Geuzen (in English: beggars).

Hendrik of Brederode hands the Petition of Nobles to Margaret of Parma. Engraving by Famiano Strada (first half 17th century)

coin from 1567 with a portrait of Margaret of Parma

I will make a COMPROMISE

I will stop the Inquisition....UNTIL I get an answer from the king!

stadtholders

governor

king / monarch

Protestants did not have their own churches. Therefore they gathered in the open fields. These sermons were called "hagepreken".

Of course, these open field sermons were not allowed by Philip II.

Iconoclasm

While the message was underway however, an event took place that would shake the Low Countries down to its foundations. Protestants had to hide their churches from view, so they moved them outside, preaching their sermons in the fields and forests. During one of these sermons in the Flemish village of Steenvoorde, the preacher talked about the taxes, placards and excesses of the Church. This was during a famine in 1566. The Protestants present got furious, and went to a local monastery, destroying the altar and statues.

This inspired many other Protestant groups. Over the next few weeks the unrest would spread to the tip of Groningen. People charged and destroyed churches, not only for their religious convictions but also out of poverty, frustration or just to plunder. This event is called the Iconoclastic Fury (‘Beeldenstorm’) or the Iconoclasm. Most of the time the city militias did not even bother to stop them. Margaret quickly agreed to the demands of the nobles as long as they helped to restore order.

two pictures illustration the Iconoclasm in 1566

In Utrecht you can still see the results of the Iconoclasm. These images on the "Domkerk" were destroyed.

left: an engraving of the iconoclasts at work, made in the 1580's. 

right: the same picture, with letters A-I for the next question:

Philip’s rage

When the Compromise reached Philip II, he refused to give in to the demands. And when the news of the Iconoclasm reached him, he became enraged. He sent the Duke of Alva to the Low Countries with an army. Alva’s army would put down any aggressive behaviour and keep tight control over the Low Countries. Alva also set up the Council of Troubles, a special tribunal to convict all the people involved in the Iconoclasm. This council was soon nicknamed the Council of Blood. They killed anyone, even if they were only slightly suspected of being part of the Iconoclasm. After arriving, Alva took more control away from Margaret, driving up taxes and putting more and more pressure on the Low Countries.

When he heard that Alva was coming, William of Orange left for his lands in Nassau, Germany. His friends, the count of Horne and the count of Egmont stayed and tried to get William to stay too, telling him he would lose all his power and land. Their last words to him are said to have been: 'Farewell count without land', to which William answered: 'Farewell counts without heads.' 

The duke of Alva arrives in Brussels on 

August 22, 1567.

He brings 10,000 Spanish soldiers with him and he is determined to restore order to the Netherlands and punish the iconoclasts.

Summary 5.5

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You can make your own summary using the main questions:

1. What political and religious changes did Charles V want to make in his empire?
2. What were the Low Countries like in the 16th century?
3. What were the Dutch nobles' reasons to write the Petition?
4. What were the events leading to Philip II sending an army to the Netherlands?

congratulations

congratulations

Here you can see links to five video fragments we watched in class

Verleden van Nederland:

Fragment 1

Fragment 2

Fragment 3

Fragment 4

Fragment 5