William II (Dutch: Willem II; 27 May 1626 – 6 November 1650) was sovereign Prince of Orange and Stadtholder of Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Guelders, Overijssel and Groningen in the United Provinces of the Netherlands from 14 March 1647 until his death three years later on 6 November 1650. Frederick Henry also had another half-brother, Philip William, who reigned as Prince of Orange (1584−1618). William had eight liveborn siblings, but his surviving siblings were Luise Henriette (1627−1667), Albertine Agnes (1634−1696), Henriette Catherine (1637−1708) and Maria (1642−1688). All of his surviving sisters married into German nobility. The stadtholders governed in conjunction with the States-General, an assembly of representatives from each of the seven provinces, but usually dominated by the largest and wealthiest province, Holland.

Marriage

thumb|left|upright|Betrothed William and Mary by [[Anthony van Dyck, ]]

In January 1640, William of Orange proposed to Mary, Princess Royal, the eldest daughter of King Charles I of England. The princess was only 8 years old at the time. The offer of the House of Orange was at first rejected by King Charles I, who wanted to give his daughter in marriage to Balthasar Charles, Prince of Asturias, only son and heir of King Philip IV of Spain. A prerequisite for such a union was Mary's conversion to Catholicism, but the princess, who at the request of her mother studied the basics of the Catholic religion, did not want to change her faith. As a result, Mary declined William's hand in marriage.

In late 1640–early 1641, King Charles I decided to renew negotiations with Prince Frederick Henry of Orange. On 10 February 1641, Charles announced to Parliament that the betrothal of his daughter was actually concluded and that it only remained to consider this union from a political point of view. Charles himself hoped that in case of emergency, the Prince of Orange would help him to maintain royal power in England.

A modest wedding ceremony took place on 2 May 1641 at the Chapel Royal in Whitehall Palace, London. William was not yet fifteen, while Mary was just nine at that time. Mary and William were congratulated by courtiers, and received several gifts; in addition, in honour of the couple, a volley of 120 guns was fired. Almost as soon as the ceremony ended, William returned to the Netherlands. In November 1643, the second marriage ceremony between the 17-year-old William and 12-year-old Mary took place in The Hague. The marriage was not consummated until 1644. In February 1644, Mary completely merged into the life of her husband's court.

Reign and later life (1647-1650)

thumb|right|upright|Portrait of William II on horseback by [[Anselm van Hulle, ]]

In 1647, his father, Frederick Henry died on 14 March,

Death

By early 1650, William's consort Mary was pregnant again. William for most of his life enjoyed quite good health. However, in late October-early November, when the princess's pregnancy was coming to an end, William fell ill with smallpox and died on 6 November (by the Gregorian Calendar), just after his attempt to capture Amsterdam from his political opponents. William served as stadtholder for only three years. His only son William was born eight days after his death (i.e. 14 November by the Gregorian Calendar, 4 November by the Julian Calendar). This was the beginning of the First Stadtholderless Period. His son succeeded him in 1672 as stadtholder and later, in 1689, also became King of England.

Notes

References

Bibliography

  • Herbert H. Rowen, The princes of Orange: the stadholders in the Dutch Republic. Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 1988.
  • Herbert H. Rowen, The princes of Orange: the stadholders in the Dutch Republic. Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2003.
  • Herbert H. Rowen, "John de Witt, Grand Pensionary of Holland, 1625–1672". Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1978.
  • Herbert H. Rowen, "John de Witt: Statesman of the "True Freedom"". Cambridge University Press, 2003.
  • Petrus Johannes Blok, "History of the people of the Netherlands". New York: G. P. Putnam's sons, 1898.
  • Pieter Geyl, "Orange and Stuart, 1641–1672". Scribner, 1970.
  • Jonathan I. Israel, "The Dutch Republic: Its Rise, Greatness, and Fall, 1477–1806" Oxford University Press, 1995.

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