THE NETHERLANDS.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXVII, Issue 17949, 16 November 1918, Page 8

THE NETHERLANDS.

A CHEQUERED CAREER

The early history of the Netherlands, the name by which the Low Countries were known until the sixteenth century, like the early histories of many other countries, is a conglomerate of fact and fiction, and it is extremely difficult to separate the one from the other The sources of our knowledge of the country, down to the eighth century, are. the works of the Roman historians, and these show that the Netherlands first became known to the Romans through the campaigns of Julius Cesar, who, after a severe struggle was successful in bringing many o the tribes under the Bubjecuura of Rome Until the spread of Chmtmnnoiua. w . tri b es w hwh made up & m °t mot ey of the Netherlands th ?A mtleTrogress. By the end of the SSh cenffv 'he tribes. were comgTi ,Tover to the Christian faith, world's greatest fighters, Charlemagm,, iSin the Netherlands, under established in tue •» , it continual stable dynast es, and despite.continual wars between them,.civilisation made considerable headway, and the progress consiaeruuie increased as a result ° \ t e flmades W first brought of .the Crusades. ? P weX 0 n d l^e d ; a .nd° in the Netbe?western jmm«« , j bich th lands, by the l W% ere one of the to. commerce, they rf .^ primary causes werful d tered towns. The J lO t £ CS9 of F 1 flourishing of these£ ders-Uhent j^

tions. An important part was played in the early history of the Netherlands by the efforts of Charles the Bold, in the creation of a really powerful kingdom. He established a standing army, the first of its kind in the age of transition from feudal conditions, and gave to the Burgundian power all the outward semblance of stability and permanence. However, at the very height of his power, all his schemes of aggrandisement came to a sudden ruin, through a succession of disastrous defeats at the hands of the Swiss. This disaster seriously threatened the Burgundian dominion, and Louis XI. claimed the reversion of the French fiefs, seizing many of the provinces, and* Mary, the ruling monarch, was forced into marriage with Maximilian of Austria. This event marked the beginning of the long domination of the House of Hapsburg.

INFLUENCE OF THE INQUISITION. The next event of importance was the Inquisition. The activity of the Inquisition everywhere roused the intense indignation of the populace, and, following the examples of William of Orange, Hoorn and other governors, the magistrates doolined to enforce its decrees. The terrible crimes of the Inquisition found its reaction in the sacking of churches, wrecking of altars, smashing of images and other acts of sacrilegious destruction. The effect of this outbreak was, however, very disastrous, and only served to alienate the sympathy of many of the popular leaders, and the heart ol Philip was hardened in its resolve to crush heresy in the Netherlands. Philip dispatched a large force, at the head of which was Alva, his greatest general, who at first met with great success.l However, Alva was later compelled to leave the country, which he had so brutally tyrannised. The jealousy of Catholic against Protestant, of South against North, a legacy of the Inquisition, was one of the reasons of their separation, and from 1579 onwards the Northern and Southern Netherlands were to pursue separato destinies as Holland and Belgium. SUCCESSFUL STRUGGLES. The growing importance of the new State was signalised by the conclusion,

in 1596, of a triple alliance between England, France and the United Pro vinces. It was of short duration, and was purchased by hard conditions, but it implied the recognition by Henry IV. and Elizabeth of the States-General as a sovereign power, with whom treaties could be concluded. SucE a recognition was justified by the brilliant successes of 159/, when a large Spanish force was defeated. At this time the relations of the Netherlands with Spain had completely changed, and many years of fighting jesulted. In 1609 a truce was concluded, but in 1621 the truce came to an end and war broke out once more with Spain, ending with the complete destruction of the Spanish naval forces, who suffered such a humiliating defeat that Spain never recovered from it. Three great struggles, in which the English were not always victorious, followed.

ALLIANCE WITH ENGLAND. The revolution of 1688 resulted in England becoming under William of Orange's strong rule, the chief member of the Great Coalition against French aggression. In the war of the Spanish Succession, which broke out in 1702, Dutch troops took part in the campaigns of Marlborough end Eugene, and had their share in winning many of the great victories. The ruling' party in the States also took op active part in securing George I. on the throne of England. When war broke out between the French revolutionary government and the Allies, the provinces remained neutral as long as they could, but they were drawn into the war by the overrunning of the Austrian Netherlands in 1792, throwing open the passage of the Scheldt. The country Was invaded by the French, and they were received with open arms by the "patriots" or anti-Orange Republicans. Bub the Dutch soon regretted their revolutionary ardour, for they discovered' that an alliance with the French also meant participation in the revolutionary wars. Its consequence* were the total ruin of Dutch commerce find tb<- seizure of all Dutch ships by the English. Internally this brought about many changes in the form of the government. LATER EVENTS-

The peace of Amiens gave the coun-

try a little rest, and the Dutch go* back the Cape or Good Hope and their West Indian colonies. In 1805 Napoleon imposed upon the Dutch a new conrtitution, and in the next year added Holland to the united provinces, but on his downfall in 1814 the Great Powers determined to create in the low countries a powerful State, and by the treaty of London the Belgians were united to the Dutch to form the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It was, however, an artificial union, which nothing but consummate tact and statesmanship could have rendered permanent and solid. The consequences were the Belgian Revolution of 1880. which ended in the intervention of the Great Powers and the setting up, in 1831, of Belgium as art independent nation. The rest of the history of Holland is singularly fre© of any very striking event*, such matters as religious education and the disputes between Calvinistg an* Cathphcs occupying the energies of hen statesmen. ' ,