{"id":6288,"date":"2022-12-15T14:00:20","date_gmt":"2022-12-15T13:00:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/netherlandsinsiders.com\/?p=6288"},"modified":"2023-08-03T18:58:04","modified_gmt":"2023-08-03T17:58:04","slug":"was-william-of-orange-ever-king-of-england","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/netherlandsinsiders.com\/was-william-of-orange-ever-king-of-england\/","title":{"rendered":"Was William Of Orange Ever King Of England?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
William of Orange is the most famous name in Dutch history, and the orange shirts of Dutch national teams still refer to his family name. William of Orange is the quintessential Dutchman, so to speak, making it hard to imagine that this Dutchman would become King of England. However, that is precisely what happened at the end of the 17th century. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
William III, Prince of Orange and Stadtholder of Holland, became King William III of England, Scotland, and Ireland in 1689 and ruled until he died in 1702. He was succeeded by his sister-in-law, Queen Anne, because he was childless. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Even though it looks like a very peculiar twist in history, it shows the pragmatism of the Dutch in those days. The Anglo-Dutch wars in the second part of the 17th century were based on mercantile interests. The English and the Dutch suddenly realized they needed to team up against a mighty common enemy, France. So, mercantilist interests were put aside for a brief period in history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n William III of Orange appeared to be the ideal figure to align the Dutch and the English at that critical moment in their history. Read on to learn how he became King of England.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n William of Orange is a common name in the Dutch Royal House, the House of Orange-Nassau, and many Williams have played a role in Dutch history. This dominant presence of members of the House of Orange in Dutch history is why orange is the national color of the Netherlands<\/a><\/strong>, and Dutch national teams still wear orange today. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The first William of Orange was the founding father of the Republic of the 7 United Netherlands<\/em>, as The Netherlands was called in those early days of its existence. Holland was an independent county and one of the seven Netherlands that formed this Republic. I have also written another article on this website to explain why The Netherlands is also called Holland<\/a><\/strong>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The most important role that William II of Orange played in Dutch history during his brief life was that he conceived William III of Orange, born two weeks after he died in 1650. <\/p>\n\n\n\n William III of Orange is the William of Orange who was stadtholder of the Dutch Republic from 1672-1702 and King of England from 1689-1702.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n What may be a bit confusing is that after the foundation of the Kingdom of The Netherlands in 1815, the name William I of Orange was again used, but for the king and not for a stadtholder. There walittlech imagination when naming baby boys in the House of Orange because William II and William III were the names of his successors as King of The Netherlands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\nWhich William Of Orange Became King of England?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Period<\/th> Which William?<\/th> William’s Title<\/th><\/tr><\/thead> 1533-1584<\/td> William I<\/td> Stadtholder of the Dutch Republic<\/td><\/tr> 1626-1650<\/td> William II<\/td> Stadtholder of the Dutch Republic<\/td><\/tr> 1650-1702<\/td> William III<\/strong><\/td> Stadtholder – King<\/strong><\/td><\/tr> 1711-1751<\/td> William IV<\/td> Stadtholder of the Dutch Republic<\/td><\/tr> 1748-1806<\/td> William V<\/td> Stadtholder of the Dutch Republic<\/td><\/tr> 1772-1843<\/td> William I<\/td> King of The Netherlands<\/td><\/tr> 1792-1849<\/td> William II<\/td> King of The Netherlands<\/td><\/tr> 1817-1890<\/td> William III<\/td> King of The Netherlands<\/td><\/tr> 1967-present<\/td> William-Alexander<\/td> King of The Netherlands<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table>