REIGN OF WILLIAM III TO THE DEATH OF THORBECKE, 1849-1872
William III succeeded to the throne at a moment of transition. He was
thirty-two years of age, and his natural leanings were autocratic; but
he accepted loyally the principle of ministerial responsibility, and
throughout his long reign endeavoured honestly and impartially to fulfil
his duties as a constitutional sovereign. There were at this time in
Holland four political parties: (1) the old conservative party, which
after 1849 gradually dwindled in numbers and soon ceased to be a power
in the State; (2) the liberals, under the leadership of Thorbecke; (3)
the anti-revolutionary or orthodox Protestant party, ably led by G.
Groen van Prinsterer, better known perhaps as a distinguished historian,
but at the same time a good debater and resourceful parliamentarian; (4)
the Catholic party. The Catholics for the first time obtained in 1849
the full privileges of citizenship. They owed this to the liberals, and
for some years they gave their support to that party, though differing
from them fundamentally on many points. The anti-revolutionaries placed
in the foreground the upholding of the Reformed (orthodox Calvinistic)
faith in the State, and of religious teaching in the schools. In this
last article of their political creed they were at one with the
Catholics, and in its defence the two parties were destined to become
allies.
The liberal majority in the newly elected States-General was
considerable; and it was the general expectation that Thorbecke would
become head of the government. The king however suspected the aims of
the liberal leader, and personally disliked him. He therefore kept in
office the Donker-Curtius-De Kempenaer cabinet; but, after a vain
struggle against the hostile majority, it was compelled to resign, and
Thorbecke was called upon to form a ministry.
Thorbecke was thus the first constitutional prime-minister of Holland.
His answer to his opponents, who asked for his programme, was
contained in words which he was speedily to justify: "Wait for our
deeds." A law was passed which added 55,000 votes to the electorate; and
by two other laws the provincial and communal assemblies were placed
upon a popular representative basis. The system of finance was reformed
by the gradual substitution of direct for indirect taxation. By the
Navigation Laws all differential and transit dues upon shipping were
reduced; tolls on through-cargoes on the rivers were abolished, and the
tariff on raw materials lowered. It was a considerable step forward in
the direction of free-trade. Various changes were made to lighten the
incidence of taxation on the poorer classes. Among the public works
carried to completion at this time (1852) was the empoldering of the
Haarlem lake, which converted a large expanse of water into good pasture
land.
It was not on political grounds that the Thorbecke ministry was to be
wrecked, but by their action in matters which aroused religious passions
and prejudices. The prime-minister wished to bring all charitable
institutions and agencies under State supervision. Their number was more
than 3500; and a large proportion of these were connected with and
supported by religious bodies. It is needless to say the proposal
aroused strong opposition. More serious was the introduction of a
Catholic episcopate into Holland. By the Fundamental Law of 1848
complete freedom of worship and of organisation had been guaranteed to
every form of religious belief. It was the wish of the Catholics that
the system which had endured ever since the 16th century of a "Dutch
mission" under the direction of an Italian prelate (generally the
internuncio) should come to an end, and that they should have bishops of
their own. The proposal was quite constitutional and, far from giving
the papal curia more power in the Netherlands, it decreased it. A
petition to Pius IX in 1847 met with little favour at Rome; but in 1851
another petition, much more widely signed, urged the Pope to seize the
favourable opportunity for establishing a native hierarchy. Negotiations
were accordingly opened by the papal see with the Dutch government,
which ended (October, 1852) in a recognition of the right of the
Catholic Church in Holland to have freedom of organisation. It was
stipulated, however, that a previous communication should be made to the
government of the papal intentions and plans, before they were carried
out. The only communication that was made was not official, but
confidential; and it merely stated that Utrecht was to be erected into
an archbishopric with Haarlem, Breda, Hertogenbosch and Roeremonde, as
suffragans. The ministry regarded the choice of such Protestant centres
as Utrecht and Haarlem with resentment, but were faced with the _fait
accompli_. This strong-handed action of the Roman authorities was made
still more offensive by the issuing of a papal allocution, again without
any consultation with the Dutch government, in which Pius IX described
the establishment of the new hierarchy as a means of counteracting in
the Netherlands the heresy of Calvin.
A wave of fierce indignation swept over Protestant Holland, which united
in one camp orthodox Calvinists (anti-revolutionaries), conservatives
and anti-papal liberals. The preachers everywhere inveighed against a
ministry which had permitted such an act of aggression on the part of a
foreign potentate against the Protestantism of the nation. Utrecht took
the lead in drawing up an address to the king and to the States-General
(which obtained two hundred thousand signatures), asking them not to
recognise the proposed hierarchy. At the meeting of the Second Chamber
of the States-General on April 12, Thorbecke had little difficulty in
convincing the majority that the Pope had proceeded without Consultation
with the ministry, and that under the Constitution the Catholics had
acted within their rights in re-modelling their Church organisation. But
his arguments were far from satisfying outside public opinion. On the
occasion of a visit of the king to Amsterdam the ministry took the step
of advising him not to receive any address hostile to the establishment
of the hierarchy, on the ground that this did not require the royal
approval. William, who had never been friendly to Thorbecke, was annoyed
at being thus instructed in the discharge of his duties; and he not only
received an address containing 51,000 signatures but expressed his great
pleasure in being thus approached (April 15). At the same time he
summoned Van Hall, the leader of the opposition, to Amsterdam for a
private consultation. The ministry, on hearing of what had taken place,
sent its resignation, which was accepted on April 19. Thus fell the
Thorbecke ministry, not by a parliamentary defeat, but because the king
associated himself with the uprising of hostile public opinion, known as
the "April Movement."
A new ministry was formed under the joint leadership of Van Hall and
Donker-Curtius; and an appeal to the electors resulted in the defeat of
the liberals. The majority was a coalition of conservatives and
anti-revolutionaries. The followers of Groen van Prinsterer were small
in number, but of importance through the strong religious convictions
and debating ability of the leader. The presence of Donker-Curtius was a
guarantee for moderation; and, as Van Hall was an adept in political
opportunism, the new ministry differed from its liberal predecessor
chiefly in its more cautious attitude towards the reforms which both
were ready to adopt. As it had been carried into office by the April
Movement, a Church Association Bill was passed into law making it
illegal for a foreigner to hold any Church office without the royal
assent, and forbidding the wearing of a distinctive religious dress
outside closed buildings. Various measures were introduced dealing with
ministerial responsibility, poor-law administration and other matters,
such as the abolition of the excise on meat and of barbarous punishments
on the scaffold.
The question of primary education was to prove for the next half-century
a source of continuous political and religious strife, dividing the
people of Holland into hostile camps. The question was whether the State
schools should be "mixed" i.e. neutral schools, where only those simple
truths which were common to all denominations should be taught; or
should be "separate" i.e. denominational schools, in which religious
instruction should be given in accordance with the wishes of the
parents. A bill was brought in by the government (September, 1854) which
was intended to be a compromise. It affirmed the general principle that
the State schools should be "neutral," but allowed "separate" schools to
be built and maintained. This proposal was fiercely opposed by Groen and
gave rise to a violent agitation. The ministry struggled on, but its
existence was precarious and internal dissensions at length led to its
resignation (July, 1856). The elections of 1856 had effected but little
change in the constitution of the Second Chamber, and the
anti-revolutionary J.J.L. van der Brugghen was called upon to form a
ministry. Groen himself declined office, Van der Brugghen made an effort
to conciliate opposition; and a bill for primary education was
introduced (1857) upholding the principle of the "mixed" schools, but
with the proviso that the aim of the teaching was to be the instruction
of the children "in Christian and social virtues"; at the same time
"separate" schools were permitted and under certain conditions would be
subsidised by the State. Groen again did his utmost to defeat this bill,
but he was not successful; and after stormy debates it became law (July,
1857). The liberals obtained a majority at the elections of 1858, and
Van der Brugghen resigned. But the king would not send for Thorbecke;
and J.J. Rochussen, a former governor-general of the Dutch East Indies,
was asked to form a "fusion" ministry. During his tenure of office
(1858-60) slavery was abolished in the East Indies, though not the
cultivation-system, which was but a kind of disguised slavery. The way
in which the Javanese suffered by this system of compulsory labour for
the profit of the home country--the amount received by the Dutch
treasury being not less than 250 million florins in thirty years--was
now scathingly exposed by the brilliant writer Douwes Dekker. He had
been an official in Java, and his novel _Max Havelaar_, published in
1860 under the pseudonym "Multatuli," was widely read, and brought to
the knowledge of the Dutch public the character of the system which was
being enforced.
Holland was at this time far behind Belgium in the construction of a
system of railroads, to the great hindrance of trade. A bill, however,
proposed by the ministry to remedy this want was rejected by the First
Chamber, and Rochussen resigned. The king again declined to send for
Thorbecke; and Van Hall was summoned for the third time to form a
ministry. He succeeded in securing the passage of a proposal to spend
not less than 10 million florins annually in the building of State
railways. All Van Hall's parliamentary adroitness and practised
opportunism could not, however, long maintain in office a ministry
supported cordially by no party. Van Hall gave up the unthankful task
(February, 1861), but still it was not Thorbecke, but Baron S. van
Heemstra that was called upon to take his place. For a few months only
was the ministry able to struggle on in the face of a liberal majority.
There was now no alternative but to offer the post of first minister to
Thorbecke, who accepted the office (January 31, 1862).
The second ministry of Thorbecke lasted for four years, and was actively
engaged during that period in domestic, trade and colonial reforms.
Thorbecke, as a free-trader, at once took in hand the policy of lowering
all duties except for revenue purposes. The communal dues were
extinguished. A law for secondary and technical education was passed in
1863; and in the same year slavery was abolished in Surinam and the West
Indies. Other bills were passed for the canalising of the Hook of
Holland, and the reclaiming of the estuary of the Y. This last project
included the construction of a canal, the Canal of Holland, with the
artificial harbour of Ymuiden at its entrance, deep enough for ocean
liners to reach Amsterdam. With the advent of Fransen van de Putte, as
colonial minister in 1863, began a series of far-reaching reforms in the
East Indies, including the lowering of the differential duties. His
views, however, concerning the scandal of the cultivation-system in Java
did not meet with the approval of some of his colleagues; and Thorbecke
himself supported the dissentients. The ministry resigned, and Van de
Putte became head of the government. He held office for four months
only. His bill for the abolition of the cultivation-system and the
conversion of the native cultivators into possessors of their farms was
thrown out by a small majority, Thorbecke with a few liberals and some
Catholics voting with the conservatives against it. This was the
beginning of a definite liberal split, which was to continue for years.
A coalition-ministry followed under the presidency of J. van Heemskerk
(Interior) and Baron van Zuylen van Nyevelt (Foreign Affairs). The
colonial minister Mijer shortly afterwards resigned in order to take the
post of governor-general of the East Indies. This appointment did not
meet with the approval of the Second Chamber; and the government
suffered a defeat. On this they persuaded the king not only to dissolve
the Chamber, but to issue a proclamation impressing upon the electors
the need of the country for a more stable administration. The result was
the return of a majority for the Heemskerk-Van Zuylen combination. It is
needless to say that Thorbecke and his followers protested strongly
against the dragging of the king's name into a political contest, as
gravely unconstitutional. The ministry had a troubled existence.
The results of the victory of Prussia over Austria at Sadowa, and the
formation of the North German Confederation under Prussian leadership,
rendered the conduct of foreign relations a difficult and delicate task,
especially as regards Luxemburg and Limburg, both of which were under
the personal sovereignty of William III, and at the same time formed
part of the old German Confederation. The rapid success of Prussia had
seriously perturbed public opinion in France; and Napoleon III, anxious
to obtain some territorial compensation which would satisfy French
_amour-propre,_ entered into negotiations with William III for the sale
of the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg. The king was himself alarmed at the
Prussian annexations, and Queen Sophie and the Prince of Orange had
decided French leanings; and, as Bismarck had given the king reason to
believe that no objection would be raised, the negotiations for the sale
were seriously undertaken. On March 26, 1867, the Prince of Orange
actually left the Hague, bearing the document containing the Grand
Duke's consent; and on April 1 the cession was to be finally completed.
On that very day the Prussian ambassadors at Paris and the Hague were
instructed to say that any cession of Luxemburg to France would mean war
with Prussia. It was a difficult situation; and a conference of the
Great Powers met at London on May 11 to deal with it. Its decision was
that Luxemburg should remain as an independent state, whose neutrality
was guaranteed collectively by the Powers, under the sovereignty of the
House of Nassau; that the town of Luxemburg should be evacuated by its
Prussian garrison; and that Limburg should henceforth be an integral
part of the kingdom of the Netherlands.
Van Zuylen was assailed in the Second Chamber for his exposing the
country to danger and humiliation in this matter; and the Foreign Office
vote was rejected by a small majority. The ministry resigned; but,
rather than address himself to Thorbecke, the king sanctioned a
dissolution, with the result of a small gain of seats to the liberals.
Heemskerk and Van Zuylen retained office for a short time in the face of
adverse votes, but finally resigned; and the king had no alternative but
to ask Thorbecke to form a ministry. He himself declined office, but he
chose a cabinet of young liberals who had taken no part in the recent
political struggles, P.P. van Bosse becoming first minister.
From this time forward there was no further attempt on the part
of the royal authority to interfere in the constitutional course of
parliamentary government. Van Bosse's ministry, scoffingly called by
their opponents "Thorbecke's marionettes," maintained themselves
in office for two years(1868-70), passing several useful measures, but
are chiefly remembered for the abolition of capital punishment. The
outbreak of the Franco-German war in 1870 found, however, the
Dutch army and fortresses ill-prepared for an emergency, when
the maintenance of strict neutrality demanded an efficient defence
of the frontiers. The ministry was not strong enough to resist the
attacks made upon it; and at last the real leader of the liberal party,
the veteran Thorbecke, formed his third ministry (January, 1871).
But Thorbecke was now in ill-health, and the only noteworthy
achievement of his last premiership was an agreement with Great
Britain by which the Dutch possessions on the coast of Guinea
were ceded to that country in exchange for a free hand being given
to the Dutch in Surinam. The ministry, having suffered a defeat
on the subject of the cost of the proposed army re-organisation, was
on the point of resigning, when Thorbecke suddenly died (June 5,
1872). His death brought forth striking expressions of sympathy
and appreciation from men and journals representing all parties
in the State. For five-and-twenty years, in or out of office, his had
been the dominating influence in Dutch politics; and it was felt on
all sides that the country was the poorer for the loss of a man of
outstanding ability and genuine patriotism.
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