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THE LIFE AND DEATH of JOHN OF BARNEVELD, ADVOCATE OF HOLLAND
By John Lothrop Motley, D.C.L., LL.D.
MOTLEY'S HISTORY OF THE NETHERLANDS, Project Gutenberg Edition, Volume 95
Life and Death of John of Barneveld, v9, 1618
Maurice revolutionizes the Provinces—Danckaert's libellous Pamphlet —Barneveld's Appeal to the Prince—Barneveld'a Remonstrance to the States—The Stadholder at Amsterdam—The Treaty of Truce nearly expired—King of Spain and Archduke Albert—Scheme for recovering the Provinces—Secret Plot to make Maurice Sovereign.
Early in the year (1618) Maurice set himself about revolutionizing theprovinces on which he could not yet thoroughly rely. The town of Nymegensince its recovery from the Spaniards near the close of the precedingcentury had held its municipal government, as it were, at the option ofthe Prince. During the war he had been, by the terms of surrender,empowered to appoint and to change its magistracy at will. No change hadoccurred for many years, but as the government had of late fallen intothe hands of the Barneveldians, and as Maurice considered the Truce to bea continuance of the war, he appeared suddenly, in the city at the headof a body of troops and surrounded by his lifeguard. Summoning the wholeboard of magistrates into the townhouse, he gave them all notice to quit,disbanding them like a company of mutinous soldiery, and immediatelyafterwards appointed a fresh list of functionaries in their stead.
This done, he proceeded to Arnhem, where the States of Gelderland were insession, appeared before that body, and made a brief announcement of therevolution which he had so succinctly effected in the most considerabletown of their province. The Assembly, which seems, like many otherassemblies at precisely this epoch, to have had an extraordinary capacityfor yielding to gentle violence, made but little resistance to theextreme measures now undertaken by the Stadholder, and not only highlyapplauded the subjugation of Nymegen, but listened with sympathy to hisarguments against the Waartgelders and in favour of the Synod.
Having accomplished so much by a very brief visit to Gelderland, thePrince proceeded, to Overyssel, and had as little difficulty in bringingover the wavering minds of that province into orthodoxy and obedience.Thus there remained but two provinces out of seven that were still"waartgeldered" and refused to be "synodized."
It was rebellion against rebellion. Maurice and his adherents accusedthe States' right party of mutiny against himself and the States-General.The States' right party accused the Contra-Remonstrants in the cities ofmutiny against the lawful sovereignty of each province.
The oath of the soldiery, since the foundation of the Republic, had beento maintain obedience and fidelity to the States-General, the Stadholder,and the province in which they were garrisoned, and at whose expense theywere paid. It was impossible to harmonize such conflicting duties anddoctrines. Theory had done its best and its worst. The time was fastapproaching, as it always must approach, when fact with its violent besomwould brush away the fine-spun cobwebs whic