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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;areich, post: 1445331, member: 37479&quot;][h=2]Decline[/h]</p><ul> <li>Long-term rivalry between the two main factions in Dutch society, the <i>Staatsgezinden</i> (Republicans) and the <i>Prinsgezinden</i> (Royalists or<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orangism_(Netherlands)" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orangism_(Netherlands)" rel="nofollow">Orangists</a>), sapped the strength and unity of the country. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johan_de_Witt" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johan_de_Witt" rel="nofollow">Johan de Witt</a> and the Republicans did reign supreme for a time at the middle of the 17th century (the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Stadtholderless_Period" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Stadtholderless_Period" rel="nofollow">First Stadtholderless Period</a>) until his overthrow and murder in 1672. Subsequently, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_III_of_England" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_III_of_England" rel="nofollow">William III of Orange</a> became stadtholder. After a stadtholderless era of 22 years and the Orangists regained power, his first problem was to survive the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franco-Dutch_War" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franco-Dutch_War" rel="nofollow">Franco-Dutch War</a> (which was related to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_Anglo-Dutch_war" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_Anglo-Dutch_war" rel="nofollow">Third Anglo-Dutch war</a>), when France, England, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince-Bishopric_of_M%C3%BCnster" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince-Bishopric_of_M%C3%BCnster" rel="nofollow">Münster</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archbishopric_of_Cologne" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archbishopric_of_Cologne" rel="nofollow">Cologne</a> united against his country.</li> </ul><p> <ul> <li>Wars to contain the expansionist policies of France in various coalitions after the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glorious_Revolution" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glorious_Revolution" rel="nofollow">Glorious Revolution</a>, mostly including England, burdened the republic with huge debts, although little of the fighting after 1673 took place on its own territory. The necessity to maintain a vast army against France meant that less money could be spent on the navy, weakening the Republic&#039;s power against England. After William III&#039;s death in 1702 the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Stadtholderless_Period" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Stadtholderless_Period" rel="nofollow">Second Stadtholderless Period</a> was inaugurated. The end of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_Spanish_Succession" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_Spanish_Succession" rel="nofollow">War of Spanish Succession</a> in 1713 marked the end of the republic as a major military power.</li> </ul><p>[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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