See Groen van Prinsterer, Archives ou correspondance inedite de la Maison d'Orange-Nassau; Gachard, Correspondance de Guillaume le Taciturne; Apologie du Prince d'Orange; Motley, Rise of the Dutch Republic; Putnam, William the Silent; Fruin, Het Voorspel van den tachtigjarigen oorlog, and other essays; Rachfahl, Wilhelm van Oran ien (3 vols. to 1572, no more appeared) ; P. J. Blok, Willem de Eerste (2 vols., Amsterdam, 1919-20). (P. GE.) WILLIAM II. (1626-165o), prince of Orange, born at The Hague on May 27, 1626, was the son of Frederick Henry, prince of Orange, and his wife Amalia von Solms, and grandson of William the Silent. By the act of survivance passed in 1631 the offices and dignities held by Frederick Henry were made hereditary in his family. On May 12, 1641 William married, in the royal chapel at Whitehall, Mary, princess royal of England, eldest daughter of King Charles I. At the time of the wedding the bridegroom was not yet fifteen years old, the bride was five years younger. William from his early youth accompanied his father in his campaigns, and already in 1643 highly distinguished himself in a brilliant cavalry fight at Burgerhout (Sept. 5). On the death of Frederick Henry William succeeded him. At the moment of his accession to power the negotiations for a separate treaty of peace with Spain were almost concluded, and peace was actually signed at Munster on Jan. 3o, 1648. By this treaty Spain recog nized the independence of the United Netherlands and made large concessions to the Dutch. William did his utmost to prevent the
ratification, but failed. He opened secret negotiations with France in the hope of securing the armed assistance for a war of ag grandisement against the Spanish Netherlands and of a restoration of his brother-in-law, Charles II., to the throne of England. The states of Holland, on the other hand, were determined to thwart any attempts for a renewal of war, and insisted, in defiance of the authority of the captain-general supported by the states-general, in virtue of their claim to be a sovereign province, in disbanding a large part of the regiments in their pay.
A prolonged controversy arose, which ended in the states-general in June 165o commissioning the prince of Orange to visit the towns of Holland and secure a recognition of their authority. The mission was unsuccessful. Amsterdam refused any hearing at all. William resolved therefore to use force and crush re sistance. On July 3o six leading members of the states of Holland were seized and imprisoned in the castle of Loevestein. On the same day an attempt was made to occupy Amsterdam with troops. The citizens were, however, warned in time, and the gates closed. William's triumph was nevertheless complete. The states of Holland submitted. The prince entered into fresh negotiations with the French government, and a draft treaty was drawn up. But William died of small-pox on Nov. 6, 165o. A week of ter his death his widow gave birth to a son, who was one day to become William III., king of England.