The king nominates the 'governors of provinces, the burgemeesters of every city, town, or village, and a host of other officials. The cities, towns, and rural parishes are governed by a council, burgemeester (mayor or provost), and wethouders (aldermen or bailies). The council consists of from 7 to 39 members, according to the population, Nvlio are chosen for six years, one-third part retiring every two years. The council selects out of their number from 2 to 4 wethouders for six years, one-half retiring every third year. These with the burgemeester Ram the local executive. The law depart ments are the high council, the provincial courts of justice, those of the' ar•ondisse ments and cantons; appeal in many cases being open from the lower to the higher courts.
is known regarding the original inhabitants of the Netherlands; hut about a century and a half before our era the people known as the Batavi came out of Hesse, where they were living in hostility with thdir neighbors, and settled down between the Rhine and the Waal. At this time the Frisians occupied the country n. of the Rhine to the Elbe. The Batavi and Frisians differed little in appearance, manner of life, and religion. They clothed themselves with skins, lived by fishing, bunting, and pasturing cattle, possessing horses, cows, and sheep; were faithful, open-hearted, chaste, and hospitable. The songs of the bards composed their literature and history. Warlike and brave, they selected their leader for his courage and prowess, were armed with the bow and a short spear. They worshiped the sun and moon, and held their meetings in consecrated woods.
The Romans having subdued the Belgm, next attacked the Frisians, who agreed to pay a tribute of ox-hides and toms, but continued restless and rebellious. The Batavi became allies of Rome, paying no tribute, but supplying a volunteer contingent, chiefly of cavalry, which decided the battle of Pharsalia in favor of Ctesar, and formed a gal lant band of the Roman armies in all parts of the empire. About 70 A.D. Claudius Civilis, a Batavian, whose original name has not been preserved, made a bold effort to overthrow the Roman power in Rhenish or Germanic Gaul, but he was finally compelled to site for peace. Towards the close of the 3d e. began the inroads of the Franks, fol lowed by the Saxons and other races; and in the 5th c. the Batavi had ceased to exist as a distinct people. The Franks continued to spread, and with them the Christian religion, Dagobert I., one of their princes, erecting a church at Utrecht, which, 695, became the seat of a bishopric. The Frisians were opposed to and the last to embrace Christianity,
to which they were forcibly converted by Charles Martel. At the end of the 8th e. all the Low Countries submitted to Charlemagne, who built a palace at Nymegen, on the Waal. The feudal system now began to develop itself and expand into dukedoms, counties, lordships, and bishoprics, which the dukes, counts, and bishops, especially the counts of Holland and bishops of Utrecht, endeavored to enlarge and to rule over with as little submission to their superior as possible. The crusades weakened the power and drained the resources of the nobles and priesthood, so that, during the middle ages, cities began to assume importance, strengthen themselves with walls, choose their own rulers, and appear in the state meetings. In 1384 the county of Flanders passed, through marriage, to the duke of Burgundy. whose grandson. Philip the good, made it his special life-effort to form the Netherlands into a powerful kingdom. Ile bought Namur, inherited Brabant with Limburg, and compelled Jacoba of Bavaria to resign Holland and Zealand. Charles V., as heir of the house of Burgundy, inherited and united the Netherlands under his scepter, and the country attained to prosperity through the encouragements which he gave to commerce and shipping. Philip II., who suc ceeded his father, 1555, by his harsh government and persecution of the reformers excited the Netherlands to rebellion, which after a struggle of 80 years resulted in the firm establishment of the republic of the United Provinces. The founder of the inde pendence of the Netherlands was William of Nassau, prince of Orange, called in history the silent, who freely sacrificed his own property, and put forth every effort to unite the discordant states of the south with those of the north in resisting the Spanish yoke. Retiring to Holland. and banding together several provinces for mutual defense, by an agreement made at Utrecht, 1579, he perseveringly opposed the efforts of Spain; and in 1009 the independency of the United Provinces (the boundaries of which nearly coin cided with those of the present kingdom of the Netherlands)was virtually acknowledged by the Spanish king, an for twelve years being, signed at Antwerp, April 9 of that year. T h renewed and' carried on till 1648, all the powers acknowledged the independence of the United ProVinces by the treaty of Munster, while the Belgic provinces, divided among themselves, remained submissive to Spain and to the Roman Catholic church.