After the termination of this contest, which had esta blished the freedom of seven provinces, and riveted the chains of ten, the history of the Netherlands pre sents nothing equally remarkable. What remains of it may be despatched more briefly. Belgium continued quietly subject to Spain, and lost all its commerce and enterprise: Holland went on rapidly increasing in both. Cornelius Houtmann had led the way to India in 1599 ; the Portuguese settlements, then subject to Spain, were in no condition to resist; and the Dutch by degrees ac quired almost the whole of that lucrative trade. They planted colonies in the spice islands of the East ; they gained settlements in America ; their naval power con tinued to augment ; they gradually became the factors and carriers of Europe. It is true, their government, at peace from without, was not equally at peace from within; theological disputes between Arminius and Go mar, to which political feelings soon became conjoined, had agitated the people violently in 1619, and tarnished the name of Prince Maurice by his share in the perse cution of Grotius, and the death of the Pensionary Barn velt. A more strict republican party also afterwards arose under the auspices of the De Witts, who had force and dexterity enough at the death of William II. (1650), to procure the abolition of the Stadtholdership. But those political fermentations slightly affected the industry and success of the grcat body of the nation. The public prosperity was stedfastly advancing ; it had mounted so high in 1652, that the States did not hesi tate to throw down the gauntlet to England, though her power was at that time wielded by the firm and steady hand of Cromwell.
Naval superiority was the subject of this contest; commercial and political jealousy embittered it. The Dutch had given refuge and countenance to many of the exiled royalists ; their admirals refused to pay to the British the customary acknowledgment of superio rity ; Van Tromp, on the contrary, placed a broom at his mast-head, to signify that he would sweep the scas, and reign triumphant in then). But the cannon of Blake soon levelled this rude emblem, and the claim which it typified : De Ruyter and Van Tromp were beaten by him off Portland in 1653, after a furious contest of two days ; and next year, Van Tromp was shot through the body, off the coast ol Holland, while gallantly animating his men on the third morning of a battle, ivhich his energy alone had proractecl so long. Monk was the vic tor on this occasion. The Dutch were glad to make peace, and leave the dominion of the ocean in the hands where it was, and has ever since continued.
A severer trial awaited the Dutch republic shortly afterwards. In 1668, Louis XIV. profiting by the fee bleness of Spain, had entered the Low Countries with an army, which bore down all opposition. He soon con quered Belgium ; he made himself master of Franche Compte, and was fast extending his dominions on every side, when thc Triple Alliance, concluded at the Hague in 1669, arrested his ambitious career. Irritated by the share which Holland had taken in this transaction, Louis made great preparations for revenge. The profligate
ministry of our Charles II. was hired to support his %iews; and in 1672, lie crossed the Rhine at the head of an immense army. Basely deserted by their natural ally, agitated by internal factions, the Dutch had nothing but a few undisciplined troops, and a general scarcely ar rived at manhood, wherewith to oppose the progress of 130,000 ‘eterans, led on by Conde, Turenne, and Vau ban. The issue could scarce be doubtful. Louis over ran the country in a few weeks ; and Amsterdam was soon the last asylum of Dutch liberty. The De Witts proposed surrendering, but the States, with their young general, William, Prince of Orange, at their head, de termined on a braver expedient.* Preferring indepen dence to every other advantage, they opened the sluices of their sea-dykes ; and Amsterdam once more became an island of the ocean, from which it had been gained. The king returned into France ; his generals retired out of Holland ; and before the triumphal arch at the gate of St. Dennis, in honour of his conquest, was completed, Louis possessed no foot or ground within the conquered territories. Far from yielding, the Dutch in their turn became aggressms ; and their )oung prince, now ap pointed Stachholder, ever henceforth continued thc un wearied and successful adversary of all the covetous schemes of Louis. By his efforts the present war was ended in 1679 ; and when he mounted the throne or England, his augmented power still thwarted the in creasing projects of France. In 1697, the treaty of Rys wick concluded a new war of eight years,—in the con duct of which lie had been indefatigable, in the result of which he was superior ; and before his death, hc had prepared the materials of that coalition which, under Marlborough and Prince Eugene, brought Louis to the brink of ruin.
The peace of Utrecht saved Louis from absolute de struction, and consigned Belgium to the throne of Aus tria, that of Spain being now filled by a Bourbon. The Dutch had exerted themselves vigorously in all those quarrels; but from this period their internal prosperity began to languish, their political importance gradually to lessen. The English had acquired their arts and manufactures, and almost entirely supplanted their East India commerce. The American colonies, added to this, gave the English navy an irresistible preponderance. Holland still continued diligent and contented; but the rise of neighbouring nations had eclipsed its power. About the middle of the last century, it NV3S farther threatened with the calamities of foreign invasion, When Maria Theresa's right to the imperial throne was dis puted in 1740, the Dutch had taken up her side ; the French that of the Elector of Bavaria. During the con test, Louis XV. hacl penetrated into the Netherlands: and the Alaieschal de Saxe had conquered Belgium for him. In 1748, the same general made an attack on Hol land. Bergen-op-Zoom had fallen, Maestricht was fall ing; and the Dutch barrier must have been forced, had not the treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, which restored Bel gium to Austria, while it secured the deliverance of Holland, put a stop to hostilities.