The
Prince d'Orange son of the Silent, when it was student in Leuven (Belgium)
was under protection ed from the new governor of the Netherlands, the duke
of Alba. But the exactions of the governor made the family of Orange
flee to Germany. The young
Philip-William then 14 is taken out of university and brought to Spain.
Retained captive by the king Philip II, he guaranteed the attitude of the
princes d' Orange towards Spain that was more and more involved the Netherlands.
But the young prince is not unhappy in Spain, he hunts, dances and gets
an education. Later he even entered the army. But his secret correspondence
with his family is discovered and his living conditions worsened. No more
hunts and an increased monitoring follow..The assassination of his father
in 1584, the makes him prince d'Orange but does not release him . It is
only in 1595 that it can finally leave his prison to go under good escort
his northern estates. This march was in fact a plot of Spain to divide
the house of Orange. Maurice was now the head of family and Maria,
his sister looked after Philip-Wlliam domains during his absence. His return
meant the end of a system and caused not only a drift in the family but
also in Netherlands politics . In 1598, it is the return in Spain where
he asks the new king Philip III to recover his Orange estates. What was
accepted. Now a sovereign prince, he competes against his brother Maurice
who controls the Netherlands. It will not be before 1609 that the king
of France Henri IV will be able to close the gap between them.
Meanwhile, he marries in 1606,
the young Eléonore de Bourbon. She will then follow her husband
during his frequent travels between Brussels and Orange. The marriage was
happy even if it was childless |
