My British Empire

  Chapter 466 The Netherlands Revolution

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  The Netherlands has two major economic centers, namely Amsterdam in the north and Ampwert in the south, while the political center of the Netherlands is in Brussels.

  Brussels is located on the banks of the Senna River, with the low flat Flanders Plain in the north and the slightly undulating Brabant Terrace in the south, with an average elevation of 58 meters.

  Brussels has a history of more than 1,000 years.

In 979 AD, Duke Charles, who took the Senna River Basin as his fiefdom, chose Saint-Gerie Island in the Senna River as his settlement, built a fortress and a wharf on the island, and built a luxurious residence for himself. The rudimentary form of the city was called "Bruocera" at that time, which means "dwelling on the swamp" in Teutonic.

  The name "Brussels" evolved from this.

  Because of the convenient river transportation, goods were collected and distributed here, and the port trade flourished. By the 13th century, it became a handicraft city with a considerable scale, and its woolen fabrics, tapestries and lace were famous all over Europe.

  Among them, hundreds of years later, Emperor Napoleon of France experienced a battle here, which gave birth to a proverb—Waterloo of life.

  Due to its unique political status and prosperous economy, Brussels defeated Amsterdam and Amphitheater and became the center of the Kingdom of Spain ruling the Netherlands.

  Five days before Philip II got the news, that is to say, August 3rd.

  On this day, white clouds appeared in the sky of Brussels, which happened to cover the sun that was still shining brightly just now. For a while, the sky and the earth seemed to dim a lot, which seemed to indicate something.

The bustling streets of Brussels did not slow down much because of the weather. People were doing their own business without seeing them. There were shouts, yells, and noises. Everything showed that this political and economic city, although different from the past Compared with China, it has been reduced by a few points, but in Europe, it still appears to be prosperous.

  At this time, when people were busy doing business, three people wearing beggar clothes and begging bags suddenly came in front of the city gate.

  Although they were wearing beggar clothes that looked shabby, people with a discerning eye could tell that they were just made of high-grade linen.

   More importantly, from them, everyone did not see that kind of lowly and humble atmosphere, but instead revealed a noble temperament above others, which made passers-by suspicious and focused.

   After that, he was surrounded and protected by a group of guards, who seemed to be of extraordinary status.

  For a while, the passers-by and small traders only regarded this as a play of noble children who had convulsions, and regarded it as a joke.

  Since Protestantism spread to the Netherlands, it has been welcomed by most of the Netherlands with small assets, and it has become a common phenomenon among the nobles.

  But Charles V and Philip II, as devout Catholics, naturally did not allow their money bags to get out of control.

  Therefore, the Inquisition was set up to vigorously hunt down Protestants, and the nobles and civilians were silenced for a while, coupled with the slow economic decline, the entire Netherlands was shrouded in this long-term white terror, and everyone was terrified.

  The nobles naturally couldn't bear this kind of ideological control for a long time, so they often made that kind of rebellious behavior as a silent resistance.

  Drinking a lot, talking nonsense, pretending to be a wandering knight, bumping into the street, and so on.

  Therefore, although a few nobles pretending to be beggars is a bit weird, it is not unacceptable.

  Everyone stopped to watch the performances of these nobles, which can be regarded as a change in life.

  At this time, sharp-eyed people recognized them as the great nobleman William Orange, Earl Ugmont and General Horne.

Especially William van Orange, he is one of the few nobles in the Netherlands—Prince of Orange, and he is also the ruler of the three provinces of the Netherlands, Zeeland, and Utrecht. It can be said that in the entire Netherlands, his Prestige and power are only second to the Duchess of Parma, Governor of the Netherlands.

  He is also a representative of the local forces in the Netherlands.

   Soon, Earl Ugmont and General Horn were also recognized by people. For a moment, everyone understood that this was not just a performance, but a political show.

  For a while, the unique political sensitivity of the Brussels people immediately fermented in their hearts:

   Something big is about to happen in the Netherlands!

   Just when the Prince of Orange and the other three came to the Governor's Palace in Brussels for a show, the price of food in Brussels immediately rose by three levels.

  Prince of Orange looked at the Governor's Palace in front of him with complicated eyes.

  In his hand, he was holding a petition. This was a petition signed by the nobles of the Netherlands. They demanded:

  Abolish the "Bloody Edict", withdraw the Spanish garrison, convene a three-level parliament, remove unpopular Catholic bishops, etc.

   Soon, the petition passed through the hands of the servants and came to the Governor of the Netherlands, Margaret, the Duchess of Parma.

  As the illegitimate daughter of Charles V and recognized by Charles V, she has received strict elite education since she was a child, and her goal of training is the Governor of the Netherlands.

  Her predecessors, Governor of the Netherlands, were Charles V's aunt, Archduchess Margaret of Austria (1507-1530), and Charles V's sister, Queen Mary of Hungary (1530-1555).

  They have been firmly guarding the Dutch cows for the Habsburg dynasty. It is because of this precedent that the Duchess of Parma can accept the post of Governor of the Netherlands.

  During the period of governing the Netherlands, although the Duchess of Parma had been carrying out the orders of her younger brother, she had an open and tolerant attitude towards the Netherlands, which prevented the powder keg of the Netherlands from exploding.

  At this moment, she, who was worrying about the situation in the Netherlands, suddenly received a petition, a petition submitted by her most valued subordinate—Prince of Orange.

  After reading this petition, Margaret knew that she must not agree.

   Agreeing to these conditions, Spain really only has nominal ownership of the Netherlands. Apart from tax collection, other rights are undoubtedly lost.

   Not long after, the Netherlands will break away from Spain, and her important task of guarding the cows of the Habsburg dynasty will also be destroyed.

   In her ears, her father's teachings still echoed:

  Margaret, the Netherlands will be handed over to you in the future, you must guard it for the Habsburg family!

   Moreover, she will never forget the sincere support of her younger brother Philip II.

  She knew very well that she was able to become a grand duchess from an illegitimate daughter, married a Duke of Parma, and became the governor of the Netherlands because of the trust of her father Charles V and younger brother Philip II.

  She absolutely cannot live up to this trust and kindness.

   "Bring them in!" the Duchess ordered in a deep voice, with a gloomy expression on her face.

   Soon, the butler invited the Prince of Orange and others standing at the door.

   "Good day, Honorable Governor!" Prince Orange and the other three greeted respectfully.

  The Duchess looked at these dependent subordinates seriously and carefully, and said sadly:

   "You are all my subordinates, are you all going to become traitors of the Habsburg family? Is it because you don't have enough power in your hands?"

"No, Your Excellency Governor, we are for the sake of all the Dutch people, and also for the future of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. That's why we jointly signed this petition. Please agree to our request and hand it over to the people in Madrid. Your Majesty the King!"

  As the leader, Prince Orange took a step forward, and a gentle voice sounded immediately.

   "No, this is impossible, you still give up this rebellious behavior, I can still forgive you!"

   "Don't try to use all the nobles to oppress me, even if I succumb, His Majesty the King of Madrid will never agree, so your petition is just a piece of waste paper!"

   As she spoke, the female governor, uncharacteristically, spoke with unprecedented sternness, and stared viciously at the nobles in front of her.

"Please don't forget that the Netherlands is the territory of the Habsburg family. The Netherlands belongs to His Majesty Philip II. No one can force him, as well as me, the governor, to do anything against the interests of the Habsburg family. thing!"

   The revolution in the Netherlands three years in advance will bring a lot of benefits to England.

   By the way, I would like to thank Silver Poppy for the great reward. This really encouraged me a lot, thank you!

  (end of this chapter)