Dutch Declaration of Independence

About the Author

The Dutch Declaration of Independence was drafted by a committee of four men; details of their lives are sketchy. Andries Hessels held the position of greffier, or secretary, of Brabant. Jacques Tayaert was a pensionary, or chief functionary and legal adviser, in the city of Ghent. Jacob Valcke held the same position in the city of Ter Goes, now called Goes. Finally, Pieter van Dieven was pensionary of the city of Mechelen. A fifth name is often mentioned, that of Jan de Asseliers, the audiencer of the States-General (the official charged with drafting its declarations), who may have physically written out the declaration and may have composed the preamble. His name appears at the very end of the document as a signer.

Although he was not strictly speaking an author of the declaration, William I of Orange, often called William the Silent, reputedly for his circumspection in negotiations with the king of France, was the leader of the Dutch Revolt and thus can be considered the inspiration behind the document. (This William of Orange is not to be confused with the William of Orange who assumed the throne of England in 1689 through the Glorious Revolution; the latter was William III of Orange.) William I of Orange was born on April 24, 1533, in Germany. Upon the death of his cousin in 1544, as the family’s only recognized heir, he assumed the title of prince of Orange. Later, through marriage, he gained additional royal titles. In 1555 Charles V appointed him to the Council of State; later, Philip appointed him stadtholder of Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, and Burgundy. During the religious disturbances that followed the accession of Philip, he refused to appear before the Council of Troubles and was declared an outlaw. He then became leader of the armed resistance to Spain and won several important battles. His leadership of the Dutch was validated by the signing of the Act of Abjuration in 1581. Philip, though, had placed a bounty on his head, which proved too hard to resist on the part of one Balthasar Gérard, a Catholic Frenchman who believed that William had betrayed his king, Philip. On July 10, 1584, Gérard presented himself at William’s home and shot him with a handgun—one of the earliest political assassinations by handgun in history.