Wilhelmina of the Netherlands
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| Wilhelmina | ||
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| Queen of the Netherlands | ||
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| Reign | November 23, 1890 - 30 April 1948 | |
| Born | August 30, 1880 | |
| The Hague, Netherlands | ||
| Died | November 28, 1962, aged 82 | |
| Buried | Delft | |
| Predecessor | William III of the Netherlands | |
| Successor | Juliana of the Netherlands | |
| Consort | Hendrik of Mecklenburg-Schwerin | |
| Issue | Juliana | |
| Royal House | Orange-Nassau | |
| Royal anthem | Wilhelmus | |
| Father | William III of the Netherlands | |
| Mother | Emma of Waldeck and Pyrmont | |
- For other uses, see Wilhelmina (disambiguation).
Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands (Wilhelmina Helena Pauline Marie of Orange-Nassau; August 31, 1880 – November 28, 1962), Princess of Orange-Nassau, was Queen regnant of the Netherlands from 1890 to 1948 and Queen Mother (with the title of Princess) from 1948 to 1962. She ruled the Netherlands for fifty years, longer than any other Dutch monarch. Her reign saw many turning points in both Dutch and world history: World War I and World War II, the Great Crisis of 1933, as well as the decline of the Netherlands as a major colonial empire. She is mostly remembered for her role in the Second World War, in which she would prove to be a great inspiration to the Dutch resistance, as well as a prominent leader of the Dutch government in exile.[1]
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[edit] Early life
She was the only child of King William III and his second wife, Emma of Waldeck and Pyrmont. Her childhood was characterised by a close relationship with her parents, especially with her father who was already 63 years of age when she was born.
Since King William already had three sons with his first wife, Queen Sophie, when Wilhelmina was born, there was little chance she would ascend the throne. However, William would outlive all of his sons, the last of whom died when Wilhelmina was six.
King William III died on November 23, 1890 and although Princess Wilhelmina became Queen of the Netherlands instantly, her mother, Emma, was named Regent until her 18th birthday.
In 1901 she married Hendrik of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. Although the marriage was said to be in essence without love, Wilhelmina initially truly cared for Hendrik, and it is likely that those feelings were mutual.[citation needed] Hendrik however, suffered from his role as prince-consort, stating that it was boring to be nothing more than decoration, always forced to walk one step behind his wife.[citation needed] He had no power in the Netherlands, and Wilhelmina made sure this remained so.[citation needed]
A series of miscarriages also contributed to a crisis in their marriage. Prince Hendrik is reported to have had several illegitimate children.[citation needed] Over time the marriage became less happy.[citation needed] The birth of their only child, Juliana, on April 30, 1909, was met with great relief after eight years of childless marriage. [2]
[edit] Reign
Tactful, and careful to operate within the limitations of what was expected by the Dutch people and their elected representatives, the strong-willed Wilhelmina became a forceful personality who spoke and acted her mind. These qualities showed up early on in her reign when, at the age of 20, Queen Wilhelmina ordered a Dutch warship to South Africa to rescue Paul Kruger, the embattled President of the Transvaal. For this, Wilhelmina gained international stature and earned the respect and admiration of people all over the world. Wilhelmina had a stern disliking of Great Britain, which had annexed the republics Transvaal and Orange Free State in the Boer War. The Boers were descendants of early Dutch colonists, with which Wilhelmina felt very closely linked.
Queen Wilhelmina also had a keen understanding of business matters and her investments would make her the world's richest woman--a title retained by her daughter and granddaughter, Beatrix. The Dutch Royal Family is still reputed to be the single largest shareholder of Royal Dutch Shell.
[edit] World War I
Although the Netherlands remained neutral during World War I, sizeable German investments in the Dutch economy combined with a large trading partnership in goods forced the United Kingdom to blockade the Dutch ports in an attempt to weaken the German Empire. The Dutch government traded with Germany in response. German soldiers were given Edamer cheese for their rations before an assault. Wilhemina was a 'soldier's queen', being a woman, she could not be Supreme Commander, but she nevertheless used every opportunity she had to inspect her forces. On many occasions she appeared without notice, wishing to see the reality, not a prepared show. She loved her soldiers, but was very unhappy with most of her governments, which used the military as a constant source for budget-cutting. Wilhelmina wanted a small, but well trained and equipped army. However, this was far from the reality. In the war, she felt she was a "Queen-On-Guard." She was always wary of a German attack, especially in the beginning. However, violation of Dutch territorial sovereignty came by both Britain and the United States, who, with the blockade, captured many Dutch trade- and cargoships in an attempt to disrupt the German war effort. This led to increased tensions between the Netherlands and the Allied forces.
Civil unrest, spurred by the Bolshevik revolt in Imperial Russia in 1917, gripped the Netherlands after the war. A socialist leader named Troelstra tried to overthrow the government and the Queen. Instead of a violent revolution, he wanted to control the Tweede Kamer, the legislative body of Parliament and hoped to achieve this by means of elections convinced that the working class would support him. However, the popularity of the young Queen helped restore confidence in the government. Wilhelmina brought about a mass-show of support by riding with her daughter through the mobs in an open carriage. It was very clear that the revolution would not succeed.
[edit] Between the wars
During the twenties and thirties, the Netherlands began to emerge as an industrial power. Engineers reclaimed vast amounts of land that had been underwater by building the Zuiderzee scheme. The death of her husband Prince Hendrik in 1934 brought an end to a difficult year that also saw the passing of her mother Queen Emma.
The interbellum, and most notably the economic crisis of the '30s, was also the period in which Wilhelmina's personal power reached its zenith; under the successive governments of prime minister Hendrik Colijn (ARP), a staunch monarchist, Wilhelmina was deeply involved in most questions of state.
In 1939 the fifth and last government of Hendrik Colijn was swept away by a vote of no confidence two days after its formation. It is widely accepted that Wilhelmina herself was behind the formation of this last government which was designed to be an extra-parliamentary or 'royal' cabinet. The Queen was deeply sceptical towards the parliamentary system and tried to bypass it covertly more than once.
She also arranged for the marriage between her daughter Juliana and Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld, a German prince who had lost most of his possessions after the Great War. Although it was claimed that he was initially a supporter of the Nazi regime, hard evidence of this was never found, or publicised. It should be stated, however, that there was never a serious investigation in this matter. Bernhard later became a very popular figure in the Netherlands.
[edit] World War II
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Queen Wilhelmina |
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On May 10, 1940, Nazi Germany invaded the Netherlands, and Queen Wilhelmina and her family fled to the United Kingdom three days later. Queen Wilhelmina wanted to stay in the Netherlands: she had planned to go to the southern province of Zeeland with her troops in order to coordinate further resistance from the town of Breskens and remain there until help would arrive, much like King Albert I of Belgium had done during World War I. She went aboard a British cruiser at The Hague which would take her there. However, when she was on board, the captain stated that he was forbidden to make contact with the Dutch shore, as Zeeland was under heavy attack from the Luftwaffe and it was too dangerous to return. Wilhelmina then took the decision to go to Britain, planning to return as soon as possible.
The Dutch armed forces in the Netherlands, except those in Zeeland, surrendered on May 14. In Britain, Queen Wilhelmina took charge of the Dutch government in exile, setting up a chain of command and immediately communicating a message to her people.
Relations between the Dutch government and the Queen were tense, with mutual dislike growing as the war progressed. Wilhelmina went on to be the most prominent figure, due to her experience and knowledge. She was also very popular and respected among the leaders of the world. The government did not have a Parliament to back them with few employees to assist them. A first test of power came about when Dutch Prime Minister Dirk Jan de Geer intended to open negotiations with the Nazis for a separate peace, as he didn't believe the Allies would win. Wilhelmina was against this and sought to remove the prime minister from power. With the aid of Minister Pieter Gerbrandy, she succeeded.
During the war her photograph was a sign of resistance against the Germans. Like Winston Churchill, Queen Wilhelmina broadcast messages to the Dutch people over Radio Oranje. As always, the Queen pulled no punches, calling Adolf Hitler "the archenemy of mankind." Her late night broadcasts were eagerly awaited by her people, who had to hide in order to listen to them illegally. During the war, the Queen was almost killed by a bomb that took the life of several of her guards and severely damaged her country home near South Mimms, England. In 1944 Queen Wilhelmina became only the second woman to be inducted into the Order of the Garter. Churchill described her as the only real man among the governments-in-exile in London.
In England she developed ideas about a new political and social life for the Dutch after the liberation. She wanted a strong cabinet formed by people active in the resistance. She dismissed prime minister De Geer during the war and installed a prime minister with approval of other Dutch politicians. The Queen "hated" politicians, instead stating a love for the people. When the Netherlands was liberated in 1945 she was disappointed to see the same political factions taking power as before the war.
Following the end of World War II, Queen Wilhelmina made the decision not to return to her palace but move into a mansion in The Hague, where she lived for eight months, and travelled through the countryside to motivate people, sometimes using a bicycle instead of a car. However, in 1947, while the country was recovering from World War II, the revolt in the oil-rich Dutch East Indies would see sharp criticism of the Queen by the Dutch economic elite. Her loss of popularity and the forced departure from the Indies under international pressure led to her abdication soon after.
[edit] Later years
On September 4, 1948, after a reign of fifty-eight years and fifty days, Wilhelmina abdicated in favour of her daughter Juliana. She was henceforward styled Her Royal Highness Princess Wilhelmina of the Netherlands. After her reign, the influence of the Dutch monarchy began to decline but the country's love for their royal family would continue. No longer Queen, Wilhelmina retreated to Het Loo Palace, making few public appearances until the country was devastated by the North Sea flood of 1953. Once again she travelled about the country to encourage and motivate the Dutch people.
During her last years she wrote her autobiography entitled: Eenzaam, maar niet alleen (Lonely but Not Alone).
Queen Wilhelmina died at the age of 82 on November 28, 1962 and was buried in the crypt of the Dutch Royal Family in the Nieuwe Kerk (New Church) in Delft, the Netherlands, on 8 December 1962.
[edit] Trivia
- Prior to the outbreak of the First World War, a young Wilhelmina visited the powerful Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany, who boasted to the Queen of a tiny country: "my guards are seven feet tall and yours are only shoulder high to them." Wilhelmina smiled politely and replied: "Quite true, Your Majesty, your guards are seven feet tall. But when we open our dikes, the water is ten feet deep!"[citation needed]After the armistice ending World War I, Wilhelm fled to the Netherlands, where he was granted political asylum by the Dutch government, partly due to the Kaiser's family links with Queen Wilhelmina.
- Churchill described her as "the only real man in the Dutch government", at that time in exile in London.
- Had she not given up the throne, she would have been Queen for 72 years, and would have been the longest serving monarch in the world.
[edit] Ancestry
| Wilhelmina of the Netherlands | Father: William III of the Netherlands |
Paternal Grandfather: William II of the Netherlands |
Paternal Great-grandfather: William I of the Netherlands |
| Paternal Great-grandmother: Wilhelmine of Prussia |
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| Paternal Grandmother: Anna Pavlovna of Russia |
Paternal Great-grandfather: Paul I of Russia |
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| Paternal Great-grandmother: Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg |
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| Mother: Emma of Waldeck and Pyrmont |
Maternal Grandfather: Georg Viktor, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont |
Maternal Great-grandfather: Maximilian, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont |
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| Maternal Great-grandmother: Gustava, Countess of Platen-Hallermund |
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| Maternal Grandmother: Princess Helena Wilhelmina Henrietta of Nassau |
Maternal Great-grandfather: Wilhelm, Duke of Nassau |
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| Maternal Great-grandmother: Pauline of Württemberg |
[edit] External links
| Preceded by William III |
Queen of the Netherlands | Succeeded by Juliana |
Categories: Articles with unsourced statements since February 2007 | All articles with unsourced statements | 1880 births | 1962 deaths | House of Orange-Nassau | Dutch monarchs | Knights of the Garter | Queens regnant | World War II political leaders | Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav
