Iwo Tuleya
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Why do we remeber the murder of Willem van Oranje?
O Zeus, moge hij die deze ellende bracht u niet ontsnappen.
O Zeus, may he who brought this misery about not escape you.1
Willem van Oranje, also known as Willem de Zwijger (the Silent) - “Father of the Fatherland who valued the fortunes of the Netherlands above his own.”2 For others, a “troubler and spoiler of the whole of Christendom”3. Balthasar Gerards, mischief, schelm4, murderer, and “a young man of about 25 years of age, who was also well learned, eloquent and very active in his trade”5. It seems that even labelling the two as an offender and a victim would be a promiscuous action.
The discourse over the 10th of July of 1584 and its aftermath is tangled in political and cultural tensions between the Low Countries with the post-Habsburg countries and the Protestant world with the Catholic world. Even though nearly 440 years will have passed next year, the discussion is still lively, as can be seen online6. Without more sources resurfacing, it’s not likely that this state will come to an end anytime soon. Most material available now serves one of the two agendas, making it impossible to prevent factual differences from occurring when recapitulating the facts today. Why would a murder of a Dutch prince, in some dimensions so inherent to the era7, in others ostensibly absurdist, spark so much controversy? As Nanne Bosma pointedly writes: “[Balthasar Gerards' - I.T.] death gave a dimension to his person that should not have been given to it. ”8 The murder allowed Willem van Oranje to become a martyr, but the gruesome execution allowed Gerards to join the party.
The Catholic-Habsburg side accentuates the details that contribute to the martyrdom of Gerards, such as his steadfastness during torture and execution or profound devotion. This iteration of the story fits into a narrative of the great Spanish Empire and of the moral victory of Catholicism over spoiled Protestantism. The Dutch-Protestant historiography wants to see Gerards as a mere arm of the Duke of Parma and Philip II, a religious fanatic who deprived the nation of its unifying figure.
An example of such nuances are the famous last words of the prince of Oranje. In a court-issued pamphlet, written by the court secretary De Villiers, prince is said to have exclaimed: “Heere Godt weest mijn siele ghenadich, ick ben seer gequetst, Heere Godt weest mijn siele, ende dit arme volck ghenadich”9. In French, which might be more accurate, as it was the language Oranje used normally, it’s: “Mon Dieu, mon Dieu ayez pitié de moi et de ce pauvre peuple”10. In the anti-orangist pamphlet, “Historie Balthazars Gerardt, alias Serach [...]” from the same year, it’s stated that the dying prince said nothing, “immediately falling to the ground”11. None of these claims come from actual witnesses, as those would only be Balthasar Gerards, a certain Van Malderen and the prince‘s guest present in an adjacent chamber, Rombout Uilenburg from Leeuwarden. The latter gives no account to any words of the dying prince whatsoever12.
What would be the truth here? It’s most likely that with three bullets inside the torso, one is not as talkative as to surrender one's soul to God in a romantic bon mot. This interpretation seems to be confirmed by Uilenburg’s testimony. However, I strongly believe that finding out the truth is less important than looking at the myths that originate from it. It’s them that might reflect the society’s values, wishes, fears, and let us better answer the question of “why” we remember certain stories, why we remember about the murder of Willem de Zwijger. It’s the only accurate question, in my opinion, that could be raised in the post-truth reality of the 21st century.
I must admit that my fascination leans towards Balthasar Gerards rather than Willem van Oranje. On the one hand, it’s the closeness of my age to his at the time of his death. I couldn't be further from identifying with a silver-haired father of the nation (plus of 15 actual children) in ornate robes and headwear resembling a swimming cap. On the other, the ambiguity of Gerards’ character is what sparked my attention when I first read a popular description of the tragedy in Delft in John L. Motley’s Rise of the Dutch Republic13. Although living away from the Netherlands, Gerards considered Nassau a danger to the Catholic Church and the monarchy. In his mind, he himself was a victim, or at least would turn one if he did not partake in a precautionary doing14. If one were to look at Gerards as a multifaceted fruit of Habsburg propaganda, middle-class background and Catholic indoctrination, he could also be seen as a victim of his upbringing. At the same time, it‘s important to note his determination and tempered line of action indicate an above-average intellect, making it even more difficult to look at him one-sidedly. That is my answer to why I, personally, remember about the murder of Willem van Oranje.
1 Inscription in Greek, visible as a detail in Willem van Oranje’s portrait by Michiel van Mierevelt in reference to the murder of the prince in 1584. J. Bikker, “Workshop of Michiel Jansz. van Mierevelt, Portrait of Willem I (1533-84), Prince of Orange, Called William the Silent, c. 1632’,” in Dutch Paintings of the Seventeenth Century in the Rijksmuseum, by J. Bikker (Amsterdam: Rijksmuseum, 2007). https://hdl.handle.net/10934/RM0001.COLLECT.6737
2 Inscription on Oranje’s grand tomb in Nieuwe Kerk, Delft, ordered by the Dutch States General. C. V. Wedgwood, William the Silent (London, 1944), 252. https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.209997
3 Dutch: “beroerder ende bederver van tgeheel Christenrijck”. Part of the title of Philip II’s ban on Oranje (1580), Ban, Ende Edict by Vorme van Proscriptie, ... Gedecreteert by ... de Coninck, Tegens Wilhelm ... van Oraignyen, Als Hooft, Beruerder Ende Bederuer van Tgheheel Christenrijck, Ende Namentlyck van Dese Nederlanden: (Jan Scheffer, 1580). https://archive.org/details/ned-kbn-all-00014240-001
4 W. Baudartius, Executie Binnen Delft Ghedaen over Den Moordenaer Des Princen van Oranien/Den XIIII. Iulij, 1584., Afbeeldinge Ende Beschryvinghe van Alle de Veldslagen, Belegeringen Ende and’re Notabele Geschiedenissen Ghevallen in de Nederlanden (Amsterdam, 1616). https://www.dbnl.org/tekst/baud002afbe01_01/baud002afbe01_01_0159.php
5 Fragment of a Catholic pamphlet. N. Bosma, Balthazar Gerards, Moordenaar En Martelaar (Amsterdam, 1983), 102. https://www.dbnl.org/tekst/bosm029balt01_01/index.php
6 “Gloria y honor a Balthasar Gerard”, “RIP Balthasar. You avenged the looting of the Church in the Netherlands.”, “Gérard fue un martir y un héroe.”, about Oranje: “inmundo traidor” - are only some of the comments to be found under a reposted TV recreation of the murder on YouTube. tercioss, “Balthasar Gérard,” February 4, 2011. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36ggh0MWrCY
7 Lisa Jardine, The Awful End of Prince William The Silent: The First Assassination of a Head of State with a Handgun (Harper Perennial, 2007), 9.
8 Bosma, Balthazar Gerards, Moordenaar En Martelaar, 93.
9 English: “Lord God, have mercy on my soul; I am greatly troubled. Lord God, be merciful to my soul, and be gracious to this poor people”. Cort Verhael Vande Moort, Ghedaen Aen Den Persoone Vanden Seer Doorluchtighen Prince van Orangien, 1584. https://books.google.be/books?printsec=frontcover&id=QGtJAAAAcAAJ
10 Bosma, Balthazar Gerards, Moordenaar En Martelaar, 82.
11 Historie Balthazars Gerardt, Alias Serach, Die Den Tyran van t’Nederlandt Den Prince van Orangie Doorschoten Heeft: Ende Is Daerom Duer Grouwelijcke Ende Vele Tormenten Binnen de Stadt van Delft Openbaerlijck Ghedoodt, 1584, 9. https://archive.org/details/ned-kbn-all-00014325-001
12 Bosma, Balthazar Gerards, Moordenaar En Martelaar, 84. Also to be found in the appendix to Bosma - 112.
13 J. L. Motley, The Rise of the Dutch Republic, vol. 3, 1856. https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/4836/pg4836-images.html
14 Confession of Balthasar Gerards, in: M. Gachard, ed., Correspondance de Guillaume Le Taciturne, Prince d’Orange, vol. 6 (Bruxelles, Lepizig, Gand, 1857), 163-9. https://resources.huygens.knaw.nl/retroboeken/gachard/
Ban, Ende Edict by Vorme van Proscriptie, ... Gedecreteert by ... de Coninck, Tegens Wilhelm ... van Oraignyen, Als Hooft, Beruerder Ende Bederuer van Tgheheel Christenrijck, Ende Namentlyck van Dese Nederlanden: Jan Scheffer, 1580. https://archive.org/details/ned-kbn-all-00014240-001.
Baudartius, Willem. Executie Binnen Delft Ghedaen over Den Moordenaer Des Princen van Oranien/Den XIIII. Iulij, 1584., Afbeeldinge Ende Beschryvinghe van Alle de Veldslagen, Belegeringen Ende and’re Notabele Geschiedenissen Ghevallen in de Nederlanden. Amsterdam, 1616. https://www.dbnl.org/tekst/baud002afbe01_01/baud002afbe01_01_0159.php.
Bikker, J. “Workshop of Michiel Jansz. van Mierevelt, Portrait of Willem I (1533-84), Prince of Orange, Called William the Silent, c. 1632’.” In Dutch Paintings of the Seventeenth Century in the Rijksmuseum, by J. Bikker. Amsterdam: Rijksmuseum, 2007. https://hdl.handle.net/10934/RM0001.COLLECT.6737.
Bosma, Nanne. Balthazar Gerards, Moordenaar En Martelaar. Amsterdam, 1983. https://www.dbnl.org/tekst/bosm029balt01_01/index.php.
Cort Verhael Vande Moort, Ghedaen Aen Den Persoone Vanden Seer Doorluchtighen Prince van Orangien, 1584. https://books.google.be/books?printsec=frontcover&id=QGtJAAAAcAAJ.
Gachard, M., ed. Correspondance de Guillaume Le Taciturne, Prince d’Orange. Vol. 6. Bruxelles, Lepizig, Gand, 1857. https://resources.huygens.knaw.nl/retroboeken/gachard/.
Historie Balthazars Gerardt, Alias Serach, Die Den Tyran van t’Nederlandt Den Prince van Orangie Doorschoten Heeft: Ende Is Daerom Duer Grouwelijcke Ende Vele Tormenten Binnen de Stadt van Delft Openbaerlijck Ghedoodt, 1584. https://archive.org/details/ned-kbn-all-00014325-001.
Jardine, Lisa. The Awful End of Prince William The Silent: The First Assassination of a Head of State with a Handgun. Harper Perennial, 2007.
Motley, John Lothrop. The Rise of the Dutch Republic. Vol. 3, 1856. https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/4836/pg4836-images.html.
tercioss. “Balthasar Gérard,” February 4, 2011. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36ggh0MWrCY.
Wedgwood, C. V. William the Silent. London, 1944. https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.209997.