Batavian Republic constitutional referendum, 1797

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A referendum on the constitution of the Batavian Republic was held on August 8, 1797. The draft constitution was rejected, eventually culminating in a coup d'état.

Batavian Republic former country (1795-1806)

The Batavian Republic was the successor of the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands. It was proclaimed on 19 January 1795, and ended on 5 June 1806, with the accession of Louis I to the throne of Holland. From October 1801 onward, it was known as the Batavian Commonwealth. Both names refer to the Germanic tribe of the Batavi, representing both the Dutch ancestry and their ancient quest for liberty in their nationalistic lore.

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Background

The country we now know as the Netherlands had declared independence as the Republic of the Seven United Provinces (Dutch : Republiek der Zeeven Vereenigde Provinciën) in 1581. This independence was officially recognized in the Peace of Westphalia of 1648. As the name indicates, the country was a federation of seven autonomous provinces: the duchy of Gelre, the counties of Holland and Zeeland, the former bishopric of Utrecht, the lordship of Overijssel and the free provinces of Friesland and Groningen. Each province was governed by the Provincial States; the main executive official was a stadtholder (stadhouder in Dutch). Over the years, these stadtholderships were concentrated among the descendants of William the Silent.

Netherlands Constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Europe

The Netherlands is a country located mainly in Northwestern Europe. The European portion of the Netherlands consists of twelve separate provinces that border Germany to the east, Belgium to the south, and the North Sea to the northwest, with maritime borders in the North Sea with Belgium, Germany and the United Kingdom. Together with three island territories in the Caribbean Sea—Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba— it forms a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The official language is Dutch, but a secondary official language in the province of Friesland is West Frisian.

Dutch Republic Republican predecessor state of the Netherlands from 1581 to 1795

The Dutch Republic, or the United Provinces, was a confederal republic that existed from the formal creation of a confederacy in 1581 by several Dutch provinces—seceded from Spanish rule—until the Batavian Revolution in 1795. It was a predecessor state of the Netherlands and the first Dutch nation state.

Dutch language West Germanic language

Dutch(Nederlands ) is a West Germanic language spoken by around 23 million people as a first language and 5 million people as a second language, constituting the majority of people in the Netherlands and Belgium. It is the third most widely spoken Germanic language, after its close relatives English and German.

This led to a friction with the regenten, the wealthy merchant class, who were mainly based in Amsterdam. They saw the central position of the House of Orange-Nassau in Dutch politics as a threat to their own power. The infighting between the regents and the Orangists was one of the causes of the downturn of the Netherlands as a global economic and military power throughout the 18th century.

Amsterdam Capital of the Netherlands

Amsterdam is the capital city and most populous municipality of the Netherlands. Its status as the capital is mandated by the Constitution of the Netherlands, although it is not the seat of the government, which is The Hague. Amsterdam has a population of 854,047 within the city proper, 1,357,675 in the urban area and 2,410,960 in the metropolitan area. The city is located in the province of North Holland in the west of the country but is not its capital, which is Haarlem. The Amsterdam metropolitan area comprises much of the northern part of the Randstad, one of the larger conurbations in Europe, which has a population of approximately 8.1 million.

House of Orange-Nassau branch of the European House of Nassau

The House of Orange-Nassau, a branch of the European House of Nassau, has played a central role in the politics and government of the Netherlands and Europe especially since William the Silent organized the Dutch revolt against Spanish rule, which after the Eighty Years' War (1568–1648) led to an independent Dutch state.

In the 1780s, the tensions came to a head in the Batavian Revolution, a struggle between republican Patriots and royalist Orangists. The Patriots, aided by French troops, eventually managed to drive stadtholder William V out of the country in late 1794. A few weeks later, on January 19, 1795, the Batavian Republic was proclaimed.

Batavian Revolution

The Batavian Revolution was a time of political, social and cultural turmoil at the end of the 18th century that marked the end of the Dutch Republic and saw the proclamation of the Batavian Republic. The period of Dutch history that followed the revolution is referred to as the "Batavian-French era" (1795–1813) even though the time spanned was only 20 years, of which three were under French occupation.

William V, Prince of Orange Prince of Orange, General Stadtholder of the United Provinces

William V, Prince of Orange was the last Stadtholder of the Dutch Republic. He went into exile to London in 1795. He was the reigning Prince of Nassau-Orange until his death in 1806. In that capacity he was succeeded by his son William.

The Nationale Vergadering (National Assembly) subsequently went through two years of discussions. On May 10, 1797, a final draft constitution was formed. The constitution was a compromise between two groups: those who felt that the gewesten (regions) in the Republic should maintain their historic autonomy, and those who felt that the Republic should become a unitary state. [1]

National Assembly of the Batavian Republic parliament in the (Northern) Netherlands (1796-1798)

The National Assembly of the Batavian Republic was the Dutch parliament between 1796 and 1798. The National Assembly was founded in 1796 after general elections. It replaced the States-General of the Batavian Republic. The President of the National Assembly was head of state of the Batavian Republic between 1796 and 1798, during his term in office.

Unitary state state governed as a single unit with a supreme central government

A unitary state is a state governed as a single power in which the central government is ultimately supreme. The central government may create administrative divisions. Such units exercise only the powers that the central government chooses to delegate. Although political power may be delegated through devolution to local governments by statute, the central government may abrogate the acts of devolved governments or curtail their powers. A large majority of the world's states have a unitary system of government.

Results

ChoiceVotes%
For27,95520.45
Against108,76179.55
Total136,716100
Registered voters/turnout400,000
Source: Direct Democracy

Aftermath

The draft constitution had been rejected by almost eighty percent, which meant that a new Constitution would have to be drafted. In the elections for the National Assembly a few months later, the supporters of a unitary state won the majority, but the supporters of a federal state retained the majority in the constitutional commission. Meanwhile, in France, the radicalists led by Pierre Augereau had seized power. With French help, the radical unitarists staged a coup d'état in January 1798. A new constitution, establishing a unitary republic, was quickly adopted in the National Assembly. This draft constitution was approved in a referendum on April 23, 1798.

Pierre Augereau general, Marshal of France

Charles Pierre François Augereau, 1st Duc de Castiglione was a soldier and general and Marshal of France. After serving in the French Revolutionary Wars he earned rapid promotion while fighting against Spain and soon found himself a division commander under Napoleon Bonaparte in Italy. He fought in all of Bonaparte's battles of 1796 with great distinction. During the Napoleonic Wars, Emperor Napoleon entrusted him with important commands. His life ended under a cloud because of his poor timing in switching sides between Napoleon and King Louis XVIII of France. Napoleon wrote of Augereau that he "has plenty of character, courage, firmness, activity; is inured to war; is well liked by the soldiery; is fortunate in his operations."

Coup détat Sudden deposition of a government; illegal and overt seizure of a state by the military or other elites within the state apparatus

A coup d'état, also known as a putsch, a golpe, or simply as a coup, means the overthrow of an existing government; typically, this refers to an illegal, unconstitutional seizure of power by a dictator, the military, or a political faction.

1798 Year

1798 (MDCCXCVIII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and a common year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar, the 1798th year of the Common Era (CE) and Anno Domini (AD) designations, the 798th year of the 2nd millennium, the 98th year of the 18th century, and the 9th year of the 1790s decade. As of the start of 1798, the Gregorian calendar was 11 days ahead of the Julian calendar, which remained in localized use until 1923.

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References

  1. Paul Bordewijk (2003-09-15). "Referendum Europese Grondwet had omineuze voorganger" (in Dutch). de Volkskrant . Retrieved 2008-04-15.