Following the proclamation of the Batavian Republic, the States General of the Netherlands disbanded itself in January 1796 and called for elections for the National Assembly. Wealthy adult men who had sworn an oath to popular sovereignty were allowed to vote. The First National Assembly met on 1 March 1796 in the ballroom of former stadtholderWilliam V, which would remain the seat of parliament until 1992.[1] The President of the National Assembly was head of state of the Batavian Republic between 1796 and 1798, during his term in office (usually just half a month).
The assembly was tasked with drafting a constitution, which would be put to a referendum. Members were divided about the extent of suffrage as well as between those supporting a federal state, with most power vested in regional governments, and those supporting a unitary state, with most power vested in the national government. Autonomy of provinces had been important in the preceding Dutch Republic, but some wanted to copy the revolutionary unitary government of the French First Republic. The constitution that was drafted contained many compromises. It was rejected in the August 1797 referendum.[1]
The French government, dissatisfied with the result and prolonged discussions, ordered French troops in the Batavian Republic to support a coup d'état by the supporters of a unitary state. On 22 January 1798, members of the Second National Assembly in favour of a unitary state were escorted to the chamber by the military, while those opposing it were imprisoned. The rump assembly abolished provincial autonomy, and it appointed the five-member executive Uitvoerend Bewind.[1]Pieter Vreede and General Herman Willem Daendels played an important role in this coup. The rump assembly drafted the Constitution for the Batavian People, which was adopted by an overwhelming majority in an April 1798 referendum. Only those who had sworn allegiance to the coup were allowed to vote.[1] The rump assembly was itself dissolved after a second coup on 12 June 1798, again supported by Daendels.
A new parliament under the name Representative Body (Dutch: Vertegenwoordigend Lichaam) came into being in May 1798 after elections held under a new constitution. Under that new constitution, the head of state of the Batavian Republic was a member of the Uitvoerend Bewind. Following the June 1798 coup, the name changed to Intermediary Legislative Body (Dutch: Intermediair Wetgevend Lichaam), but it was changed back to Representative Body a month later. In 1801 it was replaced with a new 35-member parliament named the Legislative Body (Dutch: Wetgevend Lichaam).
Joan Bernard Auffmorth 25 December 1797 – 8 January 1798
Joannes Franciscus Rudolphus van Hooff 8 January 1798 – 19 January 1798
Johannes Henricus Midderigh 19 January 1798 – 25 January 1798
References
1 2 3 4 Slotboom, Ruud; Verkuil, Dik (2010). De Nederlandse politiek in een notendop[Dutch politics in a nutshell] (in Dutch). Amsterdam: Uitgeverij Bert Bakker. pp.11–12. ISBN978-90-351-3561-1.
Further reading
Joris Oddens (19 October 2012), Pioniers in schaduwbeeld: Het eerste parlement van Nederland 1796-1798 (in Dutch), hdl:11245/1.375694, WikidataQ131919155
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