Editing William I of the Netherlands (section)

==King of the Netherlands==
[[File:SA 1770-Koning Willem I ten voeten uit.jpg|thumb|upright|Portrait of William I (1816)]]

Feeling threatened by Napoleon, who had escaped from [[Elba]], William proclaimed the Netherlands a kingdom on 16 March 1815 at the urging of the powers gathered at the [[Congress of Vienna]]. His son, the future king [[William II of the Netherlands|William II]], fought as a commander at the [[Battle of Waterloo]]. After Napoleon had been sent into exile, William adopted a new constitution which included many features of its  predecessor, including the near-autocratic powers vested in the crown. He was formally confirmed as hereditary ruler of what was known as the [[United Kingdom of the Netherlands]] at the Congress of Vienna.

===Principal changes===
The [[States General of the Netherlands|States General]] was divided into two chambers. The ''Eerste Kamer'' (First Chamber or Senate or House of Lords) was appointed by the king. The ''Tweede Kamer'' (Second Chamber or House of Representatives or House of Commons) was elected by the Provincial States, which were in turn chosen by [[census suffrage]]. The 110 seats were divided equally between the north and the south, although the population of the north (2 million) was significantly less than that of the south (3.5 million). The States General's primary function was to approve the king's laws and decrees. The [[Constitution of the Netherlands|constitution]] contained many present-day Dutch political institutions; however, their functions and composition have changed greatly over the years.

The constitution was accepted in the north, but not in the south. The under-representation of the south was one of the causes of the Belgian Revolution. Referendum turnout was low, in the southern provinces, but William interpreted all abstentions to be ''yes'' votes. He prepared a lavish inauguration for himself in [[Brussels]], where he gave the people copper coins (leading to his first nickname, ''the Copper King'').
[[File:De plechtige installatie van de Universiteit van Gent door de prins van Oranje in de troonzaal van het stadhuis op 9 oktober 1817. Rijksmuseum SK-A-4088.jpeg|thumb|Establishment of the [[State University of Ghent]] in 1817]]
The spearhead of King William's policies was economic progress. As he founded many trade institutions, his second nickname was ''the King-Merchant''. In 1822, he founded the [[Société Générale de Belgique|Algemeene Nederlandsche Maatschappij ter Begunstiging van de Volksvlijt]], which would become one of the most important institutions of Belgium after its independence. Industry flourished, especially in the South. In 1817, he also founded three universities in the southern provinces, such as a new [[Catholic University of Leuven (1834–1968)|University of Leuven]], the [[University of Ghent]] and the [[University of Liège]]. The northern provinces, meanwhile, were the centre of trade. This, in combination with the colonies ([[Dutch East Indies]], [[Surinam (Dutch colony)|Surinam]], [[Curaçao and Dependencies]], and the [[Dutch Gold Coast]]) created great wealth for the kingdom. However, the money flowed into the hands of Dutch directors. Only a few Belgians managed to profit from the economic growth. Feelings of economic inequity were another cause of the Belgian uprising.

William was also determined to create a unified people, even though the north and the south had drifted far apart culturally and economically since the south was reconquered by Spain after the [[Act of Abjuration]] of 1581. The north was commercial, Protestant and entirely Dutch-speaking; the south was industrial, [[Roman Catholic]] and divided between Dutch and French-speakers.

Officially, a [[separation of church and state]] existed in the kingdom. However, William himself was a strong supporter of the [[Dutch Reformed Church|Reformed Church]]. This led to resentment among the people in the mostly Catholic south. William had also devised controversial language and school policies. Dutch was imposed as the official language in (the Dutch-speaking region of) [[Flanders]]; this angered French-speaking aristocrats and industrial workers. Schools throughout the kingdom were required to instruct students in the Reformed faith and the Dutch language. Many in the south feared that the king sought to extinguish Catholicism and the French language.

===Revolt of the Southern Provinces===
{{Main|Belgian Revolution}}
[[File:SA 7521-Portret van Willem I (1772-1843). Koning der Nederlanden.jpg|thumb|upright|Portrait of William I (1833)]]

In August 1830 [[Daniel Auber]]'s opera ''[[La muette de Portici]]'', about the [[Neapolitan Republic (1647–1648)|repression of Neapolitans]], was staged in Brussels. Performances of this opera seemed to crystallize a sense of nationalism and "Hollandophobia" in Brussels, and spread to the rest of the south. Rioting ensued, chiefly aimed at the kingdom's unpopular justice minister, [[Cornelis Felix van Maanen]], who lived in Brussels. An infuriated William responded by sending troops to repress the riots. However, the riots had spread to other southern cities. The riots quickly became popular uprisings. An independent state of [[Belgium]] emerged out of the 1830 Revolution.

The next year, William sent his sons [[William II of the Netherlands|William]], the Prince of Orange,{{efn|This had become a courtesy title for the Dutch crown prince under the new kingdom.}} and Prince [[Prince Frederick of the Netherlands|Frederick]] to invade the new state. Although initially victorious in this [[Ten Days' Campaign]], the [[Royal Netherlands Army]] was forced to retreat after the threat of French [[invasion|intervention]]. Some support for the [[Orangism (Belgium)|Orange]] dynasty (chiefly among the [[Flemish people|Flemish]]) persisted for years, but the Dutch never regained control over Belgium. William nevertheless continued the war for eight years. His economic successes became overshadowed by a perceived mismanagement of the war effort. High costs of the war came to burden the Dutch economy, fueling public resentment. In 1839, William was forced to end the war. The United Kingdom of the Netherlands was dissolved by the [[Treaty of London (1839)]] and the northern part continued as the [[Kingdom of the Netherlands]]. It was not renamed, however, as the "United-" prefix had never been part of its official name, but rather was retrospectively added by historians for descriptive purposes.

===Constitutional changes and abdication in later life===
[[File:Willem I Apeldoorn.jpg|thumb|upright|Statue of Willem I of the Netherlands by Pieter Puype (1913) in [[Apeldoorn]]]]

Constitutional changes were initiated in 1840 because the terms which involved the United Kingdom of the Netherlands had to be removed.{{huh|date=July 2020}} These constitutional changes also included the introduction of judicial [[Individual ministerial responsibility|ministerial responsibility]]. Although the policies remained uncontrolled by parliament, the prerogative was controllable now. The very conservative William could not live with these constitutional changes. This, the disappointment about the loss of Belgium, and his intention to marry [[Henrietta d'Oultremont]] (paradoxically both "Belgian" and [[Roman Catholicism|Roman Catholic]]) made him wish to [[Abdication|abdicate]]. He fulfilled this intent on 7 October 1840 and his eldest son acceded to the throne as King [[William II of the Netherlands|William II]]. William I died in 1843 in [[Berlin]] at the age of 71.