King/Grand Duke Willem I (1772-1843) and Queen Wilhelmina (1774-1834)

[Marengo]

King Willem II (1772-1843), Queen Wilhelmine (1774-1834) and descendants

This thread is about King Willem I Frederik of the Netherlands and Duke of Luxemburg 16 Mar 1815, Grand Duke of Luxemburg 9 Jun 1815 (The Hague 24 Aug 1772-Berlin 12 Dec 1843) and Queen Friederike Luise Wilhelmine of The Netherlands, born Princess ss of Prussia (Potsdam 18 Nov 1774-The Hague 12 Oct 1837)

Parents Willem: Prince Willem V of Orange, Stadholder of Holland, Zeeland etc. and Princess Wilhelmine of Orange, nee Princess of Prussia.

Parents Wilhelmina: King Friedrich-Wilhelm II of Prussia and Queen Friederike of Prussia, nee Landgravine of Hesse-Darmstadt.

Children Willem and Wilhelmina: King Willem II, Prince Frederik, Princess Pauline of The Netherlands and Princess Marianne of Prussia.

Siblings Willem I: Duchess Louise of Brunswick and Prince Frederik of The Netherlands

Siblings Wilhelmina: Princess Friederike of Great-Britain & Hannover, Duchess of York, King Friedrich-Wilhelm III of Prussia, Princess Christine and Prince Ludwig of
Prussia, Kuerfuerstin Auguste of Hesse-Kassel, Princes Karl and Friedrich of Prussia

Second wife Willem I: Countess Henriette of Nassau, nee Countess d'Oultremont de Wegimont

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Biography of King Willem I (from wikipedia):

King William I's parents were the last stadtholder William V of Orange and his wife Wilhelmina of Prussia. Until 1813, William was known as Prince William VI of Orange. In 1791, William married his first cousin (Frederica Louisa) Wilhelmina, born in Potsdam. She was the daughter of King Frederick William II of Prussia. After Wilhelmina died in 1837, William was remarried to Countess Henriette d'Oultremont de Wegimont, in 1841 in Berlin. Two years later, William died there.
William V was hereditary stadtholder when the Republic of the Seven United Provinces was invaded by the French Revolutionary armies. He fled with his son to England. Unlike his father--who gave his people permission to collaborate with the French--William was a strong personality and he tried to regain the Republic.
In 1799, William landed in the current North Holland. The local Dutch population was not pleased with the arrival of the prince. Some local Orangists were even executed. After several minor battles he was forced to leave the country again. Napoleon Bonaparte gave him some small German principalities as indemnities for the lost territories. These principalities were confiscated when Napoleon invaded Germany (1806) and William supported his Prussian relatives. He succeeded his father as prince of Orange later that year, after William V's death.

Read more about King Willem I in this wikipedia article

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From Colombia encyclopedia (no copyrights required):

William I, king of the Netherlands 1772–1843, first king of the Netherlands and grand duke of Luxembourg (1815–40), son of Prince William V of Orange, last stadtholder of the Netherlands. He commanded (1793–95) the Dutch army in the French Revolutionary Wars, and after the French occupation of the Netherlands he entered the Prussian and later the Austrian service. He returned to the Netherlands in 1813, and the Congress of Vienna gave him (1815) the title king of the Netherlands. His kingdom comprised present Belgium as well as the Netherlands, and he was awarded the grand duchy of Luxembourg in compensation for his family holdings in Germany, which he ceded to Prussia. William soon alienated his Belgian subjects by attempting to make Dutch the official language, by granting disproportionate influence to the northern provinces, and by encroaching on the freedom of the Roman Catholic Church. Political unrest in Belgium led to the revolution of 1830, which he stubbornly sought to suppress despite the intervention of England and France (see London Conference). Belgium won its independence, but final recognition by William came only in 1839. When his Dutch subjects forced him to liberalize the constitution in 1840, he abdicated in favor of his son William II. Through his rule as an enlightened despot, William fostered the development of Dutch agriculture, commerce, and industry.

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Some paintings of Queen Wilhelmina Frederika (Mimi). Not much is known about her, not by me anyway but maybe others can inform us.

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As posted by Lucien on the Alexander Palace Forums:

After Queen Wilhelmina,Mimi,died,Willem wished the Court to remain just as it was when she was still alive.This included tea-time with the Ladies at the Court.To avoid any official aura he walked or rode out without a hat,accompanied by one or several of the Ladies-in-Waiting.

He was especially fond of two of these Ladies,Countess Julie von der Goltz and
Countess Henriëtte d'Oultremont.
Paying attention to the one didn't keep him from visiting the other and at times he would hear;"Neither Henriette must leave,or I".

Then,in may 1839 he proposed to Henriëtte,leaving all in the Family,except Princess Marianne and her husband in shock.Countess Julie was in fits of anger and left the Palace as quick as she could.

The proposal coincided with the visit of HIH The Grandduke Alexander,Heir of Russia,to his Aunt Anna Paulovna.He took up residence at the Palace of the Crown Princely Couple,there were Gala's galore until the news of the proposal.The Prince of Orange,once more,showed his coniving character and started a rumour and gossip and anti King campaign.His wife alongside.It let to a schism in the Family.Cause?Greed by the PoO and his wife.He already had so many debts that he grapped whatever opportunity to get hold of some money.A marriage of his father would have left him "dry"for another while,he already had had his hand in the disappearance of most of his wifes juwelry while they still lived in Brussels,the hero of Waterloo,was in fact nothing more,then an highly overrated spoilt brat.And married to one.

The annual visits by the RF to the Capital now saw two visits,that of the PoO and Anna and all other Family members,and that of the beloved King and his daughter Princess Marianne.

And there are some simularities in the press then,and now,or at least in the late fifties.Dutch papers didn't mention the schism in the RF,had no idea,it was the Times that published the story first on september 10th 1839.Fall of 1840,on october 7th,King Willem I Abdicated in the what is now known as the Abdication Hall at Het Loo Palace.He married Henriëtte d'Oultremont on february 17th in Berlin,at the Palace of his daughter Princess Marianne and his son-in-law Prince Albrecht of Prussia.

Willem Frederik,Count of Nassau and Henriette,Countess of Nassau lived in Berlin until the Kings death in 1843.

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The wedding of Willem and Wilhelmina Frederika:


It was all arranged by their family but it was a very fortunate match. Willem spontaniously exclaimed ´that isn´t what I expected´ when he saw his future wife for the first time, because she was a pretty girl. Apart from pretty she also was sensible, encouraging etc and knew how to deal with her husband.

Painting of Willem I:

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After the excile the King, still Prince Willem VI of Orange set the first steps in his native land on the same spot as where he left it: the beach of Scheveningen, near The Hague in 1813:

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Paintings of a young Willem I

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King Willem I as a child with his mother and siblings Louise and Frederik:

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King Willem I, Queen Wilhelmina Frederika and their family around 1830:

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The European territory of King Willem I, untill the Belgian seperation:



Note that the map is free of copyrights and taken from the website of the ministery of education.

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Painting of the enthronement of Willem I:

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A newspaper drawing of King WIllem I and Queen Mimi in their carriage on their way to the theater in The Hague.

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The King entered Amsterdam under cheers and over Kings square in 1814:




The triumvirate exclaiming the monarchy in 1813:





Google Image resultaat voor http://beeldbank.schooltv.nl/mmbase/images?14698

Koning Willem I

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King Willem I and his two sons, Willem (II) and Frederik.



Last portrait of the (ex-)King, made a few days before his death:

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For those who want more information, in Dutch:

A clip from school tv about King Willem I can be found here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JXw9YPM85Q8

A rather informative site about King Willem I and Queen Mimi can be found here.

[Marengo]

King Willem I had this lovely pavilion built for his wife Mimi in 1836. She had difficulties sleeping and the doctors thought that a pavillion so close to the see would help her.

Another mark of Willem I in Scheveningen. This ´needle´ was placed near the spot where Willem I first landed in 1813. The text says ´God saved The Netherlands´

This monument is built on Plein 1813 (Square 1813) to mark the return of the House of Orange to power. King Willem I can be seen in the front.

[Marengo]

I just read that the Belgian towns had the following anti-Willem I remark written on their walls:

WWWWWWWWWWWW

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Which stands for: Wij willen Willem weg, wilde Willem wijzer worden , wij willen Willem weer

Free translation: we want Willem gone, if Willem became wiser we would want him back again. He didn´t become wiser in Belgian eyes so decided to split up, much to the relief of Northern protestants and Amsterdam merchants.

[lucien]

Monument in honour of King Willem I in The Hague.

http://www.royaltyguide.nl/images-co...ag/wllem1a.JPG

Courtesy Mardam's wonderfull site.

[Royal historian]

i wonder why queen wilhelmina frederika like to wear thats sort of headress because it look like a widow peak style and IMO if a woman desire to wear a widow peak style hat while her husband was still alive thats mean she desire her husband to died

[lucien]

Originally Posted by Royal historian

i wonder why queen wilhelmina frederika like to wear thats sort of headress because it look like a widow peak style and IMO if a woman desire to wear a widow peak style hat while her husband was still alive thats mean she desire her husband to died

It was the fashion at the time.