Five Brothers and a War

History—1800 to 1900 AD

affiliations would naturally have led him to bring Holland within the sphere of the German Empire, at the expense of her independence, both national and economic", according to one contemporary publication. The birth of Juliana, on April 30, 1909, was met with great relief after eight years of childless marriage.Wilhelmina suffered two further miscarriages on 23 January and 20 October 1912. Thus, the Dutch crown came very close to shifting to Germany, which would have caused a radically different set of circumstances with the rise of Hitler, and the subsequent rise and fall of the so-called Third Reich. The issue of the “German-ness” of the Dutch royal family is one that has been the subject of very heated debate within Holland. The marriage of Willem III to two German women was followed by the marriage of Koningin Wilhelmina to a German, which in turn was followed by Prinses Juliana who also married a German, Bernhard, and then Juliana’s oldest daughter, Prinses Beatrix married another German, Claus von Amsberg. Thus, a king, and three queens in a row, covering reigns totaling more than 150 years, all had German consorts. Koning Willem I married a Prussian/German, then a Belgian, an Willem II married a Russian woman. The current King, Willem-Alexander, married an Argentinian.

The marriage of Wilhelmina to Henrik was not a happy one. Hendrik was unhappy with his lot in life, having to walk behind his wife, and having no power and no responsibilities. Wilhelmina was always certain that this never changed, and that none of her power ever transferred. Of course, the number of miscarriages and the stillbirth contributed to the stress of the couple. It is reported that Hendrik had several illegitimate children.

holland

Koningin Wilhelmina and Prins Henry at their wedding.

Five Brothers and a War

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