*Iconoclasm: is the social belief in the importance of the destruction of
icons and other images or monuments, most frequently for religious
or political reasons.
*Calvinism: is a part of the protestant theological faith, it also
emphasis the grace of God and centers around the doctrine of
predestination.
*State-general: consists of both the Senate and the House of
Representatives.
Slide 1 (What is the Eighty-year War?):
The revolt of the Netherlands against Spanish rule, also known as the
Eighty Years' War, is traditionally said to have begun in June 1568,
when the Spanish executed Counts Egmont and Horne in Brussels. The
tensions that led to the revolution itself, however, had much earlier
roots, causing the revolt to be viewed as a series of related
insurrections and wars that, taken together, form the Dutch Revolt.
Slide 2 (key people involved):
King Phillip II, of the Spanish empire.
Margaret of Parma is King Phillip’s half-sister, and the Governess of the
Netherlands.
William the Silent, also known as, William the orange, who was the main
leader against the Spanish.
Lamoral count of Egmont, whose execution helped spark the national
uprising that eventually led to the independence of the Netherlands.
Slide 3 (Synopsis):
Phillip II succeeded his father Charles V as king of the Spanish empire in
1556. Philip committed multiple actions that upset the Netherlands, such as,
centralizing the administration, he attempted to gain more power for
himself. He also intended to combat the schism in the church: anyone who
converted to the new Protestant movement was executed.
Slide 4 (Turning point)
In order to stop King Philip, two hundred Dutch noblemen presented the
Governess of the Netherlands, Margaret of Parma, with a petition. They
asked for religious tolerance and suspension of the persecutions. The
Governess startled by their number, but one of the councilors calmed her
down by saying: ’They are only geuzen (beggars)’. The petition proved
fruitless, but the noblemen took the designation “geuzen” as an honorary
title. Their resistance became increasingly overt. (apparent)
Slide 5 (first revolt):
In 1567, The spark of the first revolt came from king Philip's government as
they insisted that the nobles swore an oath of allegiance to the king in which
they essentially surrendered their usual liberties. While many of the nobles
accepted the change, William of Orange and a few others refused.
The nobles soon lost control as Calvinist preachers urged their listeners to
destroy the numerous religious images found in the churches of the Low
Countries. This iconoclasm of the summer of 1566 was widespread, hitting
Antwerp, Ghent, Amsterdam, Leiden, and Utrecht a few days later (August).
A terrified Margaret gave in to the constant pressure from the Beggars and
agreed to an "Accord" permitting Protestant worship in the parts of the Low
Countries where it was being practiced. Unfortunately, the Compromise of
the Nobility soon collapsed, leaving no one really in control. The iconoclasm
continued, and Margaret had no choice but to raise an army to bring order
to the provinces.
Slide 6 (the second revolt):
 By 1569, it seemed that revolt in the Netherlands had been stifled and
had little chance of reigniting. William of Orange and his supporters
have planned for an eventual invasion, but, perhaps because of the
harshness of Phillips's regime, he found few willing to rise up in the
Netherlands. Help had to come from the outside. France was one
obvious source of aid; the other was the English navy. His plans for an
invasion in 1572 included a thrust from the south by a French army
with a naval assault from England by the unruly Sea Beggars.
Coordination failed, and the Sea Beggars, who had been expelled from
their English bases, moved too soon. They attacked Brill (Den Briel) on
1 April 1572, taking the port city without difficulty and Flushing was
also in Beggar hands by the end of April. Over the next few months,
the Beggars, usually aided by defectors in the towns, were able to take
Gouda, Dordrecht Haarlem, Leiden, and Rotterdam by July 25th.
 William of Orange wasted no time in taking advantage of Spanish
indecisiveness by getting the support of the States of Holland and
Zeeland. While not all of Holland and Zeeland could accept William's
position (Amsterdam remained loyal to Philip), the two provinces
united in the summer of 1575 with William of Orange as their leader.
Slide 7 (Spain’s Response):
The Spanish successfully retook rebel cities such as Haarlem and Brill in
1573. The rebels were only able to hold out by flooding large areas in
advance of the Spanish army. The floods kept the Spanish at bay, foiling
their siege of Leiden in 1574.
By this point Spain’s cost of war on the Netherlands was enormous. It has
been estimated that the war cost Spain more than the combined income
from Castile and Spain's New World possessions. Due to lack of pay, the
Spanish army mutinied several times, abandoning their battalions and
leaving them open to rebel forces. Philip was on the brink of bankruptcy.
Slide 8 (Strategizing):
 The division between the southern largely Catholic provinces and the
independent-minded Calvinist provinces of the north tore the StatesGeneral apart. In January 1579 the northern provinces (Holland,
Zeeland, Utrecht, Friesland, Gelderland, and Ommelanden) concluded
the Union of Utrecht, effectively establishing the United Provinces.
The southern provinces of Hainault and Artois formed the Union of
Arras, which settled itself to the rule of Philip II on April 6th, 1579. The
provinces of the Union of Arras, together with the provinces already
under Spanish control (Namur, Limburg, and Luxembourg), formed the
basis for continued Spanish rule.
 Continuing their move toward independence, the provinces of the
Union of Utrecht deposed Philip II as sovereign of the Netherlands in
the Act of Abjuration on (26 July 1581). Who should replace him
became the problem that the States-General had to solve. In the end
they briefly turned to François de Valois (1556–1584), duke of Anjou, a
French catholic prince. He was never popular neither did he receive
the dignities he expected, so he returned to France in the summer of
1583. When a royalist assassinated William of Orange in Delft on July
10th, 1584, the United Provinces were left without a strong leader.
Slide 9 (Impact of the Revolt):
 The eventual outcome of the revolt was decided for the most part by
1609, when the combatants agreed to the Twelve Years' Truce, but
the war between the United Provinces of the Netherlands (Dutch
Republic) and the Kingdom of Spain did not legitimately end until both
parties agreed to the Peace of Münster, which was part of the Peace
of Westphalia, in 1648.
 By the time the Twelve Years Truce finally expired in 1621, Philip II had
died, and pro-war factions on both sides called for renewed hostilities.
But by then neither side expected to triumph over the other. Both
sides were involved in the Thirty Years' War, and the Spanish in
particular found it impossible to devote a lot of attention to warfare in
the Netherlands. The best course of action was to sue for peace.
Negotiations were drawn out for several years, with the two
combatants only slowly making concessions. Finally, on 30 January
1648, the Peace of Münster (later incorporated into the Peace of
Westphalia of October 1648) ended the war between Spain and the
United Provinces, making permanent the division of the Low Countries
and guaranteeing the independence of the Dutch Republic.