The history of Dordrecht part 2

The history of Holland and the story of its ancient Capital and Residence Dordrecht

Part 2

From the year 1222 to 1299

Coat of arms of the County of Holland	Coat of arms of Dordrecht

Florence IV 1210-1234, Count of Holland and West-Frisia 1222-1234

Florence IV, being a minor, succeeded William I under the guardianship of his maternal uncle, Gerard III of Guelders. He maintained in later life close relations of friendship with Gerard and supported him in his quarrel with the bishop of Utrecht (1224-1226), Otto II of Lippe.

Florence IV Count of Holland, born 24 June 1210, Haarlem, died 19 July 1234, Rhijnsburg, married before 06 December 1224 with Mahaut (Maud or Mathilde) of Brabant, born about 1200, Brabant Belgium, died 21 December 1267, buried Loosduinen, children :

1. Aleida, born 1226, 's-Gravenzande, died 9 April 1283, Valenciennes Nord France
2. William, born 1227, 's-Gravenzande, died 28 January 1256, Hoogwoud
3. Florence "the Guardian", born c. 1228, 's-Gravenzande, died 24 March 1258, buried Abbey church Middelburg
4. Margarethha, born c. 1230, 's-Gravenzande, died 26 March 1277
5. Machteld, born c.1232, 's-Gravenzande

1222 In February Count William I died and his son Florence IV, being a minor, succeeded William I as Count of Holland and West-Frisia (Zeeland) under the guardianship of Count Baldwin of Bentheim (1190-1248) and his maternal uncle, Gerard III of Guelders (1185-1229).

1227 Florence IV was knighted aged 17 years. He sometimes made the wrong decisions. He maintained a close relations of friendship with his guardian Gerard III of Guelders and supported him in his quarrel with the bishop of Utrecht about the overlord-ship of Salland (1224-1226). the government of his County did not have his highest priority, he joined the battle of Are in 1227, outside his County and joined the crusade against the "Stedingers" near Bremen in 1234.

1227 The battle of Are

Groningen, Overijssel and Drenthe were since the middle of the 11th century a fief of the Bishopric of Utrecht given by the Holy Roman Emperor. The inhabitants of Drenthe were unhappy with the oppression of the Bishop of Utrecht Otto II of Lippe (1216-1227).

The local lords of the Drenths city of Coevorden, though nominally under the authority of the Bishop, began to oppose him. Bisshop Otto II traveled to this area to call the rebellious province of Drenthe to order, and he had called up many of his warlords to support him together with a couple of war bands supplied by the Bishops of Munster and Cologne, further he was aided by his former enemy, Count Florence IV.

On July 28, 1227, a large group of rebellious Drenths led by Rudolph of Coevorden met on a field near the present-day village of Ane (a village close to Hardenberg) The Drenths knew that they did not stand a chance if they faced this army in the field, and they managed to lure the Bishopric army into an area with soft and swampy ground called the ‘’Mommenriete’’. The horses of the Bishop’s army sank into the ground, and the knights with their heavy armor were unable to fight effectively. The Drenths rebel army was light, and was used to fighting on this kind of ground. The Drenthe rebels managed to beat the Bishop’s forces and killed Bishop Otto II, and many of his supporting warlords, Florence IV escaped back to Holland but his guardian, Count Baldwin of Bentheim was wounded and captured but shortly after released. A few years later Bishop Wilbrand of Oldenburg, roused the Frisian people into supporting him against the rebellious Drenths which led to the Frisian-Drentic War in 1231-1233.

1229 The only important act of Florence IV in Holland was that he started building a new residence (Binnenhof) for the Counts of Holland in The Hague, after his dead his son Count William II finished the living area and started building the Hall of fame "Ridderzaal" which was finally finished by his grandson Florence V in the 1290s.

1234 Crusade against the Stedingers

Who were the Stedingers : In the year 1106, a few Frisians made a long journey from the mouth of the Rhine to Bremen. They wanted to talk to the Archbishop of Bremen about taking over settling land on the Weser River, under certain conditions. They made an agreement whereby the Archbishop gave the farmers and their descendants the swampy regions south of the Hunte on both sides of the Weser for cultivation. This land was to pass from father to son in free hereditary possession. Every settler would pay a yearly tax of one pfennig, and in addition would pay the 11th sheaf of all fruits of the field and a 10th of livestock. In the administration of their lands and in secular jurisdiction the farmers and their descendants were free. They became known as Stedingers, and turned the swamps into polders. To attract settlers, the new settlers were given many rights and low taxes. Stedingen developed into a rich farmer republic in the early 13th century.

The archbishop of Bremen Gerhard/Gerhard II of Lippe (1190-1258) and Maurice (1168-1211), Count of Oldenburg tried to curtail the rights of the farmers, which led to a revolt in 1204. Archbishop Gerhard II excommunicated the farmers in 1228 and convinced the Pope to declare a 'crusade' against the Stedingers in 1232. An army of crusaders was initially repelled by the Stedingers in 1233. The archbishop managed to defeat the Stedingers in the Battle of Altenesch in 1234 with a large army of crusaders, including Florence IV of Holland.

This was a rare crusade, with support of the Roman Catholic church, because the Stedingers were not heathens nor heretics, only because they became wealthy and paid less taxes than the surrounding communities the Stedingers were slaughtered. Nearly 5 000 Stedinger bodies covered the blood soaked earth of their land, where once the waters of the Weser had flowed. In the Saxon Chronicles it is stated objectively and realistically: "ALDUS NAMEN DE STEDINGE EREN ENDE" )Thus the Stedingers met their end).

After his return from the crusade against the Stedingers Florence IV took part on a tournament in July at Corby in Picardy, France with many other knights and was intentionally stabbed to dead by Philips Hurepel (1200-1234), Count of Clermont, son of King Philips II of France (1165-1223) . It is said that Philips acted because Florence flirted with his wife Mathildis II of Boulogne (1202-1259), Florence was only 24 years of age. Philips of Hurepel himself was deadly wounded during the same tournament the next day.

Florence was known as a brave knight who easily followed the politics of the Roman Catholic Church and as such he made sometimes wrong decisions. The following cities received city rights by Count Florence IV, 1223 West-Capelle and Domburg (Zeeland).

Florence was murdered in 1234 at a tournament at Corbie in Picardy by the Count of Clermont. Another long minority followed his death, during which his brother Otto III of Holland, Bishop of Utrecht (1233-1249), acted as guardian to his nephew William II.

Count William II, 1228-1256, Count of Holland and West-Frisia 1235-1256, King of Germany 1247-1256

William II of Holland was born February 1228, William was only seven years old on the dead of his father. His uncles William and Otto III of Holland (bishop of Utrecht) were his guardians until 1239., was Count of Holland and West-Frisia (Zeeland) (1235-1256).

William II. became a man of mark as King of Germany in 1247 and was destined to become Holy Roman Emperor but was murdered in 1256 shortly before his corronatian.

William married January 1252 Elizabeth (?-1266) of Brunswick, oldest daughter of Duke Otto I (1204-1252) of Brunswick-Lüneburg, children :

1. Florence V,  born June 24,1256 The Hague, murdered June 27,1296 near Leiden

1235 William II (1222-1256) was only a minor when his father died. During his reign, the residence of Holland was finally placed at The Hague, because the loss of Castle "Merwe" at Dordrecht and because Dordrecht was since 1203 a fief of Brabant and so continued until the year 1283, when John I, Duke of Brabant, released the Count of Holland from his fealty.

King of Germany

1247 Pope Innocent IV, having deposed the emperor Frederick II in 1247, after several princes had refused to allow themselves to be nominated in the place of the Hohenstaufen, caused the young William II Count of Holland to be elected king of the Romans with the help of Henry II, Duke of Brabant and the archbishop of Cologne, he was elected in 1247 as king of Germany after Emperor Frederick II was excommunicated. After a siege of five months, he took Aachen in 1247 from Frederick's followers. Many of the German princes recognized his claim only after his marriage to Elizabeth (?-1266) of Brunswick, oldest daughter of Duke Otto I (1204-1252) of Brunswick-Lüneburg.

Acts as King of Germany (1247-1256)

The War of the Succession of Flanders and Hainaut (1246-1253) was a series of feudal conflicts between the children of Margaret II (Black Margaret) (1202-1280), Countess of Flanders (1244-1280). They concerned the succession to the two Counties, Flanders as a fief of Louis IX (1214-1270), King of France (1226-1270), Hainaut as a fief of William II as King of Germany.

Introduction to the conflicts : Jeanne, Countess of Flanders (1199–1244) was as heiress Countess of Flanders and Hainaut because she was the eldest daughter of Baldwin IX (1172-1205) Count of Flanders (1195-1205) and as Baldwin VI Count of Hainaut. Jeanne's younger sister Margaret was first married to Bouchard IV (1188-1244) Count of Avesnes (1212-1244) but the marriage was broken in 1221 per orders of Joanna. By Bouchard, however, she had already three children, including John I of Avesnes. In 1223 Margaret remarried with William II (1196-1231) Count of Dampierre (1216-1231), who gave three offspring, including William III and Guy of Dampiere (1226-1304) who became later Count of Flanders, Gewijde van Dampierre (1251-1304). The rights to Margaret's inheritance between the sons of Avesnes and those of Dampierre were the cause of the conflicts.

In 1244, the Counties of Flanders and Hainaut were claimed by Margaret's sons, the half-brothers John I (1218-1257) Count of Avesnes (1246-1257) and William III (1224-1251) Count of Dampierre (1247-1251). In 1246 Louis IX (1214-1270) king of France (1226-1270), acting as an arbitrator, gave the right to inherit Flanders to the Dampierre children, and the rights to Hainaut to the Avesnes children.

This would seem to have settled the matter, but in 1253 problems arose again. The eldest son, John I (1218-1257) of Avesnes, who was uneasy about his rights, convinced William II, the German king recognized by the pro-papal forces, to seize Hainaut and the parts of Flanders which were within the bounds of the empire. William II was theoretically, as king overlord for these territories, and also John's brother-in-law. A civil war followed, which ended when the Avesnes forces defeated and imprisoned the Dampierres at the Battle of Walcheren. William II, as king of Germany, interfered and brought the war to a successful conclusion.

Acts as Count of Holland and West-Frisia

1248 William II started building the Hall of Casle (Ridderzaal) in The Hague, this was the beginning of the city of The Hague.

1253 In 1253 a Latin school was erected in Dordrecht (present Johan the Witt gymnasium), being the oldest high school of The Netherlands. From 1600 to 1615 Gerardus Vossius, a close friend of Hugo Grotius (Hugo de Groot), was rector of the Latin school.

William fought with Flanders for control of West-Frisia (Zeeland). In July 1253, he defeated the Flemish army at Westkapelle, and a year later a cease-fire followed. From 1254, he fought a number of wars against the Frisians.

1256 William II was on the point of proceeding to Rome to be crowned emperor of the Holy Roman Empire but from 1254 he had to fight a number of wars against the Frisians. In a battle against the Frisians near Hoogwoud on January 28, 1256, his horse fell through the ice, and William was killed.

Like so many of his predecessors he left his inheritance to a child, Florence V, who was two years old on his fathers death. His body was recovered 26 years later by his son Florence V of Holland, the remains of William II were buried in the Abbey church of Middelburg in 1282.

William II giving grants and previleges

Many privileges and grants were given to the cities in Holland and West-Frisia (Zeeland). The following cities received city rights by Count William II, 1237 Oostburg (Zeeland), 1242 int Anna ter Muiden (Zeeland), 1245 Haarlem (Holland), 1246 Delft and 's-Gravensande (Holland), 1248 Winkel (Holland), 1248 Zierikzee (Zeeland) and 1254 Alkmaar (Kennemerland).

Government of the cities of Holland and West-Frisia (Zeeland)

The towns of Holland were not, as in other nations, merely portions of the state, but the state itself was rather an aggregate of towns, each of which formed a commonwealth within itself, providing for its own defense, governed by its own laws, holding separate Courts of justice, and administering its own finances, the legislative sovereignty of the whole nation being vested in the towns, forming in their collective capacity the assembly of the states.

The government of every town was administered by a senate (Wethouderschap), formed of two, three, or four burgomasters, and a certain number of sheriffs, (Schepenen), generally seven, only Dordrecht had from old days only one burgomaster. The duties of the senate were, to provide for the public safety by keeping the city walls and fortifications in repair, to call out and muster the burgher guards in case of invasion or civil tumult, to administer the finances, to provide for the expenses of the town by levying excises on different articles of consumption, and to affix the portion of County taxes to be paid by each individual.

To the burgomasters was committed the care of the police and the ammunition, of the public peace, and of cleansing and victualling the town. The senate generally appointed two treasurers to receive and disburse the city funds under their inspection, and an advocate, or Pensionary, whose office was to keep the charters and records, and to advise them upon points of law. The Count had a representative in each town, in the person of the Schout, an officer whom he himself appointed, sometimes out of a triple number named by the senate. It was the business of the Schout besides watching over the interests of the Count, to seize on all suspected persons and bring them to trial before the "Vierschaar" or judicial Court of the town.

This Court was composed of the sheriffs, and had jurisdiction over all civil causes, and over minor offences, except in some towns, such as Leyden and Dordrecht, where the power of trying capital crimes was specially given to them in the charters granted by the Counts, the Schout was also bound to see the judgments of the Vierschaar carried into execution.

Besides the senate there was, in every town, a council of the citizens, called the Great Council, (Vroedschap), which was summoned in early times when any matter of special importance was to be decided upon, but afterwards their functions, in many of the towns, became restricted to the nomination of the burgomasters and sheriffs for the senate.

The Government in Dordrecht as Capital of Holland

In Dordrecht, the most confined and aristocratic of the municipal governments of Holland # , the great council consisted of forty members, whose office was for life, and who filled up the vacancies as they occurred, by election among themselves. The senate of Dordrecht was composed of one burgomaster, whose office was annual, nine sheriffs, and five councilors (raden), four sheriffs and three councilors went out of office one year, five sheriffs and two councilors the next, and so on alternately, their places were filled up by the Count, or the Schout on his behalf, out of a double number nominated by the council of forty.

The only representatives of the people in the government were the so-named " eight good men" (goede luyden van achte) and their functions were limited to choosing the burgomaster in conjunction with those senators whose term of office had expired, if they were unanimous, their votes reckoned for twelve, but the burgomaster chosen must always be one of the ex-senators.

# The reason that Dordrecht had a aristocratic government is proof again that the city was already grown as a real city for centuries.

Merchants, Traders and Guilds

The inhabitants of the towns being generally merchants and traders, were divided into guilds of the different trades, at the head of each guild was placed a deacon (deken), to regulate its affairs and protect its interests, and as the towns obtained their charters of privileges from the Counts, so did the guilds look to the municipal governments for encouragement and support, and for the immunities they were permitted to enjoy. Each guild inhabited for the most part a separate quarter of the town, and over every quarter two officers, called " Wykmeesters" were appointed by the burgomasters, whose duty it was to keep a list of all the men in their district capable of bearing arms, to see that their arms were sufficient and ready for use, and to assemble them at the order of the magistrates, or upon the ringing of the town bell: the citizens, on their part, were bound to obey the summons without delay, at any hour of the day or night, over all the wykmeesters were placed two, three, or four superior officers, called "Hoofdmannen" or captains of the burgher guards.

The guilds, when called out to service within the town, assembled, and acted each under their own banners, but in defense of the state they were accustomed to inarch together under the standard of the town, and dressed in the city livery. As every member of a guild was expected to have his arms always ready for use, and the burgher guards (Schuttery) were frequently mustered, and drilled under the inspection of the burgomasters and sheriffs the towns were able to man their walls, and put themselves into a state of defense in an incredibly short space of time. In this manner each town formed, as we have remarked, a species of republic, containing within itself the elements of civil government and military force.

The Burghers

The burgher, for the most part, considered his town as his nation, with whose happiness and prosperity his own was inseparably linked, not only as regarded his public, but also his private interests, since his person was liable to be seized for the debts which its government contracted, and the government, on the other hand, if he were too poor to pay the County taxes, stepped in to his relief, and not unfrequently discharged them for him.

This separate existence of the towns, a source of national strength inasmuch as, by developing to its fullest extent the social activity of the people and giving to each individual a place in the political scale, it formed, as it were, a heart in every one of the extremities of the body politic, was yet a cause of weakness by the disunion, jealousy, and opposition of interests which it occasioned. The municipal government and privileges of the towns extended over a certain space without the walls, which the burghers enlarged as they found occasion by grants obtained from the Counts, whether by favor or purchase.

The "open Country", Bailiffs and Nobles

The portion of the County not included within these limits, and commonly called the "open Country" either formed the domains of the nobles or abbeys, or were governed by Bailiffs, whose office was analogous to that of the Schout in the towns, and who were, like them, appointed by the Count. Both nobles and abbots exercised the low jurisdiction in their states, and sometimes the high jurisdiction also, the nobility had the power of levying taxes on the subjects within their own domains, and exercised the right of private warfare among themselves, of the latter privilege they were always extremely jealous, and the efforts of the Counts to abolish or modify it were for many centuries unavailing, in fact, it fell into disuse in Germany and Holland later than in the other Countries of Europe.

The nobles were exempt from the taxes of the state, being bound in respect of their fiefs to serve with their vassals in the wars of the County, and if from any cause they were unable to attend in person, they were obliged either to find a substitute of to pay a scutage (ruytergeld), in lieu of their services, in the same manner as other vassals of the Count, such, however, was only the case when the war was carried on within the boundaries of the County, or had been undertaken by their advice and consent, otherwise the service they rendered depended solely on their own will and pleasure.

Examples of the above existed also outside Dordrecht :

The Council of State

The chief of the nobility were appointed by the Count to form the council of state, or supreme Court of Holland, the council of state assisted the Count in the administration of public affairs, guaranteed all treaties of peace and alliance made with foreign nations, and in its judicial capacity, took cognizance of capital offences, both in the towns (unless otherwise provided by their charters) and in the open Country.

To this Court, which resided at Dordrecht until the 14th century, where the Count generally presided in person, lay an appeal in civil causes from all the inferior Courts in the state. In after times, as the towns increased in wealth and importance, and the more prolonged and expensive wars in which the Counts were engaged rendered their pecuniary support necessary, they, likewise, became parties to the ratification of treaties and were consulted upon matters relating to war or foreign alliances.

It was probably the custom of summoning together deputies from the towns for these purposes which gave rise to the assembly of the states, as historians are unable to fix the exact time of its origin. It has been generally supposed that before the middle of the sixteenth century, the six "good towns" only, that is, Dordrecht (as precedence in the assembly of the States), Haarlem, Delft, Leyden, Gouda, and later from the 14th century Amsterdam enjoyed the right of sending deputies to the states.

TThe small towns were likewise accustomed to send deputies to the states when a measure was to be discussed which peculiarly regarded their own welfare, as, for example upon the occasion of a question concerning the imposition of a duty on the exportation of corn, when deputies appeared from most of the towns of the Waterland (Monnickendam and surroundings), where the principal commerce in grain was carried on, and in like manner, when unusual precautions were found necessary to secure the herring fishery.

Deputies of the towns which depended on that trade for their support were summoned to the states to consider of the measures proposed by the government for its protection. As it does not appear that the same towns were always summoned to the voting of supplies, it is most probable that the Counts invited such of them to appear at the assemblies as they thought most able or willing to contribute towards satisfying their pecuniary demands, in the same manner as our own sovereigns in former times were wont to do.

The deputies to the states were nominated by the senates of the several towns, each town possessing but one voice in the assembly, whatever number of deputies it might send, the whole body of the nobility likewise enjoyed but one vote, though it was often represented by several, never by less than three deputies. The states were generally summoned by the Counts to Dordrecht and later the Hague, or to any other place where they might happen to be residing.

It appears to have been competent for any one or more of the towns to call an assembly when and where they judged it expedient, but the more usual practice was to petition either the Count or the council of Holland to issue the summons.

The deputies of the nobles and towns deliberated separately,. and afterwards met together to give their votes, when the nobles voted first, and then the towns, the ancient city of Dordrecht having the precedence. The deputies were called together to deliberate upon specific question only: if any new matter arose, they were obliged to delay their decision until they had consulted their principals upon it, and no measure could be carried, if either the nobles, or any one of the towns, refused to give their vote in its favor.

TThe principal officers employed by the assembly of the states, were a registrar or keeper of the records, who acted likewise as secretary, and an advocate called the Pensionary of Holland, whose business it was to propose all subjects for the deliberation of the states, to declare the votes, and report the decisions of the assembly to the Count, or council of state, although this officer did not possess the right of voting, he was accustomed to take a share in the debates, and generally enjoyed great influence both in the assembly of the states and the whole Country, the nobles, likewise, chose a Pensionary, nearly always in the person of the same individual.

The States of Zeeland

The constitution of the states of Zealand, differed from that of Holland, inasmuch as the clergy in the latter did not form a separate estate, nor were they represented in the assembly, whereas in Zealand, the abbot of St. Nicholas in Middleburg, enjoyed the right of giving the first vote as representative of the ecclesiastical state, the Marquis of Veere and Flushing (Vlissingen) represented the whole body of the nobility, and had likewise one vote, while deputies were sent from six, only of the principal towns, Middleburg, Zierikzee, Goes, Veere, Flushing, and Tholen.

Justice

The administration of justice was conferred on the magistrates of the city, certain fines being appointed for various crimes and misdemeanors, among the rest, for homicide. It is probable that the more aggravated cases of homicide, such as amounted to murder, were punished with death, since in a charter of privileges of the same kind, granted to Dordrecht in 1253, this punishment is awarded to the willful slayer of another. Delft likewise received a similar charter of privileges during the reign of William II.

Relations with England and Flanders

Florence (Floris) V 1254-1296, Count of Holland and West-Frisia (Zeeland) 1256-1296

He was under regent ship until 1263 by his uncle Florence "the guardian" (1258) and his aunt Aleida (1226-1283). Florence V was fore destined during a reign of forty years to leave a deeper impress upon the history of Holland than any other of its predecessors. He was a man of chivalrous character and high capacity, during his reign he proved himself an able and beneficent ruler.

During his reign the cities in Holland and Zeeland grew as never before and the trade with foreign Countries extended to a high level, especially the trade between England and Holland (already existed for ages) was still extending itself, to the great advantage of both Countries.

Florence V married 1270 with Beatrix (1260-1291) Countess of Flanders and Dampierre, daughter of Count Guy I of Dampierre of Flanders, they had in total nine children :

1. William, born c. 1274, The Haque, died very young
2. Otho, c. 1275, The Haque, died very young
3. Margaretha, born c. 1276, The Haque, the only child who became adult
4. Theodore, born c. 1277, The Haque, died very young
5. Florence, born c. 1279, The Haque, died very young
6. John I, born 1281, The Haque,, died November 1299
7. Machteld, born c. 1284, The Haque, died very young
8. Beatrix, born c. 1286, The Haque, died very young
9. Elisabeth, born c. 1288, The Haque, died very young

1256 During his minority he was under regent-ship until 1263 by his uncle Florence "the guardian" (1258) and his aunt Aleida (1226-1283). Florence V was fore destined during a reign of forty years to leave a deeper impress upon the history of Holland than any other of its predecessors. Florence V was a man of chivalrous character and high capacity, during his reign he proved himself an able and beneficent ruler. The trade between England and Holland had existed for ages, and was still extending itself, to the great advantage of both Countries.

Alike in his troubles with his turbulent subjects and in the perennial disputes with his neighbors (Germany, Flanders and France) he pursued a strong, far-sighted and successful policy. But his active interest in affairs was not limited to Holland alone. He allied himself closely with Edward I (1239-1307), king of England (1272-1307) in his strife with France, and secured from the English, great trading advantages for his people.

1271 To balance the power of the nobles he granted charters to many of the towns, of with Dordrecht was his most favorite city and it got many charters. In 1281 Florence made himself master of Amstelland, Gooiland and Amsterdam (the latter destined to become the chief commercial town of Holland in the Golden Age (17th century).

The trade carried on by the Hollanders with England was become highly valuable to both nations, the former giving a high price for the English wool for their cloth manufactures, while they procured thence (chiefly, perhaps from Cornwall) their silver for the purpose of coinage.

1275 A quarrel between the merchants of the two Countries, some years before this time, had been followed by numerous acts of piracy on the part of the Zealanders, in consequence of which, Edward, in the year 1275, ordered that all Zealand ships coming into the ports of England should be arrested. Florence, unwilling to lose a commerce so advantageous to his subjects, granted shortly after a safe conduct to all English merchants trading to his states but four years elapsed before he was able to obtain permission for the ships of Zealand to frequent the ports of England as usual.

1281 About the same time (1281), with the grant of this permission, a treaty was set on foot for the marriage of Margaret (b.1276), the daughter of Count Florence V, with Alphonso (1273-1284), son of the King of England. Margaret was 'to have as her portion, whichever moiety of the County of Holland the king should choose, and to inherit the whole, in case Florence died without a son, the disputes between the merchants were, by the same treaty, deferred to arbitrators chosen on both sides.

1285 The birth of a son to Florence in 1281, and the subsequent death of Alphonso, rendered this contract ineffectual, but prior to the latter event, in 1285 another marriage was agreed upon, between John I, the Count's infant son, and Elizabeth, daughter of Edward. The king engaging to pay fifty thousand livres (tournois) as her portion, and the Count settling upon her a dowry of six thousand livres. . In March the progress of building of the Tower of the Dordrecht Minster was further advanced and the Maria chorus and the cemetery were finished and officially inaugurated by the Bishop of Durham Antony Beck.

1292 According to the terms of the treaty with England, John I was sent to the court of the King of England, to be educated, where he remained until the completion of the marriage with Princess Elisabeth.

1293 The friendship cemented by this alliance, was highly advantageous to the commerce of Holland. The Edward staple of wool was, to distress of Flanders, removed from Bruges and placed at Dordrecht in 1293, already a town of extensive trade in wines, grain, salt, iron, wood, and cloths (with a short interval the wool staple should stay at Dordrecht until 1652) and the subjects of the Count were permitted to fish, without restriction, on the English coast at Yarmouth. This is the first grant we find of a privilege, which the Dutch continued to enjoy, with little interruption, until 1652, the beginning of the first English-Dutch sea war) during the time of Cromwell. In Dordrecht the construction of the Augustijner-church (at the Voorstraat) began, one of oldest churches of The Netherlands.

Trade in the Lowlands in the Middle ages

The trade of the Lowlands with the Mediterranean and the East was mainly through the favored cities of Bruges and Ghent in Flanders, which already in the twelfth century had risen to the first rank in the commercial world. It was the resting-place for the Lombard merchants, and a store place for their merchandise. It also became the great marketplace for English wool in the 13th century and the woolen fabrics of all the Lowlands, as well as for the drugs and spices of the East.

When the overland trade with India fell off with the discovery of the Cape passage by sea at the end of the 13th century, the merchandise in Bruges and Ghent withered. By the end of the 13th century the cities of Flanders, Bruges and Ghent, lost most of their merchandise to the capital of the Northern Lowlands Dordrecht, a city, situated at an open arm of the North Sea and surrounded by great rivers flowing inland was thus more suitable as sea harbor for the ships from England, the Mediterranean, North Europe, Far East, and thus for further transportation of goods inland and to Germany.

Another reason was also that since about 1050, gradual silting had caused Bruges and Ghent to lose its direct access to the sea. A storm in 1134, however, re-established this access, through the creation of a natural channel at the Zwin, but not for long. Starting around 1450, the Zwin channel, which had given the city its prosperity, also started silting.

Dordrecht, on his turn, the ancient capital of Holland, lost in the 15th century, part of his importance due to the inundation called "St-Elisabeth flood" in 1421 though it still stayed the capital of Holland and the first of the principal towns until the end of the 16th century and was as sea harbor replaced by Rotterdam and as capital by The Hague in the 16th century (1588) and later by Amsterdam in the 19th century (1810).

Merchant hostilities with Flanders and England

1295 Te loss of the wool staple to Holland outlined evil blood with the Fleming's and they sought revenge for the lose of this lucrative trade route. They did not have to wait long because in 1296 Florence forsook the alliance of Edward I for that of Philip IV (1268-1314), king of France 1285-1314, probably because Edward had given support to his former father-in-law Guy of Dampierre (1226-1305), Gewijde van Dampierre, Count of Flanders (1278-1305), in his dynastic dispute with John II of Avesnes (1247-1304), Count of Hainaut 1280-1304, who was a nephew of Florence V by his aunt Aleida.

In reaction to this Edward I removed the staple of wool from Dordrecht in Holland to Bruges and Mechiln (Mechelen) in Flanders, The Count of Flanders, Guy of Dampierre and king Edward I of England became close friends and it is said that they supported the disaffected nobles of Holland against Florence V.

The murder of Florence V

The disregard in which Count Florence held the nobility, in favor of the cities and Country men, had excited in the greater number a spirit of jealousy and hostility against him, the reason for this hostility originated in 1278, when Florence sided with the craftsmen and farmers in Amstelland and Maasland against the local nobles. Florence forced Gijsbrecht IV van Amstel (1235-1303) in 1278 to surrender his lordship of Amstel, which he conferred upon John Persyn, the same who had signalized himself in suppressing the revolt of the Kennemerlanders (Haarlem), conducted by Gijsbrecht IV van Amstel.

Hermann van Woerden was exiled and Florence said to have beheaded the brother of Gerard van Velsen. In 1281 Florences V made a treaty with the former nobles and Hermann van Woerden was freed from his exile, though they never forgot what Florence V had done to them and they sought for a suitable moment for a conspiracy against the Count.

The first year of disaster in Holland

1296 In 1296 the disaffected nobles, headed by Gijsbrecht IV van Amstel (1235-1303), Gerard van Velsen and Hermann van Woerden, formed an alliance against him, secretly supported by the Count of Flanders and probably also the King of England.

In June 1296 they invited him to accompany himself and the other nobles on a hawking excursion during a visit to the bishop of Utrecht. During this event they took him prisoner and imprisoned Florence V in the Castle at Muyden, at the mouth of the Vecht, with the design probably of transporting him thence by sea to England.

As soon as the rumor of the Count's imprisonment became known, the West Frieslanders, and the people of Kennemerland and Waterland, manned a number of vessels, and besieged the Castle of Muyden. But they were not able to laid a successful siege and could only prevent his being carried to England. Hereupon the conspirators secretly tried to bring him by land to Brabant or Flanders, gagged and disguised with his feet and hands bound and mounted on a sorry horse, on the fifth day of his confinement they travelled towards Naarden.

Hardly had they advanced half way to Naarden, when Gerard van Velsen, who rode forward to prevent ambushes of the people, enCountered a large body of the inhabitants of that city. To his demand of what they wanted they replied "bring us our Count". Hereupon, van Velsen rode back with all the speed he could make, to give the rest of his party warning of their approach. The nobles, unable to resist so numerous a force, attempted to avoid them by flight; but in leaping a ditch, the Count's feeble horse fell with his rider into the mire, and finding it impossible to extricate him before the arrival of his deliverers, who were close behind, they murdered their helpless victim and caused on him more than twenty wounds (June 27, 1296).

While Florence V was yet alive, John van Arkel, Theodore van Brederode (d.1318), with the other nobles who still remained faithful to him, had, upon intelligence of his imprisonment, assembled at Dordrecht in June 1296, and sent to John II of Avesnes, Count of Hainaut 1280-1304 and Count of Holland 1299-1304, a requisition that he would come into Holland without delay, and assume the government until the Count could be released.

Count Florence V of Holland (1254-1296), the "Keerlen God" (Peasant God), is one of the most important figures of the first, native dynasty of Holland (833-1299). His life has been documented in detail in the Rijmkroniek by Melis Stoke, a clerk of the city of Dordrecht, 1270-1296, and chronicler of Florence V. He is credited with a mostly peaceful reign, modernizing administration, policies beneficial to trade, generally acting in the interests of his peasants at the expense of nobility, and reclaiming land from the sea. His dramatic murder was probably engineered by King Edward I of England, "the Longshanks", and Guy of Dampierre, Count of Flanders, and this made him a hero in Holland.

John I 1281-1299, Count of Holland and West-Frisia (Zeeland) 1296-1299

The condition in which the death of Florence V. left Holland, was deplorable in the extreme. Engaged in hostilities with Flanders, her nobility discontented and rebellious, her people alarmed and suspicious, and her young prince John I a minor, in the hands of a monarch who had given but too many proofs of his unscrupulous ambition, while to these difficulties was added that of a divided regency until 1299.

Three days after the death of Florence V they dispatched the Abbot of Egnond to the court of the King of England, beseeching him to restore to them their young Count John I, and to send with him a force sufficient to protect him from the fate that had befallen his father.

Guy of Avesnes 1253-1317, who became later Bishop of Utrecht 1301-1317 (successor of Bishop William II Berthout (1296-1301), was the younger brother of John of Avesnes, came into Holland, commissioned by John I to undertake the administration in his behalf, until he should repair thither in person, which he promised to do shortly.

Although John of Avennes was the closest relative to the young Count, being the son of Adelaide of Avennes (1226-1283), sister of his grandfather William II, yet Louis of Cleves, Count of Hulkerode, related in a more distant degree, assumed to himself the administration of affairs, his supporters being principally found among the friends of those who had conspired against Count Florence V. Guy of Avennes, not having sufficient influence to prevent his exercising the authority of governor, agreed to divide the government with him, until the arrival of his brother John II.

West-Friesland was allotted to Louis of Cleve, who resided at the Hague, while Guy of Avesness reserved to himself Holland, and remained at Geertruidenberg, Upon the arrival of John of Avennes in Holland, he found the great majority of the people favorably disposed towards him, and within a short time his party became so powerful, that Louis of Cleves was forced to retire into his own territory.

Of the conspirators against Florence V, Woerden and Amstel fled their Country, and died in exile but the greater part fortified themselves in the castle of Kronenburg, which was besieged and taken. Van Velsen, Hugo van Baarland, William van Zoenden and some others were made prisoners, while the remainder were rescued by the interference of the Lord of Cuyck and the Count of Cleves. In August 1296 Gerard van Velsen, Hugo van Baarland and William van Zoenden were tried at Dordrecht, severely tortured, and, together with other of their accomplices put to dead (broken on the wheel).

The enemies of Holland were not backward in taking advantage of the embarrassments she was now laboring under. At the time when the late Count had lent his assistance to John II, bishop of Utrecht, against the Lords of Amstel and Woerden, that prelate had consented that these two lordships should be transferred to the sovereignty of Holland. This arrangement was by no means acceptable to his successor, Bishop William II (1296-1301), who sought, therefore, every means of disturbing Holland in these possessions.

The West-Frieslanders had become so deeply attached to the person of Count Florence V, that during his life there was no hope of shaking their allegiance, but after his death, it was found less difficult to revive in their breasts their ancient love of freedom, particularly as they had conceived the idea, from the long residence of the young Prince John I in England, that he was not the real son of Florence.

Wolferd van Borselen, the leader of the nobles of Zeeland, who had before been aided by Guy of Dampierre, Count of Flanders, in his treasonable undertakings, and had, since the revolt of 1287, lived in retirement or exile, now applied to the same quarter for assistance in the ambitious projects he was forming. Having surreptitiously obtained from the inhabitants of Dordrecht two ships of war, under pretence of a threatened invasion by the Flemings, he went forthwith to Guy of Dampierre of Flanders, and found but little trouble in persuading him to invade Walcheren, and lay siege to Middelburg.

Middelburg had been blockaded some months, when John of Avennes advanced to its relief, and on his arrival at Zierikzee, the Flemings hastily raised the siege, and retired to Flanders, sustaining severe loss in their retreat, from a sally made by the besieged. John II having been received with great joy in Middleburg, did not long remain there, as the events which were occurring in West-Friesland urgently demanded his presence.

At the instigation of Bishop William II, and relying on his promises of assistance, the West-Frieslanders once more took up arms, mastered and destroyed all the castles Count Florence had built, except Medemblick, which they blockaded. Governor John of Avennes was at this time fully occupied with the affairs of Zealand.

Medemblick, surrounded by the insurgents, and cut off from all supplies, was on the eve of a surrender, when John II came up to its relief, he forced them to raise the siege, but the weather becoming suddenly cold, his troops conceived so great a dread of being blocked up by the ice, that desertion became general, some retreated to the ships in the harbor of Medemblick and the remainder returned home by different land routes, not without considerable loss of life. John II, thus left nearly alone, had no resource but to retire to Holland.

1297 The king of England, anxious to secure an influence in the court of his intended son-in-law, sent ambassadors to Holland, requiring the attendance of three nobles out of each of the provinces, and two deputies from each of the "good towns" at the marriage of Count John I in January 1297 with Princess Elizabeth of Ruddlan (1282-1316), and at the confirmation of the treaty. Accordingly, the English ambassadors were accompanied on their return by the deputies of the nobles, with Theodore van Brederode at their head, and those of the good towns of Holland, Dordrecht, as precedence, Haarlem, Delft, Leyden and Gouda together with the good towns of Zeeland, Middleburg and Zierkzee.

They were detained some time at the court of England; but at length the marriage was celebrated with great splendor, and the ambassadors, laden with rich presents, returned with the young bride and bridegroom and a well-equipped fleet to Holland.

The conditions imposed by Edward I in the treaty made on this occasion, rendered the young Count little more than a nominal sovereign in his own states, he was obliged to appoint two Englishmen, Ferrers and Havering, members of his privy council, and to engage that he would do nothing contrary to their advice, or without the consent of his father-in-law. The disputes between Flanders and Brabant on the one side, and Holland on the other, were to be referred to the mediation of King Edward.

On the return of John of Avennes from the war in West-Friesland, he found that Count John I had landed in Zealand, and knowing he had nothing but hostility to expect from Wolferd van Borselen, who had obtained possession of the young prince's person, and was devoted to the interests of England and Flanders, deemed it advisable to retire without delay into Hainaut. His departure left Borselen without a rival, and he immediately assumed the title of governor of Holland, and guardian of John I.

The West-Frieslanders still refusing to acknowledge John I as the son of Count Florence V were attacked, the first step of Borselen was to march with the young Count into that province, at the head of an army, of which some Englishmen who were present are said to have remarked, that, "if such an army were landed at one end of England, it might march, in spite of all opposition, to the other". With so powerful a force, it was a matter of no great difficulty to subdue the West Frieslanders; and it was done so effectually, that this was the last time the Counts of Holland were obliged to carry war into their Country.

This success increased the influence of Wolferd of Borselen, and his authority in the state became almost absolute, he obtained from John I a written promise to protect him against any evil that threatened him from the murderers of Florence V, although most cities were his friends and he had nothing to fear from them. John I bound himself also to be guided entirely by Borselen's advice until he should attain the age of twenty-five.

1298 Borselen excluded from the privy council all members who were not in his interests and obtained for himself the investiture of the fortress of Ysselstein, and the lordship of Woerden. Further Borselen attempted to levy heavy and arbitrary taxes on the whole nation. Opposed by Philip IV (1268-1314) of France, he obliged John I to conclude a treaty with Flanders, promising subsidies to Count Guy of Dampierre during his war with France. The ambition and rapacity of Borselen had already excited indignation and disgust against him by the principal towns (Dordrecht, Haarlem, Delft, Leyden, Gouda, Middleburg and Zierkzee).

When he thought to deflate the coin and forced Count John I to organize a conference with Flanders, the cities became furious. (in this conference Robert III of Bethune (1249-1322), Count of Nevers, nicknamed "The lion of Flanders", and his father Count Guy of Dampierre of Flanders, swore solemnly that the conspirators against Count Florence V had received neither assistance nor encouragement from them. "The young Count, though forced by Borselen, received their oath, kept his eyes fixed on the ground the whole time they were present, and could not be induced to look upon them" --Melis Stoke--).

1299 The murmurs of the citizens of the principal towns became loud and general when a quarrel, in which van Borselen involved himself with the town of Dordrecht, concerning its immunities, brought matters to a serious crisis. Bailiff Aloud van Ierseke of South Holland, appointed to that office by Borselen, claimed the right of hearing some criminals in custody at Dordrecht, for a crime committed within the precincts of the city. The magistrates of Dordrecht, deeming this right to belong solely to themselves, proceeded to take the examinations, without noticing the claim of the Bailiff; and while they were thus employed, Borselen himself, accompanied by Count John I, regained to Dordrecht.

He demanded that the whole of the documents relating to the matter in question should be immediately delivered to him, and concluded that it belonged to the jurisdiction of the Court of Holland. The magistrates refused to surrender them, on the plea that, according to the charter of William II of 1152 (the right of pronouncing judgment without appeal), they alone had the power of hearing and deciding all causes whatsoever occurring within the limits of Dordrecht. Borselen, enraged at this answer, threatened them with imprisonment if they did not obey, and withdrew immediately to Delft, and thence to the Hague, commanding five of the Dordrecht's magistrates to follow him.

The Dordrechters considered it unsafe for their magistrates to go alone, so they sent with them deputies from the great council of the town, making it about ten or twelve persons. Two of them, one John and Paul, were particularly noted as strenuous defenders of their privileges, being for this reason obnoxious in a high degree to Borselen, they remained at Delft, while three others, John the Miller, Peter Tielmanson, and Jacob went to the Hague for the purpose of holding a conference with Count John I.

They were detained there some time, on account of the absence of Borselen, without whose advice John I durst not to interfere in the affairs. Immediately on arrival of Borselen he inquired where John and Paul were, this excited suspicions in the minds of the others that he meditated some evil design against them. Warned by their companions, the two councilors hastily returned to Dordrecht. When Borselen came with the Count shortly after to Delft, he found them already gone.

Their departure, without permission of Borselen, reproached the magistrates of Delft and caused discussions on this subject in the senate of that town. Bailiff Aloud van Ierseke of South Holland offered to fight in single combat any one who would maintain the cause of the sheriffs of Dordrecht was just. But the burghers of Delft would permit no one to accept the challenge, being of opinion, that the immunities of the towns ought not in any case to be subject to the chances of a battle. John and Paul were accused of contumacy by Borselen's party, not waiting the arrival of the Count, who menaced Dordrecht with the consequences of his high displeasure.

On return of John and Paul, bearing of the threats used by the Count, the burghers of Dordrecht thought it advisable to put themselves in a posture of defense. Four "hoofdmannen" or captains of burgher guards were appointed and letters dispatched by the senate to all the "good towns" of Holland and Zealand, in treating them to consider the cause of Dordrecht as their common cause.

Their preparations were not made in vain, shortly after the town was besieged by Borselen, in order to cut off all communication from without, by land and water, he stationed troops in the surrounding forts, and a number of vessels, called "Outlyers" in the Merwe. Bailiff Aloud van Ierseke also, who commanded the fort of Kraajestein near Dordrecht, situated at the borders of the Merwe in the Dordrechtsche waard between Oud-Sliedrecht and Giessenmonde, caused pile work to be laid across the river to avoid its passage.

During the work, a single cog boat, having approached close to the town, excited such a commotion within the walls that the burghers broke out, and hurried, some by land, some in boats, to Kraajestein. Here they came to a sharp engagement with Aloud's troops, they killed and wounded a considerable number, and returned with the loss of only one life to Dordrecht.

When Borselen was informed of the defeat of his alliance he tried to get levy from towns in Holland and Zealand against Dordrecht, but he was unable to get their support against their Capital, because of the discontents which had spread over the whole County. Borselen retrieved to the Hague and understood that he was no longer safe, so he leaved the court by night and carried the young Count with him to Schiedam and whence he took ship to Zealand.

On the discovery of the abduction of Count John I the court and village of the Hague were in uproar, numbers hurried to Vlaardingen where, finding that the ship in which Borselen had sailed lay becalmed in the mouth of the Merwe, manned all the boats in the port with stout rowers, and quickly reached the young Count's vessel, whom they found very willing to return with them. Borselen was taken prisoner to Delft.

Hardly had the burghers of Delft heard of his arrest when they assembled before the doors of the prison, demanding with loud cries that "the traitor should be delivered up to them". The Schout and the Sheriffs, struck Borselen with terror, thrusted him and stripped of his armor out at the door. He was massacred in an instant, every individual of the immense multitude eagerly seeking to gratify his hatred by inflicting a wound upon him (August 30 1299).

A similar destiny befell Bailiff Aloud of Ierseke who was forced to surrender his fort of Kraajestein, made prisoner and was brought to Dordrecht, when he had scarcely entered the city he and five of his followers were sacrificed to the fury of the infuriated population.

Count John I was still too young to conduct the business of government alone, he invited to his assistance his cousin, John of Avesnes, and appointed him guardian over himself and the County for a period of four years. The death of Borselen, and the accession of John of Avesnes to the government, entirely deprived the English party of their influence in Holland.

John of Avesnes regained to Dordrecht to join his nephew. During the month of October they stayed at Dordrecht. Their first act was to make a reconciliation between the people of Delft and the relatives of Wolferd van Borselen, and this being effected, he entered into a covenant with seven of the principal towns (Dordrecht, Haarlem, Delft, Leyden, Gouda, Middleburg and Zierkzee), neither to make nor consent to any peace with the murderers of Count Florence V or their posterity to the seventh generation. John of Avesnes determined on entering into a close alliance with France with the consent of the seven principal towns.

On the 6th of November Count John I (already sick) and John of Avesnes signed a privilege in favor of Dordrecht called "Stapelrecht" (the right to store goods), all goods transported by the rivers Lek and Merwe had to be unloaded at Dordrecht and sold on the markets. On the 7th November John II set out for a visit to the French court, leaving Count John I at Haarlem sick of the ague and flux, where he died on the 10th of November 1299.

Upon the death of his cousin, John of Avennes returned immediately to Holland, where he was acknowledged by the nobles, commons, and towns, as Count, in right of his mother, Adelaide, sister of William II, as Count he took the name John II of Holland.

The end of the House of Frisia and Holland

John I was the last Count of the house of Frisia and Holland. His family had ruled Holland for more then three centuries (993-1299). With his death without descendents the House of Frisia/Holland became extinct.

A famous and very old children's Dutch song is about Jan (John I), son of Count Florence V (Floris V). Freely translated it goes like this.

Europe has perhaps never seen an abler series of Princes than these fourteen lineal descendants of Theodore (Dirk or Diederic) III. Excepting the last (John I) there was not a weak man among them. Physically handsome and strong, model knights of the days of chivalry, character, hard fighters and wise statesmen, they were born leaders of men, always ready to advance the commerce of the Country, they were the supporters of the growing towns, and likewise the pioneers in the task of converting a land of marshes and swamps into a fertile agricultural territory rich in flocks and herds. As individuals they had their failings, but one and all were worthy members of a high-soul race.

John of Avennes, Count of Hainaut (Henegauwen) was the closest relative to the young Count John I, being the son of Adelaide of Avesnes (1226-1283), sister of John I's grandfather Count William II (1227-1256). From that moment on Holland was ruled by foreign Counts from Hainaut (1299-1356), Dukes from Bavaria (Beieren) (1356-1433), Burgundy (Bourgondie) (1433-1482) and Habsburg (1482-1515) and Kings and Emperors from the Habsburg dynasty (1515-1581), before Holland finally became fully independent in the 17th century.

Table of the Counts of Holland

Family tree of the Counts of Frisia and Holland

Next : The History of Dordrecht part 3