Prince William I of Orange. In the Struggle for the Independence of the Netherlands from the Spanish Crown

William of Orange (1533-1584) became the true father of the nation, the founder of the United Provinces, the future Dutch Republic. In the struggle for independence from Spain, the valiant William managed to unite representatives of different classes, religions, and views, restoring freedom and self-respect to his subjects. The book by British historian S.V. Wedgwood is not only a detailed description of the life of the first stadtholder of Holland and Zeeland from birth to death at the hands of a Spanish mercenary, but also an accurate portrait of the era - a period of political, religious, and economic unrest that radically changed the history of early modern Europe.