The Prince of Wales

[Louis VI the Fat]

The Lowlands, Netherlands or Seventeen Provinces were declared one and indivisible under the Pragmatic Sanction of 1549.

Of course if want to maintain that our country became a country only when it became a country in your book, I will gracefully bow to your Cartesian logic.

Bow? We shall have to disagree to disagree then, for I shall argue it a bit longer.

The Pragmatic Sanction was a personal union under Charles V. In 1581, the Northern Netherlands declared themselves absolved from this union in the Acte de la Haye. (Act of The Hague). This was a declaration of indepence. What's more, the creation of something new. The continuity of the Spanish Netherlands was with the Southern Netherlands.


By the way - this explains the difference in identity between the Netherlands and Belgium. The Netherlands have a strong national identity, being an old country, of their own making.
Belgium by contrast was what was left of the Burgundian lands. A rump state. Lacking a clear national identity.
(And when Belgium at last became a clear entity of it's own, it was a Walloon state. To this day, the goal of Wallonia is Belgium, that of Flanders is Flanders)


Ah well. I've pretty much exhausted the subject too.

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The Dutch Republic was also an oppressive theocracy.

Psst, don't tell Louis..

Too late!

The Dutch Catholics were emancipated by the Revolutionaries. For such, amongst others, was the 'tyranny' the French armies brought: freedom of religion.

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'Louis, I love you in a manly, backroomish sort of way. Furthermore, I promise to never, ever agree with you on anything'.
I love you too and so I promise to never admit you are right about anything. Dearest, I knew that deep down you like it ruff, just as much as I do, but were simply scared to admit it.

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I think most surviving Constitutional Monarchies are Protestant, while there are lots of predominantly Catholic Republics.

I can only think of Spain, Belgium, Luxembourg and Liechtenstein.

Catholics breed like rabbits though. Soon we'll take over Canada, the UK and the Netherlands.