William the Silent

Biography

William the Silent was born on April 24, 1533 in Dillenburg, Giessen, Hesse, Germany. His parents were Willem I, Graf von Nassau-Dillenburg and Juliana, Gräfin zu Stolberg-Wernigerode. He was a Prins Willem "de Zwijger" ("The Silent") van Oranje, Graaf van Nassau (Stadtholder of the United Provinces of the Netherlands), Prince of Orange, Fürst von Oranien (1544 - 1584) Graf von Nassau, 1577 Generalstatthalter in den Niederlanden.

William I married Anna van Egmont van Buren on July 8, 1551 in Buren, Buren, Gelderland, The Netherlands. Together they had the following children: Maria van Nassau; Filips Willem van Nassau, prins van Oranje; Maria Van Nassau (Oranje-Nassau), Gräfin zu Hohenlohe-Neuenstein.

William I and Eva Elinx had an illegitimate son, whom William officially recognised and raised: Justinus van Nassau Dillenburg (van Nassau).

William I married Anna von Sachsen (Wettin, Albertiner), Prinzessin van Oranje-Nassau on August 25, 1561 in Leipzig,Leipzig,Saxony. Together they had the following children: Anna van Nassau (Nassau), Prinzessin; Anna van Nassau (Nassau), Gräfin zu Nassau-Dillenburg; Maurits van Oranje- Nassau (Nassau), Prinz; Maurice of Nassau, Prince of Orange; Emilia van Oranje- Nassau.

William I married Charlotte de Bourbon, prinses van Oranje in 1575. Together they had the following children: Countess Louise Juliana Van Nassau (van Oranje- Nassau), Pfalzgräfin und Kurfürstin von der Pfalz; Elisabeth van Nassau; Catharina van Oranje-Nassau (van Oranje- Nassau), Gräfin zu Hanau-Münzenberg; Charlotta Van Nassau, Abbess of Poitiers; Charlotte Brabantine van Nassau; Emilia Secunda "Antwerpiana" van Nassau, prinses van Oranje.

William I married Louise de Coligny, Fürstin von Oranien-Nassau on April 24, 1583. Together they had the following children: Frederick Henry of Nassau, Prince of Orange.

He died on July 10, 1584 in Delft, Delft, South Holland, Netherlands from Assassination by Balthasar Gérard and was buried on August 3, 1584 in Nieuwe Kerk, Delft, Delft, Zuid-Holland, Nederlande.

William the Silent in English Wikipedia

source : Willem the Silent

William I, Prince of Orange, also widely known as William the Silent (Dutch: Willem de Zwijger), or simply William of Orange (Dutch: Willem van Oranje),was born on 24 April 1533 in the castle of Dillenburg in Nassau, present-day Germany.

He was the eldest son of William "the Rich", Count of Nassau and Juliana of Stolberg-Werningerode, and was raised a Lutheran. He had four younger brothers and seven younger sisters: John, Hermanna, Louis, Mary, Anna, Elisabeth, Katharine, Juliane, Magdalene, Adolf and Henry.

When his cousin, René of Châlon, Prince of Orange, died childless in 1544, the eleven-year-old William inherited all Châlon's property, including the title Prince of Orange, on the condition that he receive a Roman Catholic education. He became Prince of Orange in 1544 and is thereby the founder of the branch House of Orange-Nassau. Besides Châlon's properties, he also inherited vast estates in the Low Countries (present-day Netherlands and Belgium). Because of his young age, Holy Roman Emperor Charles V served as the regent of the principality until William was fit to rule. William was sent to Brussels to study under the supervision of Mary of Habsburg (Mary of Hungary), the sister of Charles V and governor of the Habsburg Netherlands (Seventeen Provinces). In Brussels, he was taught foreign languages and received military and diplomatic education and became a wealthy nobleman.

Links:

• The Peerage
• Geneall
• Wikipedia
• Prince of Orange In office 1544–1584

Predecessor: [Ren%C3%A9 of Châlon] Successor: [Philip William]

• Stadtholder of Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Friesland, Leader of the Dutch Revolt: In office 1559–1584
• Stadtholder of Holland, Zeeland, and Utrecht: In office 1559 – 1567 (removed from office after flight) Monarch: Philip II of Spain

Predecessor: [ Maximilian II of Burgundy] Successor: Maximilien de Hénin-Liétard

• Stadtholder of Holland, Zeeland, and Utrecht (reinstated by States General) In office 1572 – 1584 (assassination)

Predecessor: Maximilien de Hénin-Liétard Successor: [Adolf van Nieuwenaar] (Utrecht) [Maurice of Nassau] (Holland and Zeeland)
Republican Stadtholder of Friesland: In office 1580 – 1584 (assassination)

Willem van Oranje, Willem de Zwijger in de Nederlandse Wikipedia