WIT 



it, fome of the provinces cenfured it, and charged the anti- 

 Orange party with having fuggefted it to Cromwell. The 

 province of Holland, however, carried the point, and the ge 

 neral tranquillity was little difturbed. De Witt now direfted 

 h?s attention to the ftate of the finances, and fucceeded in 

 reducing the intereft of the public debt, and perfuading the 

 people to acquiefce in this meafure. The reftoration of 

 Charles II. was generally agreeable to the United States, 

 and more efpecially to the Orange party : but the reftored 

 fovereign foon declared his diflatisfaftion with De Witt, be- 

 caufe he had been hoftile to the elevation of the houfe of 

 Orange. From this time, the Dutch ftatefman favoured the 

 politics of France more than thofe of England. At length 

 a war took place between the Dutch and Englifh in 1665 ; 

 during the progrefsof which De Witt was often unpopular, 

 though he was the main fpring which kept in aftion the 

 refources of the ftate, and remedied every calamity. Peace 

 with England in 1667 developed the ambitious projefts of 

 Lewis XIV. in taking pofTeflion of the Spani(h Netherlands ; 

 and the alarm which this meafure produced in the United Pro- 

 vinces gave occafion to the friends of the houfe of Orange 

 to propofe the elevation of the young prince to the dignities 

 which his family had pofTeffed. De Witt, with a view of 

 counterafting this purpofe, obtained a refolution on the part 

 of the ftates of Holland for feparating the offices of captain- 

 general and ftadtholder (fee William III.), which refolu- 

 tion gave great offence to the other provinces, and rendered 

 De Witt, with whom it was fuppofed to have originated, 

 extremely unpopular. Scnfible, however, of the dangers 

 arifing from French ambition, he concurred in the triple 

 alliance between England, Sweden, and the United Provinces, 

 concluded, in 1668, by himfelf and fir WiUiam Temple. 

 The ftates of Holland were fo fatisfied with his conduft, that 

 they nominated him for five years more to the office of their 

 penfionary, which he had already occupied for fifteen years. 

 Confiding in the triple alliance, and the fubfequent peace of 

 Aix-la-Chapelle, he again indulged his jealoufy of the Orange 

 party and a ftanding army, and confidered the danger from 

 France as a fecondary objeft. But the ambition of Lewis 

 had no bounds ; the unprincipled Charles II. could not be 

 relied upon ; the triple alliance was fet afide ; and the Eng- 

 lifli cabinet joined the French in direft war with the United 

 Provinces ; fo that in the year 1672 a French army made an 

 irruption into the territories of the ftutes, and threatened to 

 overwhelm the whole country. The anti-Orangifts were 

 then compelled to confer the chief command on William. 

 The conduft of the French had been fo atrocious, that every 

 perfon who had manifefted the flighteft attachment to their 

 politics was charged with treafon. De Witt became the ob- 

 jeft of public indignation, and to him were afcribed all the 

 calamities which were felt or feared. Four aflaffins attempted 

 his life, as he was returning home from an aflembly of the 

 ftates of Holland, attended by a fingle fervant ; but though 

 he received many wounds, none of them were mortal. One 

 of the affaffins was taken and executed ; but fuch is the in- 

 fluence of party, the friends of the houfe of Orange regarded 

 the wretch as a martyr. Cornelius de Witt, on his return 

 from the fleet, where he had ferved as deputy of the ftates, 

 narrowly efcaped from a fimilar attempt. The prince was 

 now elevated to the ftadtholderate ; and the penfionary, as 

 foon as he was recovered from his wounds, vifited him with 

 congratulation on the event, but was coolly received. 

 Finding that, as he was become an objeft of the public 

 hatred, he could be no longer of any fervice, he requefted 

 permiffion from the ftates of Holland to refign his office, 

 which was granted him upon the moft honourable terms. 

 His brother was at this time imprifoned among common 

 Vol. XXXVIII. 



W I T 



felons at the Hague, under a charge, preferred by a perfon 

 of infamous charafter, of having formed a plot againft the 

 hfe of the prince of Orange. On his trial he was put to 

 the torture, in the mofl cruel form of applying it ; but 

 though he endured the moft aggravated fufferings, protefting 

 his innocence, and citing his judges before the tribunal of 

 God for their treatment of him, they pronounced fentence, 

 which deprived him of all his dignities, and banithed him 

 for life from tlie province. Although no criminal charge 

 was brought againft John de Witt, the enemies of the fa- 

 mily refolved that neither of the brothers fhould efcape witli 

 life. Decoyed by a fiftitious meflage to vifit his brother 

 Cornelius in the prifon, a furious mob affembled to prevent 

 his return. The ftates of Holland ordered a guard to dif- 

 perfe the people, and requefted fome companies of horfe and 

 foot to be fent from the camp of the prince of Orange. 

 But the commanding officers were inveterate in their enmity 

 againft the De Witts ; and the inflamed populace, not re- 

 ftrained from executing their bloody purpofe, forced open 

 the doors of the prifon, dragged out the two brothers, and 

 inhumanly maffacred them. This cataftrophe took place in 

 Auguft 1672, John de Witt being in the 47th year of his age. 

 Although the ftates of Holland pronounced the deed to be 

 deteftable, and requefted the ftadtholder to take proper 

 meafures for avenging the death of thefe two brothers, it 

 was pretended that it would be dangerous to inquire into a 

 deed in which the principal burghers of the Hague were con- 

 cerned, and therefore none of the murderers were brought 

 to juftice. It fliould, however, be recoUefted, that th« 

 prince never fpoke of this malTacre without the greateft 

 horror. 



The charafter of De Witt has been defcribed in honour- 

 able terms by fir William Temple, who knew him well, 

 both in private hfe and in his pubUc ftation. He fpeaka of 

 him as a perfon of indefatigable application, of invincible 

 refolution, of a found and clear judgment, and of irre- 

 proachable integrity, infomuch, that if he was blinded in 

 any refpeft, it was in confequence of his paffion for pro^ 

 moting what he thought the welfare of his country. He 

 bears teftimony to the penfionary's knowledge of the interefts 

 of foreign courts, though he did not make fufficient allow- 

 ance for the treachery of princes, or rather their minifters, 

 and was thus milled with regard to the ambitious views of 

 France. If he had any wrong bias in his political condudi, 

 it was that of an hereditary jealoufy and diflike of the houfe 

 of Orange, which led him in fome cafes to aft rather as a 

 party leader than an unprejudiced patriot. No man could 

 be lefs influenced than De Witt by views of avarice or often- 

 tation. His manners and appearance were adapted to the 

 ancient fimplicity and frugality of his country, even in the 

 height of his power. When his papers and private letters 

 were fubmitted to a rigorous fcrutiny after his death, nothing 

 was difcovered that could impeach his integrity. When one 

 of the commiffioners was all<ed what they had found in De 

 Witt's papers ; " What (faid he) could we have found — 

 nothing but probity !" As a man of bufinefs, he was fcru- 

 puloufly attentive to order and method ; and when he wa& 

 once aflied, How he was able to tranfaft fuch a multiplicity 

 of aff'airs ? he replied, " By doing only one thing at a time." 

 Mod. Un. Hift. Gen. Biog. 



WITTBACH, in Geography, a river of Germany, 

 which rifes near Hackenburg Sayn, and after a circuitous 

 courfe runs into the Rhine, about a mile below Neuwied. 



WITTELM, a fmall ifland in Steinhuder lake, with 

 a fort ; 3 miles N. of Hagenburg. 



WITTELOHE, a town of Germany, in the county of 

 Verden ; 10 miles S.E. of Verden. 



4 C WIT- 



