420 HOLLAND. 



France and Prussia interposed as negotiators and mediators, and 

 succeeded in bringing about a reconciliation. However, from the 

 conduct of the emperor in the partition of Poland, and in demolish- 

 ing the fortifications of the barrier places in the Netherlands, and 

 demanding a free navigation of the Scheldt and to the East Indies ; 

 advancing from one pretension to another ; it is apparent that the 

 most solemn treaties will be no longer observed, by some courts 

 and statesmen, than till they have an opportunity, with ability, to 

 break them. 



During the progress of their contentions with the emperor, this 

 country was greatly distressed by intestine animosities, which it may 

 be proper in this place briefly to state. The continued series of 

 losses which they had sustained in the late war with Great Britain 

 was peculiarly disgraceful to the republic. All their settlements in 

 the West Indies fell into the hands of the British, without resis- 

 tance ; their ships were captured, and trade ruined ; while the dis- 

 asters of the war excited the animosity of the two factions against 

 each other to the highest degree. The partriots, or aristocratic 

 party, attributed their defeats to the stadtholder, who had openly ex- 

 pressed his predilection for the English at the beginning of the 

 American quarrel. To this conduct the patriots now very artfully 

 reverted. They accused him of having advised the aggression of 

 the English, and of contributing to their success by treachery. The 

 evident inequality of the struggle, the notorious deficiency of all 

 warlike articles in the dock-yards and arsenals of the republic, the 

 frequent and public reclamations made by the prince and by the coun- 

 cil of state on the subject of that deficiency, were forgotten ; and the 

 wilful misconduct of the stadtholder was boldly alleged by the patriots 

 as the sole cause of that miserable succession of defeat and dis- 

 grace which immediately followed the commencement of hostilities. 

 Whilst these were the recriminations of the patriots, the monarchi- 

 cal or Orange party accused their antagonists of having involved the 

 country in a dangerous war, at a time when it was entirely unprepar- 

 ed for it. 



This produced various accusations and vindications between the 

 two parties, until at last, in the month of May, 1786, the stadtholder 

 gave orders to seize on Vreeswick, a post of importance to the city 

 of Utrecht, on account of its situation on the canal between that city 

 and the territories of South Holland ; containing also the sluices by 

 which both these provinces might be overflowed. This brought on 

 a skirmish between the troops of the stadtholder and the burghers of 

 Utrecht, in which the latter proved victorious. Some other unimpor- 

 tant hostilities took place ; but while the military operations were 

 carried on in such a languid manner, a violent tumult happened at 

 Amsterdam, in which several persons were killed. This was fol- 

 lowed by a revolt of most of the regular troops of Holland, who went 

 over to the stadtholder ; but notwithstanding this apparent advan- 

 tage, and some others which afterwards took place, the disputes still 

 contined with extreme violence, insomuch that the princess of Orange 

 herself was seized, and detained prisoner a night by the patriots. 



These turbulent commotions were, however, at last settled by the 

 king of Prussia, who for this purpose marched an army into the 

 territories of the United Provinces, and took possession of the city 

 of Rotterdam, and some other places without resistance. This so 



