Texts concerning the Revolt of the Netherlands

8 Second letter of the prince of Orange to the duchess of Parma, 4 September 1566 ¹

Madame, since my last letter of to-day I have received the letters it has pleased Your Highness to write to me, and I cannot fail to thank you very humbly for approving all I have done here so far. Regarding your order not to permit in any way those of the new religion to preach within the town, and to concede to them nothing more than the declaration given to the confederate seigniors and nobles implies, Your Highness will have seen from my last letter why I decided to come to an agreement with them and, on conditions specified in the document, to allow them to hold their sermons within the town. But, Madame, in the resolution given to the nobles it is said that the sermons should not be held in places where they were not held before. And before this resolution was taken, those of the new religion did hold sermons here, not only within the town, but also inside the churches. I assure Your Highness that, when they expounded this to me it was very difficult for me to make them vacate all churches and monasteries but, contrary to their wishes, I have only given them permission to preach in the places mentioned in the agreement. I thought it right to do this, to avoid the grave difficulties and dangers which might otherwise arise. And about what Your Highness has written to me, that the other towns where the new religion is being preached will want to have the same licence, one town differs from another. Nowhere are there so many adherents of the new religion as well as so many strangers of all sorts and conditions as here and there is no other town which vagabonds and idlers are so eager to pillage. In the other towns it will therefore be easier to restrict oneself to the declaration given to the confederates. As far as my own provinces² are concerned, I had missives sent everywhere ordering the people to observe this resolution. I sent

1 See Document 7, note 1.

2 The prince was stadholder of Holland, Zeeland and Utrecht.

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them a copy of it as well as of the edicts against the church-robbers, and I guarantee that, as I was charged by Your Highness, they will see that it is observed. I much regret that for the reasons and considerations mentioned in my preceding letter and to avoid greater evils and difficulties, it has been necessary to permit this here, with the restrictions specified in the agreement. I was led to do this by my great desire to conform to the will of His Majesty and Your Highness. I cannot fail to tell you that the Anabaptists are also beginning to preach not only outside this town, but in several places in the country-side. May it please Your Highness to forbid them by edict before they increase in number...