I’m searching for a POD in which The Netherlands keep the Cape Colony, but also in which the United Kingdom of the Netherlands stays alive. Do you have some ideas?

Or could I simply say that with the Dutch keeping the Cape Colony in say 1814, the Belgian Revolution would never occure because of the butterflies?

Thoughts and ideas?
 
I’m searching for a POD in which The Netherlands keep the Cape Colony, but also in which the United Kingdom of the Netherlands stays alive. Do you have some ideas?

Or could I simply say that with the Dutch keeping the Cape Colony in say 1814, the Belgian Revolution would never occure because of the butterflies?

Thoughts and ideas?
The Dutch definitively lost the Cape colony in 1807, effectively when Louis Napoleon became king of Holland. I think your POD should be around that time. For example instead of appointing his brother king, Napoleon annexes all of the Netherlands, after which some of the Batavian leadership flees to England and joins with future king William I opposing Napoleon together with the English. The Dutch rule their colonies as a government in exile (although in reality they are merely a British puppet.

Or maybe Napoleon never replaces the Batavian republic, which after a while realise they are not equal partners from France, but merely a French puppet. After secret negotiations they join Britain in opposition to Napoleon.

In either situation afterwards the Netherlands being on good terms with Britain, are rewarded with the Southern Netherlands, just like happened OTL.

I would say something along those lines.

Edit:
BTW Several earlier POD would also work to keep the Cape colony, obviously. It is just that a United Kingdom of the Netherlands becomes harder.
 
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The Dutch definitively lost the Cape colony in 1807, effectively when Louis Napoleon became king of Holland. I think your POD should be around that time. For example instead of appointing his brother king, Napoleon annexes all of the Netherlands, after which some of the Batavian leadership flees to England and joins with future king William I opposing Napoleon together with the English. The Dutch rule their colonies as a government in exile (although in reality they are merely a British puppet.

Or maybe Napoleon never replaces the Batavian republic, which after a while realise they are not equal partners from France, but merely a French puppet. After secret negotiations they join Britain in opposition to Napoleon.

In either situation afterwards the Netherlands being on good terms with Britain, are rewarded with the Southern Netherlands, just like happened OTL.

I would say something along those lines.

Edit:
BTW Several earlier POD would also work to keep the Cape colony, obviously. It is just that a United Kingdom of the Netherlands becomes harder.
Great! But would this butterfly away the Belgian Revolution?
 
Great! But would this butterfly away the Belgian Revolution?
Yes, no, maybe. The Belgian revolution happened because of mismanagement by king Willem I and especialy by his son future king Willem II. If my proposed POD would cause a different kind of goverment, with more people who were involved in the Batavian Republic in charge, you could see a different government style and reaction to any Belgian dissatisfaction and butterfly away the Belgian revolution, or make sure the revolt is nipped in the bud. Does this automatically follow from the POD's? No, but it could be a result from the POD's.
 
Yes, no, maybe. The Belgian revolution happened because of mismanagement by king Willem I and especialy by his son future king Willem II. If my proposed POD would cause a different kind of goverment, with more people who were involved in the Batavian Republic in charge, you could see a different government style and reaction to any Belgian dissatisfaction and butterfly away the Belgian revolution, or make sure the revolt is nipped in the bud. Does this automatically follow from the POD's? No, but it could be a result from the POD's.
Great
 
Yes, no, maybe. The Belgian revolution happened because of mismanagement by king Willem I and especialy by his son future king Willem II. If my proposed POD would cause a different kind of goverment, with more people who were involved in the Batavian Republic in charge, you could see a different government style and reaction to any Belgian dissatisfaction and butterfly away the Belgian revolution, or make sure the revolt is nipped in the bud. Does this automatically follow from the POD's? No, but it could be a result from the POD's.
Willem I is a mixed bag. He was a visionary and a workaholic, but also couldn't delegate and got stuck in micromanagement. Him ruling as a wannabe absolutist monarch didn't help, OTOH IMHO it would be unrealistic to expect a constitution like the Netherlands got in 1848. Willem II is a different matter, his actions while he, as the Prince of Orange, resided in the South could almost be seen as bordering treachery.

One grievance was the Estates General (Parliament), the more populous South felt and was under-represented, OTOH the North didn't want to be dominated by the South either and feared that they would. An obvious way to remedy this is to make the Second Chamber (Commons) proportional (though given the era based on census suffrage), while the First Chamber (Senate) gives the same number of representatives to each province. And while being under-represented, the Debt was shared equally and especially the North had been ruined by the Revolutionary and Napoleonic wars, British produce flooding our markets post 1815, didn't help either. The South didn't have such debts, and through industrialization became even more prosperous in the mostly French/Walloon speaking parts.

Religious policy and language policies is, what ultimately drove dissatisfied Southern politicians together. It doesn't mean they all valued these matters in the same way, but it did create a huge opposition, based on the enemy of my enemy. Especially Willem I introducing Dutch in the Walloon provinces as an official language of administration was a bit too much . Even the Flemish provinces, might have wanted a period of being bilingual, since many of the Flemish elites were just that.
Another mistake of Willem I is that he, like what he did with Protestant churches, wanted to increase State influence (with its' at least perceived Protestant dominance) on the Catholic Church in the entire kingdom, through a Concordat. While the Catholics, who follow Rome and the Pope in Religious matters, saw it as an attack on the Freedom of Religion.
 
Him ruling as a wannabe absolutist monarch didn't help, OTOH IMHO it would be unrealistic to expect a constitution like the Netherlands got in 1848. W
With a POD in 1815, or even 1813 you are absolutely right. But with such a late POD there is next to no chance of the Netherlands keeping the Cape Colony. You need a POD at the latest around 1806-1807 (somewhat later is also possible, but you need to radicaly change the Napoleonic wars). With a POD so early I agree the chances of a united kingdom of the Netherlands aren't big, especialy since you need some significant changes to Dutch internal and political history to accomplish a Dutch Cape colony. But if a United Kingdom arises the POD is early enough that you can make some changes to it.

If for some reason the leaders (or at least some of the main leaders) of the Batavian Republic actualy join Britain in the war against Napoleon, Britain might be relatively positive to them and their ideas. So if at a later point in time Britain decides to set up Willem I as king of the Netherlands, those leaders and their ideas might become influential in the new kingdom. Thus possibly limiting the power of Willem I. Not saying this is likely..... I do believe this is a long shot. But it is a possibility.
 
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