Apples and Oranges Mk. III: A Greater Dutch Revolt

-The Union of Antwerp, which would unify the revolting provinces under a single States-General assembly and a Council of State (similar to what was already in place), and adhere to Orange's proposed “Religious Peace” where Dutch Reformed and Catholic churches would tolerate each other (although Mennonites, Lutherans, Anabaptists, etc. were not included). Individual states within the Union would be allowed to reshape their own governments “as they see fit”.

No union of Utrecht? Too bad, I got my college diploma at the hall were the union of Utrecht was signed.

Also Radical Hollanders, are they specific to Holland or are they radicals from all over the Netherlands (including for example Brabant) and I have the exact same question about the Conservative Brabantines?
 
No union of Utrecht? Too bad, I got my college diploma at the hall were the union of Utrecht was signed.

Also Radical Hollanders, are they specific to Holland or are they radicals from all over the Netherlands (including for example Brabant) and I have the exact same question about the Conservative Brabantines?
The Radicals and Conservatives are called 'Hollanders' and 'Brabantines' because that's where their major bases of support are, although not necessarily all political 'Hollanders' or 'Brabantines' are from Holland or Brabant, respectively. 'Hollanders' tend to find more support north of the Maas, in Holland, Friesland, Overijssel, etc., while 'Brabantines' are more popular in Brabant, Flanders, and bits of Gelderland.

Would putting quotes around "Hollander" and "Brabantine" when talking about them in the political sense, and not the geographic, help clarify things?
 
Would putting quotes around "Hollander" and "Brabantine" when talking about them in the political sense, and not the geographic, help clarify things?
No. Ok, it would, but it would make your text less readable. Now you explained it is perfectly clear and you wouldn't need quotations, but that is of course a completely subjective point of view.
 
TL d.Γ1571P.L WORLD HISTORICAL ATLAS: SIXTEETNTH CENTURY: PROFILE: BRITTANY (1587-1610)

brittany1600.png


History:
Founded in 1587 in the midst of the French Wars of Religion by Duke Philippe Emmanuel, Brittany acted as a Spanish client state for most of its existence. Following on his successes in England, King Philip II of Spain pushed for strong support of Philippe Emmanuel's claim to the old Duchy in the northwest to counter the threat King Henri IV of the House of Bourbon's protestant France posed to continued Spanish efforts on both sides of the Narrow Seas, thus the re-establishment of an independent Brittany in the late 16th century.

The unfortunate early death of Henri III at the hands of Guisards (and the death of heir presumptive Duke of Anjou to 'fever' in 1583) had propelled Henri of Navarre to the throne of France as King Henri IV in 1586, but his Protestant beliefs alarmed not only native French Catholics, but also France's southern neighbor Spain. The Eighth French War of Religion, as it would be known, would pit Henri IV, Huguenots, and Catholic moderates against the House of Guise-led Catholic League and Spain in a struggle for control of French religious policy and the throne.

Spain, wary of investing all of its support solely in the Catholic League's forces in the northeast, began giving significant support to Philippe Emmanuel, the Duke of Mercoeur, in his attempt to gain the Duchy of Brittany's independence. As the Catholic League itself began to crumble under the combined might of Huguenots from the south and Anglo-Dutch raiders from the Narrow Seas, Spanish forces were sent to assist Philippe Emmanuel directly. These Spanish troops would be a large factor in the Huguenot defeat at Ancenis in 1590.

Henri IV was formally forced to concede Breton independence in 1595 after the famous “two-axis drive” of Spain from Brittany, the Spanish Netherlands, Northern Italy, and Iberia itself, ceding Roussillon to Spain along with recognizing Breton's de facto independence as de jure in return for peace, although French diplomats managed to prevent King Henri from being force-converted by Spain.

Peace between Brittany and France did not last long. The French Wars of Reclamation began almost immediately after Philip II of Spain's death in 1598 with a resumed offensive in the south, regaining Roussillon via treaty, before refocusing on the northern frontiers and the threats posed by Brittany and the Spanish Netherlands.

In Brittany, with French armies led by the celebrated François de la Noue, Duke Philippe Emmanuel suffered a series a series of embarrassing defeats thanks in no small part to the reduced Spanish presence in the area, which had been mandated by King Philip III of Spain as part of an overall scheme of budget cuts in Madrid. Philippe Emmanuel himself was captured by de la Noue at Lamballe Castle, east of Saint-Brieuc, and the young Breton heir presumptive, Françoise de Lorraine, fled to Spain with most of the court, leaving Brittany itself temporarily without a Duke.

The British Isles got involved in French politics at this point, as Queen Isabella of England herself held a very strong claim to the Duchy of Brittany as heir general of the deceased King Henri II of France. From 1604 to 1610, Brittany was brought under English protection and increased numbers of Spanish and British soldiery were shipped to the region to fend off French attacks. With the Julich Succession Crisis in 1609, however, England, seeking to avoid being mired in Continental affairs and suffering from dissent at home, sued for peace with France, returning Brittany to Bourbon control.

For more detailed information on this period and/or locale, consult with the Help Desk at the front of the Institute's library or perform your own custom search of the WHA database on any open terminal.
 
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Attached is relevant debriefing excerpts following B.'s foray into Elizabethan England. You know B.'s always tried to play it neutral, D., but B's a Brit through and through, and this combined with the shift trauma has understandably sent him a little off-kilter. Remember, when he was sent we still weren't certain of the extent of the timeline changes, and B. went back to see if he could determine anything while we scoured the native history books. Anybody would've been traumatized. Take it easy on him-- C.


C: [...]Calm Down! C-calm down, man! Roaring about Spaniards won't help anything. [sighs] Look, let's just start all over again. You were at Plymouth...?

B: [deep breath] That's right. Plymouth, June 5th, 1583 anno domine according to the local Julian calendar. Julian calendar! The Gregorian calendar was invented by a Spanish puppet, why the hell do we use it anyways?! I'd rather-- [slamming noise]

C: SIT DOWN. [pause] Good. Plymouth, June 5th. And?

B: Plymouth docks. The Armada had been spotted, and the ships had been sent off. I was in civilian garb, and I cheered on along with the rest of the crowd as our ships cast away from the docks--

C: Our ships?

B: You're a froggie, you wouldn't understand. This is possibly the biggest moment in English history, and now I was there to see it firsthand. Except, I realized, it wasn't our biggest moment in English history. [slamming noise, sigh] Fucking Drake!

C: Drake? You mean Francis Drake? What does he have to do with it?

B: He was supposed to be with the fleet, our fleet at least-- the Armada was five years' early in this timeline. But here, he was apparently off with- oh, damn it all! Damn all the Portuguese, damn them all!

C: [gently] B., where was he? Where was Francis Drake during this Armada?

B: Off in the Azores, damn him! Later on I found out he got wind of the invasion, but he showed up two days too late to do us any good. The fleet had been wiped clean off by then! This invasion was different. Fucking hidalgos--

C: B., I'll give you martini after this, but you've got to calm down. How was this invasion different?

[pause]

B: Couple of things... since it was five years' early, that meant that Sir John Hawkins' reforms weren't done yet, and much of the English navy this time around was in a wretched state compared to what was supposed to happen. Recalde-- probably the best commander the Spaniards had available-- led the Armada this time, on the recommendation of the Marquis of Santa Cruz himself. The Duke of Medina-Sidonia was nowhere to be found this time around, so none of his dithering. Also from what I can tell, the Spanish attempted to use Brittany as a springboard for the invasion, not Flanders. Less Dutchies this way, but from what I gathered the Armada couldn't rely solely on the Army of Flanders for manpower on the ground.

C: Mmh. Anything else?

B: [sigh] ...and Drake. No Drake to save us.

[pause]

C: I see. So what happened after the, ah...?

B: Defeat. Loss. Oh, the remnants of the Navy certainly harried what Spanish ships they could as the Armada went on to Margate, but it wasn't nearly enough. When the tercios landed, set foot on English soil, we were doomed. The trained bands-- militias, whatever-- weren't expecting to actually stand against Spanish pike and shot! They folded up like so much origami paper. London was captured in a matter of weeks. Weeks! Gloriana, ol' Queen Elizabeth herself, was captured as the court fled to Oxford. I can't believe they-- oh, damn it all! Damn Spaniards! Damn Drake! I hope that whenever they catch whoever changed the timeline, the perp gets shot.

C: We'll go by the book, B., you know that. No capital punishment, no de--


B: TO HELL WITH THAT! Those Spanish bastards executed Elizabeth! I saw it, damn you! I jumped ahead, went to London, saw it myself! I was there! Those bastards offed Queen Elizabeth! Winter of '83, look it up in any of those new texts your lads managed to get! Whoever changed the timeline caused Queen Elizabeth's death. That's regicide! Murder! Kill him! Kill the bastard!

C: No blood, B.! We will not threaten our integrity and reputation with needless bloodshed. Need I remind you, we are first and foremost a research institute, with our policing duties only being a recent development. I don't how you and M. worked together, but I will not sanction any murder. We'll go by the book.

[pause, evident cut in the audio files]

C: [...]'s just that simple? New government, all that?

B: I think they kept Parliament, but it was all bollocks. It was less of a governing body than our own Rump Parliament during Cromwell's time.

C: So they installed an Inquisition, although it sounds like no one used it, cut out Parliament, and the throne was given to... a Hapsburg?

B: Yes, Isabella, the King of Spain's daughter. The Pope warned off King Philip from giving himself the throne of England, so he put in Isabella in his stead.

C: “Queen Isabel”, then? Mmh, interesting. We'll look into that later, but this is enough for now. Get some rest, B.

B: I doubt I'll be getting sound sleep anytime soon. Oh, damn that Drake!
 
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