United Kingdom of the Netherlands

Origins

The Congress of Vienna joined the former Dutch Republic and the Austrian Netherlands into one kingdom as a barrier against France. William I, sovereign prince of the Sovereign Principality of the United Netherlands, proclaimed himself king in March 1815, and Dutch and allied troops fought at Waterloo that June. He also became grand duke of Luxembourg.

Rule and society

William I ruled energetically, with the capital alternating between Brussels and The Hague. He founded universities at Ghent and Liège, the Société Générale bank and supported industry such as Cockerill's ironworks. But the south, more populous and largely Catholic and French-speaking among its elites, resented Dutch-dominated government, language policy and taxes.

Decline and legacy

After a riot at a Brussels opera performance in August 1830, the Belgian Revolution drove out Dutch troops and created the Kingdom of Belgium. William refused to accept this until the Treaty of London in 1839, which left the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the north.