ABSTRACT
Events moved rapidly. Alva set up a tribunal, hunting down rebels. William of Orange was forced to flee into exile, short of men and finances. Alva’s troops took several towns. Meanwhile the rebels established a small enclave of territory under their control, following the taking of two sea ports. At a historic meeting of the majority of the nobility in Dordrecht, William was recognised as leader of the Revolt. He appointed Stadhouder of Holland and Zeeland. At the same meeting the States-General were convened and issued an embryonic constitution, and funds were agreed for William to continue the fight. An embryonic government was established. The Revolt was no longer a series of rebellions against Spanish repression but a struggle of a nascent nation state. The Duke of Parma became governor-general and engaged in a successful reconquest of the southern provinces. By careful diplomacy, he won round the southern nobility and states. By 1579 the insurgents split: the southern provinces under the Union of Arras were reconciled to Spanish rule; the northern 7 provinces under the Union of Utrecht determined to continue the struggle. Parma advanced, poised to retake the north. In 1584, William of Orange, tireless in keeping the various insurgent factions together, was assassinated. The Revolt was at its nadir.
