ABSTRACT
William III died on March 8th 1702. Without bloodshed or revolution, but also without hesitation, the five provinces of which he had been first magistrate reverted to the stadtholderless regime that existed before his appointment. The States of Holland passed a resolution calling for unity and for the fulfilment of all treaty obligations, but breathed not a word of the succession, although there was a candidate in the person of John William Friso, the young stadtholder of Friesland. Generally speaking, the power and influence of a grand pensionary stood in inverse ratio to those of the stadtholder. Heinsius became so familiar with the international system of the king-stadtholder, that it is often difficult to be certain whether a particular line of action originated with the stadtholder or with the pensionary. There exists a letter from Heinsius to William III, dated June 6th 1698, in which he explained with much emphasis the need for a collective guarantee among European rulers.
