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This page describes the history of [[New Netherland]] in greater detail.
===Pre-PoD New Netherland (1611-1656)===▼
Henry Hudson was hired by the Dutch West India company to seek a passage to Asia in 1611. Hudson sailed to the northeast to find this passage, but instead found the coasts of what is now New England and New Netherland.▼
After he had reported to the Dutch Republic of this fertile land with inhabitants willing to trade, merchants came settling in, and multiple settlements were built. In 1624, the settlement of New Amsterdam was built on Manhattan Island. New Netherland was also declared as a province of the Dutch Republic in the same year, and was ruled by Director-Generals appointed by the Dutch WIC.▼
===Early History===
[[File:Voyages of Henry Hudson.png|alt=|thumb|305x305px|Voyages of Henry Hudson to North America]]
▲
As the population of New Netherland grew, the people were becoming more disenchanted with the governance of the Dutch WIC over New Netherland. In order to appease the colonists, the Dutch WIC had convened multiple councils composed of colonists to advise the Director-General. However, the advice of these councils were often ignored by the Director-General. This disgruntlement was amplified when a Director-General, Willem Kieft, started a war against the natives over stolen pigs in 1643, against the wishes of the colonial council.▼
===(PoD) The Municipal Charter of 1656===▼
The Dutch WIC responded to the complaints by appointing Peter Stuyvesant as the Director-General. During this time, land ownership regulations were loosened and liberalized, and the province experienced exponential growth. However, multiple complaints were still made against the WIC’s control and governance over the province.▼
▲After he had reported to the Dutch Republic of this fertile land with inhabitants willing to trade, merchants came settling in, and
This had led [[Adriaen van der Donck]] to return to the Dutch Republic once again and seek redress. After years of political and legal wrangling, the Dutch Republic finally came down against the Dutch WIC and decided to grant New Netherland a new municipal charter in 1652, which granted them a popularly elected government to govern internal affairs.▼
▲As the population of New Netherland grew, the people were becoming more disenchanted with the governance of the Dutch WIC over New Netherland.
===Post-Charter Years (1656-1699)===▼
====NNL-Kommando (1659)====▼
During the early years of New Netherland, the English colonists in the northeast have been settling on Dutch claimed territory. Numerous English settlements have been built on the west side of the Fresh River (Connecticut River), which was originally claimed by the Dutch. Having been defenseless, the few Dutch colonists in those areas were forced to abandon their settlements.▼
[[File:Adriaen van der Donck NGA.jpg|alt=|left|thumb|230x230px|Adriaen van der Donck]]
▲The Dutch WIC responded to the complaints by appointing Peter Stuyvesant as the Director-General. During this time, land ownership regulations were loosened and liberalized, and the province experienced exponential growth. However, multiple complaints were still made against the WIC’s control and governance over the province.
▲This had led [[Adriaen van der Donck]] to return to the Dutch Republic once again and seek redress. After years of political and legal wrangling, the Dutch Republic finally came down against the Dutch WIC and decided to grant New Netherland a new municipal charter in 1652,
▲====NNL-Kommando (1659)====
▲During the early years of New Netherland, the English colonists in the northeast have been settling on Dutch claimed territory. Numerous English settlements have been built on the west side of the Fresh River (Connecticut River), which was originally claimed by the Dutch. Having been defenseless, the few Dutch colonists in those areas were forced to abandon their settlements. As a response to these events, Van Der Donck established the ''NNL-Kommando'' system in 1659 (with the approval of the Dutch States-General, and by extension, the Dutch West India company, although reluctantly). The NNL-Kommando system was a military reserve system created for times of border skirmishes and for settlement defense in general. The system also provided the colonists with training in weaponry and defense.
====2nd Anglo-Dutch War (1664)====
In our (original) timeline, this is where England had demanded New Netherland’s surrender, to which the New Netherland government (WIC) obliged because they were too weak to resist. However, in this TL, the popular government of New Netherland refused to surrender. England then attacked the fort at New Amsterdam, and attacked the settlements near the border of New England. However, the local Kommandos were able to quickly respond and repel these attacks. The Dutch West India Company’s army quickly marched towards Nieuwhaven and other settlements along the Fresh River (Connecticut River), as these settlements were on Dutch claimed land. Despite initial English naval success, the war ended in a Dutch victory. The resulting Treaty of Breda (1667) affirmed Dutch ownership of the land west of the Versche River and the land south of New Netherland up to the Zuyd River.▼
▲The Dutch West India Company’s army quickly marched towards Nieuwhaven and other settlements along the Fresh River (Connecticut River), as these settlements were on Dutch claimed land. Despite initial English naval success, the war ended in a Dutch victory. The resulting Treaty of Breda (1667) affirmed Dutch ownership of the land west of the Versche River and the land south of New Netherland up to the Zuyd River.
====Prince Maurice’s War (1750-1755)====
After resurrecting an old Brandenburg testamentary claim to Silesia and forming an alliance with France and other smaller German states, Prussia invaded Austrian Silesia in 1750. France, Bavaria, and Saxony, and Sweden had supported the Franco-Prussian Entente. Britain had supported its ally, Austria. Spain, having a Habsburg monarch, and territories in the low countries, soon became quickly involved in the war. The Dutch Republic was also attacked by the French due to their interests in the region. Prince Maurice's War was the North American theatre of the Great Silesian War. Prince Maurice's War was one of the largest colonial wars in North America, where the colonies of Britain, Spain, and the Dutch Republic were pitted against those of France and their native allies.
In the early years of the war, New France saw significant gains on the Tussenland front, occupying key areas. However, Dutch forces soon overpowered the invading French forces and marched northeast towards the Great Lakes region in 1751, capturing several key forts in the area. Meanwhile, the armies of New France had marched south from Montreal to invade the Iroquoian homeland, which was a protectorate under the Dutch colony of Tussenland. However, the local guerilla militia known as the NNL-Kommando had successfully repelled the invasion. An attempt by the NNL-Kommando to take Montreal had ended terribly, but soon, in late 1752, the city was occupied by combined Dutch and British forces. Quebec and other forts along the St. Lawrence River were occupied in 1753. The war ended with the signing of the Treaty of Vienna on 16 February 1755. The treaty granted the Dutch possession of the Great Lakes and the Mississippi Basin region, while the British were granted possession of Guadeloupe (including the islands of Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Les Saintes, Marie-Galante, and La Désirade). In Europe, Prussia's territory was divided between the allies. East Frisia becomes part of the United Provinces, and East Prussia has been granted to Russia, who then had exchanged it for the Duchy of Courland and Semigallia shortly after, which had been under the Polish Dominion.
====Statute on the Rights of Patroons (1786) & The Military Assimilation Act (1792)====
The 1700s in New Netherland were defined by border conflicts between the patroons, and tension between the patroon militias and the NNL-Kommando trying to contain these conflicts. [[Sibren van Heemskerck]], a staunch anti-aristocrat, was elected by the colonial assembly as director of New Netherland in 1785. The Council of Nine, now mostly occupied by settlers and workers, had hoped that Director van Heemskerck would crack down on the abuses by the patroons in their domain, which was largely ignored by the preceding director. In 1786, van Heemskerck issued the Statute on the Rights of Patroons in 1786, which stripped the patroons of absolute power to rule over their lands. Under the statute, the director of the colony would have greater authority, and all land-owning patroons would now be subject to the director and the colonial council of Nine. The statute was part of van Heemskerck’s attempts to centralize and solidify the colony’s administration and authority.”▼
▲In 1786, van Heemskerck issued the Statute on the Rights of Patroons in 1786, which stripped the patroons of absolute power to rule over their lands. Under the statute, the director of the colony would have greater authority, and all land-owning patroons would now be subject to the director and the colonial council of Nine. The statute was part of van Heemskerck’s attempts to centralize and solidify the colony’s administration and authority.”
In 1792, the succeeding leader of NNL, [[Eleazar Henrÿcksz]], enacted the Military Assimilation Act, which did mostly two things:
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