Tussenland Upheavals
The Tussenland Upheavals (1859-1861) was a series of revolts in Tussenland that led to radical change within Dutch Tussenlandic government and society. This period saw the transformation of Tussenland from being colony operated by the Royal Tussenland Company into a loose confederation of several states known as the Federation of Tussenland.
Context
During the rebellions in 1859-1861, the multiple uprisings were originally viewed by the Kingdom of the Netherlands as separate and isolated conflicts. It was not until mid-1860 that the Dutch States-General viewed the conflict as a major revolution in their colony, when the French-speaking Meerenland rebels allied themselves with the revolutionaries in the Dutch protectorate of Irokesenlandt. On March 16, 1860, the Meerenland and Irokesenlandt signed the Instrument of Confederation, the founding of the Federation of Tussenland.
Unrest in Meerenland
Corruption under Casimir van Boetsselaer, Director of Meerenland
The colony of Meerenland already had calls for a more responsible government as early as the 1830s. However, severe protests began when Casimir van Boetsselaer was appointed Director of Meerenland in 1854. Van Boetsselaer was described as "an out-of-touch and aloof statesman." He was one of the few Directors in Meerenland history, unable to speak a word of French. However, his refusal to learn the language made him infamous in Meerenland. In 1855, he penned Meerenland's controversial Dutch Language Act (Amerikaens: Ackt op de tallen v'n de Mîrenlandt), which designated Hollandic Dutch the only official language of government and recognized the Amerikaens variant of Dutch. Although the act mentioned nothing prohibiting the French language nor limiting its usage outside government, this act had upset the French-speaking elites and commonfolk alike.
Corruption in Meerenland peaked during his rule. Activists petitioned the Dutch States-General to relieve Van Boetsselaer from his post in 1856 but this had fallen under deaf ears. In 1858, the weekly political publication Courrier de Mirélande publicized a letter penned by Van Boetsselaer to his cousin in South Holland that acknowledged his siphoning of tax revenue. Van Boetsselaer called the letters as poltiical smear tactic carried out by insurgents.
Initial Violence, and the Detroit Incident
When Boetsselaer announced his refusal to resign from his post, a mob of French Meerenlanders stormed the government building in Detroit. Already aware of the mob presence, Van Boetsselaer had already fled south prior to the event. Dutch troops from Fort Sevres fired upon the mob killing several Frenchmen. The Dutch troops had underestimated the crowd and were forced to retreat and come back the next day with more reinforcements. The government house was eventually cleared and Van Boetsselaer came back and denounced the act of violence on both the Meerenlanders and the Dutch troops alike. Van Boetsselaer refused to give reparations to the families of the killed Meerenlanders and denounced them as traitors to the Dutch crown. This event had fueled more negative sentiments against the Kingdom of the Netherlands and Van Boetsselaer's government.
The Suyderlings
The Suyderlings were a group of wealthy ex-plantation owners who fled from South Tussenland