When William the Silent (Willem de Zwijger), prince of Orange, count of Nassau etc. joined the Dutch Revolt, his eldest son with Anne of Egmont, countess of Buren, Philip William (Filips Willem, born in 1554) studied at the university of Leuven (Louvain). There Philip William eventually was captured an send to Spain to be raised as good Roman Catholic. There he was allowed to continue his studies at the university of Alcala de Henares, later he was send to the castle of Arevelo, though he wasn't in jail, he clearly was a political hostage.
Only in 1595 Philip William, by now a devout Roman Catholic, was allowed to return to the Low Countries in the service of archduke Albrecht, husband of infanta Isabella Clara Eugenia.
He was able to regain parts of his inheritance in the Spanish held Low Countries* and Franche Comté**and very importantly, the principality of Orange, in fact he was the first prince of Orange in a few decades to actually visit Orange.
His inheritance in the Dutch Republic was a different matter, where his Calvinist half brothers Maurice (Maurits, son of Anne of Saxony) and Frederick Henry (Frederik Hendrik, son of Louise de Coligny) had taken up the Calvinist mantle of the commitment of their father William the Silent to the Dutch Revolt, they too had rights to a part of the inheritance and weren't in far away Spain, when William the Silent was murdered. Especially in the Dutch Republic they seized their chance***, the only problem there is Philip William's maternal inheritance (the counties of Buren and Leerdam, baronies*** of IJsselstein and Cranendonck & Eindhoven and the lordship of St Maartensdijk). The other problem area for all Nassau brothers were their possessions in the most war torn area, which changed hands often between the Dutch Republican forces and the forces from the Spanish Netherlands. This included the ancestral base of the Nassaus in the Low countries, the barony of Breda, but also the barony of Cuijk and Grave and the lordships of Steenbergen and Hooge & Lage Zwaluwe, not to mention the Buren (Egmont) barony of Cranendonck & Eindhoven.
Now the dynastic bit Philip William in 1606 married princess Eleonore of Bourbon-Condé (born in 1587), IOTL they didn'y have children, but what if they did. Both did not come large personal families (so excluding half siblings), but likely 2 or 3 at most 4 children seems possible, IMHO most likely 3. Perhaps one son and two daughters, a son William Henry, Anne Catherine and perhaps Charlotte Maria and maybe a fourth son can be named Philip Albrecht.
What will the repercussions be of a surviving senior Catholic branch of Orange Nassau be? Since they are the senior claimants they end up with prince of Orange, but in compensation prince of Orange-Nassau is likely to be created sooner for the Calvinist branch as a compensation, recognized like the new electorate for Palatinate Wittelsbachs at the treaties of Westphalia.
Moreover with the senior Catholic branch gaining the principality of Orange and the possessions in the Spanish Netherlands and Franche Comté, they probably will need to accept the Calvinist branch getting what they already de facto control in the Dutch Republic.
Any compromise will be in the Generality Lands perhaps the Catholic branch is allowed the barony of Cranendonck & Eindhoven, since that comes from the Buren-Egmont inheritance.
The other possessions there, especially the barony of Breda is likely to become a condomnium. Also given German house laws both lines will need to accept each other as heirs. Still clauses can be made, if later like IOTL Nassau-Siegen also becomes Roman Catholic, they are natural Catholic heirs for possesions of this Catholic princes of Orange from the house of Nassau, whereas for the Calvinist princes of Orange-Nassau Calvinist heirs are preferred over their Catholic cousins.
Both only agree to this in order to keep possessions in Nassau hands.
As for TTL Catholic princes of Orange and counts of Nassau, what prospects will they have? Will they remain in Spanish service, maybe becoming duke of Diest as an reward, at one point join the Imperial Habsburgs side or perhaps become a Prince Etrangere at the French Court? Or not impossible alternating between these three?
So I'm interested what you out there think about this, especially since the tragic Catholic Philip William is too much forgotten in Dutch histiography (at most a footnote).
(*= count of Vianden, burgrave of Antwerpen (not margrave of Antwerpen), baron of Diest, Herstal and Warneton, lord of St Vith, Bütgenbach and Daasburg)
(**= baron of Arlay and Nozeroy, lord of Besançon)
(***= the Estates of Zeeland granted the marquissates of Veere & Vlissingen, other Nassau possessions here were, the lordships of Polanen, Niervaart & Klundert and Geertruidenberg)
(****= actually high lordships or perhaps more accurate lordships with higher rights)
Only in 1595 Philip William, by now a devout Roman Catholic, was allowed to return to the Low Countries in the service of archduke Albrecht, husband of infanta Isabella Clara Eugenia.
He was able to regain parts of his inheritance in the Spanish held Low Countries* and Franche Comté**and very importantly, the principality of Orange, in fact he was the first prince of Orange in a few decades to actually visit Orange.
His inheritance in the Dutch Republic was a different matter, where his Calvinist half brothers Maurice (Maurits, son of Anne of Saxony) and Frederick Henry (Frederik Hendrik, son of Louise de Coligny) had taken up the Calvinist mantle of the commitment of their father William the Silent to the Dutch Revolt, they too had rights to a part of the inheritance and weren't in far away Spain, when William the Silent was murdered. Especially in the Dutch Republic they seized their chance***, the only problem there is Philip William's maternal inheritance (the counties of Buren and Leerdam, baronies*** of IJsselstein and Cranendonck & Eindhoven and the lordship of St Maartensdijk). The other problem area for all Nassau brothers were their possessions in the most war torn area, which changed hands often between the Dutch Republican forces and the forces from the Spanish Netherlands. This included the ancestral base of the Nassaus in the Low countries, the barony of Breda, but also the barony of Cuijk and Grave and the lordships of Steenbergen and Hooge & Lage Zwaluwe, not to mention the Buren (Egmont) barony of Cranendonck & Eindhoven.
Now the dynastic bit Philip William in 1606 married princess Eleonore of Bourbon-Condé (born in 1587), IOTL they didn'y have children, but what if they did. Both did not come large personal families (so excluding half siblings), but likely 2 or 3 at most 4 children seems possible, IMHO most likely 3. Perhaps one son and two daughters, a son William Henry, Anne Catherine and perhaps Charlotte Maria and maybe a fourth son can be named Philip Albrecht.
What will the repercussions be of a surviving senior Catholic branch of Orange Nassau be? Since they are the senior claimants they end up with prince of Orange, but in compensation prince of Orange-Nassau is likely to be created sooner for the Calvinist branch as a compensation, recognized like the new electorate for Palatinate Wittelsbachs at the treaties of Westphalia.
Moreover with the senior Catholic branch gaining the principality of Orange and the possessions in the Spanish Netherlands and Franche Comté, they probably will need to accept the Calvinist branch getting what they already de facto control in the Dutch Republic.
Any compromise will be in the Generality Lands perhaps the Catholic branch is allowed the barony of Cranendonck & Eindhoven, since that comes from the Buren-Egmont inheritance.
The other possessions there, especially the barony of Breda is likely to become a condomnium. Also given German house laws both lines will need to accept each other as heirs. Still clauses can be made, if later like IOTL Nassau-Siegen also becomes Roman Catholic, they are natural Catholic heirs for possesions of this Catholic princes of Orange from the house of Nassau, whereas for the Calvinist princes of Orange-Nassau Calvinist heirs are preferred over their Catholic cousins.
Both only agree to this in order to keep possessions in Nassau hands.
As for TTL Catholic princes of Orange and counts of Nassau, what prospects will they have? Will they remain in Spanish service, maybe becoming duke of Diest as an reward, at one point join the Imperial Habsburgs side or perhaps become a Prince Etrangere at the French Court? Or not impossible alternating between these three?
So I'm interested what you out there think about this, especially since the tragic Catholic Philip William is too much forgotten in Dutch histiography (at most a footnote).
(*= count of Vianden, burgrave of Antwerpen (not margrave of Antwerpen), baron of Diest, Herstal and Warneton, lord of St Vith, Bütgenbach and Daasburg)
(**= baron of Arlay and Nozeroy, lord of Besançon)
(***= the Estates of Zeeland granted the marquissates of Veere & Vlissingen, other Nassau possessions here were, the lordships of Polanen, Niervaart & Klundert and Geertruidenberg)
(****= actually high lordships or perhaps more accurate lordships with higher rights)
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