Talk:Vlieter incident

Difference of Prince of Orange and Hereditary Prince

As original editor of this article I was shocked by a few edits that I have now repaired. Someone who apparently has no comprehension of the subtleties of constitutional relationships in the Dutch Republic had changed "Hereditary Prince" twice, changing the meaning of the text in a historically incorrect manner. I have added a footnote to the second edit in hopes of avoiding further mistaken edits. To expand on this: the future king William I used the courtesy title "hereditary prince" (Dutch: Erfprins) as was quite common in his situation (he was not the only heir-in-waiting of a Prince of the Holy Roman Empire, after all), as eldest son and heir of a Prince (in this case the Prince of Orange, his father William V). (On the Dutch and German , and a number of other, wikipedias, there are articles on the concept of Erfprins or Erbprinz; maybe someone should try his hand at translating one to English?). He obviously could not use the title Prince of Orange himself as his father at the time was still alive and kicking. William V held at the same time the office of Stadtholder of the Dutch Republic (an office that had become hereditary when his father William IV was elevated in 1747; hence the title Hereditary Stadtholder, though the "hereditary" was often omitted), but that had nothing to do with him being Prince of Orange (which by this time was only a name, as the Principality had been given to France at the Peace of Utrecht in 1713). As the Hereditary Prince had been quite active as commander in the field of the States Army (his father was nominally Captain-General of the States Army, but wisely refrained from actually commanding troops) during the Flanders Campaign, he appears often under that title in the historiography of that campaign (which often gives ground to similar misunderstandings in that context). Purely through historical accident he appears to be the only future Prince of Orange in history that has used the courtesy title Hereditary Prince, or is historically known under that moniker. Only the son of stadtholder Frederick Henry, William II, had been in a position to be called a "Hereditary Prince" (i.e. come of age while his father the Prince of Orange was still alive), but apparently the title was never used for him. All other Princes of Orange came of age after their fathers were already dead, so there was no reason to call them "hereditary prince." Finally, when this particular Hereditary Prince became king of the Netherlands in 1815, he gave the title "Prince of Orange" as a courtesy title to his eldest son (he had become "Prince of Orange" himself at the death of William V in 1806, but had no longer use for the title). So from that time on the Dutch crown prince (and now princess) has used this courtesy title, but this is a development that postdates the era of the Vlieter Incident.--Ereunetes (talk) 00:15, 20 December 2017 (UTC)