In this thesis I have researched how different representations of stadtholder William V of Orange were created, developed and used by British newspapers in the context of the British political...Show moreIn this thesis I have researched how different representations of stadtholder William V of Orange were created, developed and used by British newspapers in the context of the British political-ideological debate between 1780 and 1806. My research revealed that there existed for most of the period distinct and opposite images of William V in Great Britain. I have linked these images to the opposing ideologies of the conservatives and opposition or radicals. All exploited the ambiguity of the personality and position of the prince in their debate with each other, by using a positive or negative image of the prince. The Dutch Patriot Revolution, the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War, the French Revolution, the war of the First Alliance, the fall of the Republic and consequent flight of the prince to Great-Britain and the Anglo-Russian invasion of Holland form the background to which newspapers wrote about William V. My research sheds light on several historiographical debates, for example the periodisation of the emergence and decline of British radicalism, the rhetorical tactics that were used by the different sides, what caused debate on the stadholder, the emergence and effects of loyalism, as well as giving a systematic and thorough overview of the way the British thought about William V for the first time.Show less
