William The Silent
William the Silent (24 April 153310 July 1584), also known as William the Taciturn (translated from nl, Willem de Zwijger), or, more commonly in the Netherlands, William of Orange ( nl, Willem van Oranje), was the main leader of the Dutch Revolt against the Spanish Habsburgs that set off the Eighty Years' War (1568–1648) and resulted in the formal independence of the United Provinces in 1648. Born into the House of Nassau, he became Prince of Orange in 1544 and is thereby the founder of the Orange-Nassau branch and the ancestor of the monarchy of the Netherlands. In the Netherlands, he is also known as Father of the Fatherland (''Pater Patriae'') ( nl, Vader des Vaderlands). A wealthy nobleman, William originally served the Habsburgs as a member of the court of Margaret of Parma, governor of the Spanish Netherlands. Unhappy with the centralisation of political power away from the local estates and with the Spanish persecution of Dutch Protestants, William joined the D ...
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Portrait Of William The Silent
''Portrait of William the Silent'' refers to a portrait painting on panel by the Flemish painter Adriaen Thomasz. Key depicting William the Silent, the leader of the Dutch revolt at about 46 years of age.Portrait of William I, Prince of Orange, Adriaen Thomasz. Key, c. 1579
at the Rijksmuseum

Versions

The work survives in three versions, which are now in the Mauritshuis (The Hague), the Rijksmuseum (Amsterdam) and the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza (Madrid). Only the latter version is dated and was painted in 1579. All three are considered autograph and to go back to a now lost original.
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