De Witt Brothers Murdered
August 20, 1672
A mob in The Hague lynched the Dutch grand pensionary Johan de Witt and his brother Cornelis, blaming them for the military catastrophe of the French invasion. Their bodies were hung upside down and partially eaten. William of Orange quietly inherited political power; the regent party never fully recovered, and Dutch republicanism took on a darker, more cautious character.
In context
Also in 1672 (3 other events on record)
- Louis XIV Begins Versailles Expansion · Europe · Culture
- Franco-Dutch War Begins · Europe · War
- Cassini Measures Mars Parallax · Europe · Science
Before and after in Europe
Before and after in Politics
Era
Enlightenment (1651–1800), one of 696 events from that era on Saeculum.
Sources