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==Stadholder of the Netherlands==

==Stadholder of the Netherlands==

In 1672-78 William led Dutch armies that recovered the lost provinces; he organized campaigns and sieges against the French. A good soldier, but a mediocre general, he wore down the enemy by dogged determination and refusal to accept defeat. William stopped the French advances by flooding the fields, meanwhile building and training a new army. By 1673 he had alliances with Spain and Austria and launched counterattacks on France. Naval victories forces the English to quit the war. The French, exhausted, made peace with the the treaty of Nijmegen in 1678, which William opposed but could not stop. His political fortunes were at a low ebb, with the regents in Amsterdam leading the opposition. Then a totally new opportunity opened, the throne of England.

In 1672-78 William led Dutch armies that recovered the lost provinces; he organized campaigns and sieges against the French. A good soldier, but a mediocre general, he wore down the enemy by dogged determination and refusal to accept defeat. William stopped the French advances by flooding the fields, meanwhile building and training a new army. By 1673 he had alliances with Spain and Austria and launched counterattacks on France. Naval victories forces the English to quit the war. The French, exhausted, made peace with the treaty of Nijmegen in 1678, which William opposed but could not stop. His political fortunes were at a low ebb, with the regents in Amsterdam leading the opposition. Then a totally new opportunity opened, the throne of England.

William realized Louis XIV would continue to be a threat, so he organized a league against France. For help he turned to England, the country of his two uncles Charles II and James, Duke of York, afterward James II.

William realized Louis XIV would continue to be a threat, so he organized a league against France. For help he turned to England, the country of his two uncles Charles II and James, Duke of York, afterward James II.