William IV, Prince of Orange
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William IV, Prince of Orange (September 1, 1711 – October 22, 1751) was the first hereditary stadtholder of the Netherlands.
William was born in Leeuwarden, The Netherlands, the son of Johan Willem Friso, Prince of Orange, head of the Frisian branch of the House of Orange-Nassau, and of his wife Marie Luise of Hesse-Cassel. He was born six weeks after the death of his father.
William succeeded his father as Stadtholder of Friesland and also, under the regency of his mother until 1731, as Stadtholder of Groningen. In 1722 he was elected Stadtholder of Guelders.
In 1733 William was named a knight of the Order of the Garter. On March 25, 1734 he married Princess Anne, daughter of King George II of Great Britain and Caroline of Ansbach. William and Anne had five children:
- a stillborn daughter (born December 19, 1736)
- a stillborn daughter (born December 22, 1739)
- Princess Wilhelmine Carolina of Orange-Nassau (February 28, 1743 - May 6, 1787), married Karl Christian, Fürst von Nassau-Weilburg
- Princess Anna of Orange-Nassau (November 15, 1746 - December 29, 1746)
- William V, Prince of Orange (1748-1806)
In 1739 William inherited the estates formerly owned by the Nassau-Dillenburg branch of his family, and in 1743 he inherited those formerly owned by the Nassau-Siegen branch of his family.
In April 1747 the French army entered Flanders. In an effort to quell internal strife amongst the various factions, the States-General of the Netherlands appointed William to the hereditary position of General Stadtholder of all seven of the United Provinces. William and his family moved from Leeuwarden to The Hague.
Although he had little experience in state affairs, William was at first popular with the people. He stopped the practice of indirect taxation by which independent contractors managed to make large sums for themselves. Nevertheless, he was also a Director-General of the Dutch East India Company, and his alliance with the business class deepened while the disparity between rich and poor grew.
William served as General Stadtholder of all the Netherlands until his death in 1751 at The Hague.
| Preceded by: Johan Willem Friso of Orange |
Stadtholder of Friesland and Groningen 1711–1751 |
Succeeded by: William V of Orange |
| Preceded by: William III of Orange |
Stadtholder of Guelders 1722–1751 |
Succeeded by: William V of Orange |
| Preceded by: William III of Orange |
Stadtholder of Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, and Overijssel 1747–1751 |
Succeeded by: William V of Orange |
| Preceded by: Johan Willem Friso of Orange |
Baron of Breda 1711–1751 |
Succeeded by: William V of Orange |
| Stadtholders of Guelders |
|---|
| Willem van Egmond |
Willem van Egmond jr. | Filips van Croy | Willem van Egmond jr. | Adolf III of Nassau-Wiesbaden-Idstein | Jan V of Nassau-Vianden-Diez | Philip of Burgundy | Floris van Egmond | René of Châlon | Filips van Lalaing | Philip de Montmorency, Count of Hoorn | Karel van Brimeu | Gillis van Berlaymont | John VI of Nassau-Dillenburg | Willem IV van den Bergh | Adolf van Nieuwenaar | Maurice of Nassau | Frederick Henry of Orange | William II of Orange | interregnum | William III of Orange | interregnum | William IV of Orange | William V of Orange |
| Stadtholders of Holland, Zeeland and (since 1528) Utrecht |
|---|
| Hugo van Lannoy |
Willem van Lalaing | Gozewijn de Wilde | Jan van Lannoy | Lewis de Bruges | Wolfert VI van Borselen | Joost van Lalaing | Jan III van Egmond | Henry III of Nassau-Breda | Antoon van Lalaing | René of Châlon | Louis of Flanders | Maximilian II of Burgundy | William of Orange | Maximilian of Hennin | Philip of Noircarmes | William of Orange | Adolf van Nieuwenaar (Utrecht only) | Maurice of Nassau | Frederick Henry of Orange | William II of Orange | interregnum | William III of Orange | interregnum | William IV of Orange | William V of Orange |
| Stadtholders of Friesland |
|---|
| Floris van Egmond |
Willem van Roggendorff | Jancko Douwama | Georg Schenck van Tautenburg | Maximiliaan van Egmond | Jean de Ligne | Charles de Brimeu | Gillis van Berlaymont | Caspar de Robles | George van Rennenberg | Francisco Verdugo | William of Orange | Willem Lodewijk | Ernst Casimir | Hendrik Casimir I | Willem Frederik | Hendrik Casimir II | Johan Willem Friso of Orange | William IV of Orange | William V of Orange |
| Stadtholders of Groningen |
|---|
| Cristoffel van Meurs |
Jasper van Marwijck | Karel van Gelre | Ludolf Coenders | Georg Schenck van Toutenburg | Maximiliaan van Egmond | Jan van Ligne | Karel van Brimeu | Gillis van Berlaymont | Caspar van Robles | Georges van Lalaing | Francisco Verdugo | Willem Lodewijk | Maurice of Nassau | Ernst Casimir | Hendrik Casimir I | Willem Frederik | Hendrik Casimir II | Johan Willem Friso of Orange | William IV of Orange | William V of Orange |
| Stadtholders of Overijssel |
|---|
| Georg Schenck van Toutenburg |
Maximiliaan van Egmond | Jan van Ligne | Karel van Brimeu | Gillis van Berlaymont | Caspar van Robles | Georges van Lalaing | Francisco Verdugo | Adolf van Nieuwenaar | Maurice of Nassau | Frederick Henry of Orange | William II of Orange | William III of Orange | William IV of Orange | William V of Orange |
| Stadtholders of Drenthe |
|---|
| Christoph van Moers |
Jasper van Marwijck | Charles, Duke of Guelders | Ludolf Coenders | Georg Schenck van Toutenburg | Maximiliaan van Egmond | Jan van Ligne | Karel van Brimeu | Gillis van Berlaymont | Caspar van Robles | Georges van Lalaing | Francisco Verdugo | Willem Lodewijk of Nassau-Dietz | Maurice of Nassau | Ernst Casimir | Hendrik Casimir I | Willem Frederik | Hendrik Casimir II | William II of Orange | William III of Orange | William IV of Orange | William V of Orange |
