The Netherlands in the eyes of Englishmen in the 17th century

In the article the author deals with the question why was it possible for William III of Orange to invade England in 1688 without serious problems and rule the country for couple of years in almost arbitrarily style. In order to explain this phenomena, it is very important to have in mind that, during the whole Seventeenth century, the Dutch were estimated very high in England and even celebrated for their courage, freedom and prosperity. Faced with the tyranny of James II Stewart and lacking the will to resist it, they were ready to accept even the conqueror on the throne û only if he proved to be the person capable of improving political, religious and social conditions in England. And for such a role, the Protestant, aristocratic and freedom-loving Dutchman was thought to be suited best