41. William's Invitation 41. Wilhelms Einladung 41. Invitación de William 41. Invito di William 41.ウィリアムの招待状 41. Convite do William 41. Приглашение Уильяма 41. Запрошення Вільяма 41. 威廉的邀请 41. 威廉的邀請

"Calm as an under-current, strong to draw Millions of waves into itself and run From sea to sea, impervious to the sun And ploughing storm, the spirit of Nassau Swerves not." "Calmo come una corrente sotterranea, forte di attirare in sé milioni di onde e di correre da un mare all'altro, insensibile al sole e alle tempeste, lo spirito di Nassau non si muove". "Kalm als een onderstroom, sterk om miljoenen golven naar zich toe te trekken en van zee naar zee, ongevoelig voor de zon en ploegende storm, de geest van Nassau zweeft niet." —WORDSWORTH, William III.

William and Mary were living peaceably at The Hague when Charles II. died in 1685, leaving no children. He was succeeded by his brother James, a Roman Catholic. Gli successe il fratello Giacomo, cattolico romano. The next heir to the English throne was Mary, William's wife. England was considering the matter of succession when a son was born to James, an unfortunate little prince, destined to seventy-seven years of wandering and exile, and known to history as the Old Pretender. L'Inghilterra stava valutando la questione della successione quando nacque un figlio a Giacomo, un piccolo principe sfortunato, destinato a settantasette anni di vagabondaggio e di esilio e noto alla storia come il Vecchio Pretendente. Engeland overwoog de kwestie van opvolging toen er een zoon werd geboren uit James, een ongelukkige kleine prins, voorbestemd voor zevenenzeventig jaar zwerven en ballingschap, en in de geschiedenis bekend als de Oude Pretender. His birth brought matters to a crisis. He was sure to be brought up as a Roman Catholic like his father, and England wanted a Protestant ruler.

So an invitation was written and secretly conveyed to The Hague begging William to come over to England with an army and restore the Protestant religion. The Prince of Orange accepted the invitation. Though he must fight against his own father-in-law, there were larger questions at stake than mere family ties. A camp was formed at once. Soldiers and sailors were raised. Vennero allevati soldati e marinai. The gunmakers of Utrecht worked at pistols and muskets by day and night, the saddlers at Amsterdam toiled at harness, the docks were busy with shipping. Gli armaioli di Utrecht lavoravano giorno e notte a pistole e moschetti, i sellai di Amsterdam lavoravano ai finimenti, i moli erano occupati dalle spedizioni. And ever and anon a light swift skiff sped between the Dutch and English coasts. E di tanto in tanto un leggero e veloce skiff sfrecciava tra le coste olandesi e quelle inglesi. It was an anxious time. The Prince maintained an icy calmness, but to his friend he wrote openly: "My sufferings, my disquiet, are dreadful. I hardly see my way. Non vedo quasi mai la mia strada. Never in my life did I feel so much the need of God's guidance." By the autumn of 1688 all was ready. He said good-bye to the States-General, alone standing calm amid his weeping friends.

"I am now leaving you, perhaps never to return," he told them. "If I should fall in defence of my religion, take care of my beloved wife." Though beaten back on his first venture by a violent storm, William set sail with his 600 ships, accompanied by fifty men-of-war, for the shores of England. Sebbene sia stato respinto nella sua prima impresa da una violenta tempesta, Guglielmo salpò con le sue 600 navi, accompagnate da cinquanta uomini di guerra, verso le coste dell'Inghilterra. As the Dutch fleet passed the narrow Straits of Dover the flourish of trumpets, the clash of cymbals, and the rolling of the drums was heard on either shore. Quando la flotta olandese passò lo stretto di Dover, si udì su entrambe le sponde lo squillo delle trombe, il suono dei cimbali e il rullo dei tamburi. As night drew on the watchers on the southern coast beheld the sea in a blaze of light, through which three huge lanterns flamed from the leading ship, which bore to England William, Prince of Orange. Con l'avvicinarsi della notte, gli osservatori della costa meridionale videro il mare in un'esplosione di luce, attraverso la quale tre enormi lanterne fiammeggiavano dalla nave di testa, che portava in Inghilterra Guglielmo, principe d'Orange.

Meanwhile the news that his son-in-law had landed at Torbay reached James, who was already preparing to oppose him. He had a splendid army, but he could not depend on his men. Soon they began to desert him and flock to the standard of William, until at last he fled to London in despair, only to hear that his daughter Anne had fled secretly. Ben presto cominciarono ad abbandonarlo e ad accorrere allo stendardo di Guglielmo, finché alla fine egli fuggì a Londra in preda alla disperazione, per poi venire a sapere che sua figlia Anna era fuggita di nascosto.

"God help me!" cried the wretched king, "for my own children have forsaken me." gridò il misero re, "perché i miei figli mi hanno abbandonato". His spirit was broken now. Nothing was left him but flight. He arranged for the safety of his wife and child, declaring he himself would stick to his post. Si è adoperato per la sicurezza della moglie e del figlio, dichiarando che sarebbe rimasto al suo posto. It was a December night. The king and queen went to bed as usual. When all was quiet James called to his side a faithful French friend to whom he had confided his secret.

"I confide to you my queen and my son. You must risk everything to carry them to France," he said. It was a bitter night in December. Wrapping his own cloak round the ill-fated baby of seven months old, and giving his hand to the weeping queen, the Frenchman took them down the back-stairs and placed them in an open boat on the Thames. The rain was falling in torrents, the wind roared, the water was rough, but the little party of fugitives escaped to a ship and set sail with a fair wind for France.

The next day the king rose at three in the morning, and taking the Great Seal of State, he disappeared down a secret passage, crossed the Thames, and flinging the Great Seal into the midst of the stream, he attempted to follow his wife and child to France. Il giorno successivo il re si alzò alle tre del mattino e, preso il Grande Sigillo di Stato, scomparve in un passaggio segreto, attraversò il Tamigi e, gettando il Grande Sigillo in mezzo alla corrente, tentò di seguire la moglie e il figlio in Francia. He was captured and brought back to London; but William had no wish to have his royal father-in-law on his hands, and James, the fugitive king, was allowed to embark for France.

Then, amid the peal of bells, the blast of trumpets, and the joyous shouts of the citizens, William and Mary were proclaimed King and Queen of England.

The great Revolution was over.

But James had no intention of giving up his kingdom so quietly. Ma Giacomo non aveva intenzione di rinunciare al suo regno così tranquillamente. By the help of Louis XIV. he raised an army and sailed over to assert his rights in Ireland.