The Dutch Republic is among the first and foremost examples of a state that was represented in the allegorical figure of a maiden, often with the attributes of Liberty. The iconography of the Dutch Republic owes much to the Dutch Revolt against the Habsburg empire in the late 16th century, in which an image of national unity against the Spanish tyranny was promoted. But is an image like this affected by internal political opposition, like in the later seventeenth century and, especially, in the years 1780‒1800, when Patriots and Orangists both claimed the right to True Liberty?

Frans Grijzenhout is Professor in Art History of the Early Modern Period at the University of Amsterdam. He has published widely on art and politics in the Netherlands, in the 17th and 18th century.

Dirk Langendijk, Design for a new national flag of the Batavian Republic (1796), Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam

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