1 00:00:00,720 --> 00:00:05,080 Speaker 1: Welcome to Noble Blood, a production of iHeartRadio and Grim 2 00:00:05,120 --> 00:00:13,680 Speaker 1: and Mild from Aaron Manky Listener discretion advised. On July 3 00:00:13,960 --> 00:00:20,160 Speaker 1: twenty eighth, nineteen forty, the BBC began broadcasting a new 4 00:00:20,520 --> 00:00:26,200 Speaker 1: radio show, Radio Aranhe or Orange, was a fifteen minute 5 00:00:26,239 --> 00:00:32,240 Speaker 1: long program. Each episode began with the words radio Orange 6 00:00:32,240 --> 00:00:37,680 Speaker 1: here the voice of a combatant Netherlands. The show provided 7 00:00:37,920 --> 00:00:42,720 Speaker 1: timely reports on war developments, and it implored the Dutch 8 00:00:42,800 --> 00:00:48,080 Speaker 1: population not to comply with occupying forces. The show even 9 00:00:48,159 --> 00:00:53,720 Speaker 1: included encrypted messages meant for the resistance in the Netherlands. 10 00:00:54,360 --> 00:01:02,800 Speaker 1: The program was hosted by voices of Dutch resistance in exile, authors, journalists, historians, performers, 11 00:01:02,840 --> 00:01:07,920 Speaker 1: including the journalist A Den Dullard, who had begun publishing 12 00:01:08,240 --> 00:01:13,280 Speaker 1: reports warning against the impending rise of fascism back in 13 00:01:13,400 --> 00:01:17,800 Speaker 1: nineteen thirty seven. The show also featured the Jewish singer 14 00:01:17,959 --> 00:01:23,000 Speaker 1: Jetty Pearl performed songs on the show mocking the Nazis. 15 00:01:23,680 --> 00:01:26,800 Speaker 1: She would later join the Women's Auxiliary Corps of the 16 00:01:26,920 --> 00:01:33,240 Speaker 1: Royal Netherland Army. But perhaps Pearl's most shining accomplishment is 17 00:01:33,280 --> 00:01:37,039 Speaker 1: that after the war, she became the first singer to 18 00:01:37,160 --> 00:01:43,680 Speaker 1: perform in the first ever Eurovision Song Contest. Despite Pearl's 19 00:01:43,680 --> 00:01:48,560 Speaker 1: holding of that prestigious title, Radio Orange had a recurring 20 00:01:48,680 --> 00:01:55,240 Speaker 1: speaker with another, possibly even more impressive title, Queen of 21 00:01:55,320 --> 00:02:00,040 Speaker 1: the Netherlands. This war is about giving the war the 22 00:02:00,040 --> 00:02:04,800 Speaker 1: world a guarantee that those who want goodwill not be 23 00:02:04,920 --> 00:02:10,800 Speaker 1: prevented from accomplishing it, Queen Wilhelmina spoke now translated in 24 00:02:10,880 --> 00:02:16,320 Speaker 1: that first broadcast. Those who believe that the spiritual values 25 00:02:16,360 --> 00:02:20,600 Speaker 1: acquired by mankind can be destroyed by the edge of 26 00:02:20,720 --> 00:02:26,440 Speaker 1: the sword must learn to realize their vanity. Brute violence 27 00:02:26,880 --> 00:02:32,480 Speaker 1: cannot deprive people of their convictions. Radio Orange was so 28 00:02:32,760 --> 00:02:38,160 Speaker 1: popular amongst the Dutch population that in May nineteen forty three, 29 00:02:38,800 --> 00:02:44,519 Speaker 1: German authorities ordered Dutch citizens to hand in their radios. 30 00:02:45,240 --> 00:02:50,520 Speaker 1: Many did not comply, and the US Holocaust Memorial Museum 31 00:02:50,680 --> 00:02:53,960 Speaker 1: has a photo in their archives of a group of 32 00:02:54,080 --> 00:02:57,560 Speaker 1: Dutch resistance members and the Jews that they were protecting, 33 00:02:58,120 --> 00:03:04,520 Speaker 1: all crowded together around a contraband radio. Though Queen Wilhelmina 34 00:03:04,639 --> 00:03:09,160 Speaker 1: didn't appear in every broadcast, her speeches on the program 35 00:03:09,480 --> 00:03:14,480 Speaker 1: were so influential that, even beyond being a leader during 36 00:03:14,520 --> 00:03:18,600 Speaker 1: that time, she became a major symbol of resistance for 37 00:03:18,639 --> 00:03:23,520 Speaker 1: the Dutch people. Though these radio broadcasts were a major 38 00:03:23,639 --> 00:03:27,239 Speaker 1: and lasting moment in her reign, World War. 39 00:03:27,120 --> 00:03:29,320 Speaker 2: Two was far from the first. 40 00:03:29,000 --> 00:03:32,960 Speaker 1: Event that Wilhelmina led the Dutch people through. 41 00:03:33,919 --> 00:03:35,640 Speaker 2: After her father's death. 42 00:03:35,480 --> 00:03:39,360 Speaker 1: In eighteen ninety, she had become queen at only ten 43 00:03:39,480 --> 00:03:45,920 Speaker 1: years old. A wartime queen twice over, Wilhelmina reigned during 44 00:03:45,920 --> 00:03:50,000 Speaker 1: an era of great monarchical influence, the likes of which 45 00:03:50,040 --> 00:03:56,200 Speaker 1: we will almost certainly never see again, and influence she did. 46 00:03:57,600 --> 00:04:08,520 Speaker 1: I'm Dana Schwartz, and this is noble blood. The majority 47 00:04:08,600 --> 00:04:12,960 Speaker 1: of our detailed information on Wilhelmina's life comes from the 48 00:04:13,040 --> 00:04:19,200 Speaker 1: woman herself. Her nineteen fifty nine memoir, the aptly titled 49 00:04:19,240 --> 00:04:24,120 Speaker 1: for a monarch book, Lonely but Not Alone, opens with 50 00:04:24,240 --> 00:04:28,640 Speaker 1: her earliest memories and concludes with the end of her reign. 51 00:04:29,680 --> 00:04:34,719 Speaker 1: Because retirement is relatively rare among monarchs, this book is 52 00:04:34,880 --> 00:04:40,080 Speaker 1: incredibly unique as a retrospective. We rarely get to read, 53 00:04:40,480 --> 00:04:44,479 Speaker 1: in a monarch's own words, their reflections and opinions on 54 00:04:44,600 --> 00:04:49,240 Speaker 1: their entire reign as a whole. It's not Prince Harry's 55 00:04:49,440 --> 00:04:53,600 Speaker 1: spare levels of juicy, but it's still a rare and 56 00:04:53,800 --> 00:04:57,960 Speaker 1: insightful look into the thoughts and feelings of being a 57 00:04:58,160 --> 00:05:04,520 Speaker 1: royal book having all the markings of an autobiography, Wilhelmina 58 00:05:04,680 --> 00:05:09,360 Speaker 1: warns the reader against that very classification quote. The reader 59 00:05:09,400 --> 00:05:13,479 Speaker 1: should not expect to find here a political or historical 60 00:05:13,480 --> 00:05:18,560 Speaker 1: account or an autobiography. She writes, such works are concerned 61 00:05:18,600 --> 00:05:22,400 Speaker 1: with other aspects of life. I shall invite the reader 62 00:05:22,480 --> 00:05:26,240 Speaker 1: to follow me on a higher plane. What sort of 63 00:05:26,320 --> 00:05:31,000 Speaker 1: higher plane you might be wondering? Supernatural romance? A Kafka 64 00:05:31,200 --> 00:05:37,760 Speaker 1: esque interrogation of the self alas no, Wilhelmina meant more straightforwardly, 65 00:05:38,360 --> 00:05:41,720 Speaker 1: the subject of this book is God's guidance of our 66 00:05:41,839 --> 00:05:47,600 Speaker 1: people in past, present, and future. The memoir does devote 67 00:05:47,680 --> 00:05:50,839 Speaker 1: much of its time to the role of Christianity in 68 00:05:50,880 --> 00:05:54,839 Speaker 1: Wilhelmina's life and reign, but her notion that it doesn't 69 00:05:54,920 --> 00:05:59,920 Speaker 1: serve as a history or autobiography says more about wilhelmi 70 00:06:00,839 --> 00:06:05,839 Speaker 1: then the text itself. Chapter one, titled Father and Mother, 71 00:06:06,440 --> 00:06:10,159 Speaker 1: opens with the line let me begin by saying that 72 00:06:10,279 --> 00:06:14,520 Speaker 1: I still possess my father's walking stick, with which I 73 00:06:14,760 --> 00:06:17,920 Speaker 1: was always allowed to play when we went out for 74 00:06:18,000 --> 00:06:21,680 Speaker 1: a stroll. If the world is not too strong for 75 00:06:21,839 --> 00:06:25,200 Speaker 1: the uncertain steps of a child at the age of 76 00:06:25,279 --> 00:06:30,000 Speaker 1: three or four. Wilhelmina goes on to recount that she 77 00:06:30,200 --> 00:06:34,200 Speaker 1: and her father had a daily hour of play, beginning 78 00:06:34,279 --> 00:06:37,640 Speaker 1: at five o'clock in the evening, which was but one 79 00:06:37,880 --> 00:06:40,760 Speaker 1: slice of life in what seems to have been the 80 00:06:41,240 --> 00:06:47,720 Speaker 1: idealized princess girlhood. The bits and pieces she described sound 81 00:06:48,160 --> 00:06:52,839 Speaker 1: straight out of a story book. Wilhelmina remembers sledding with 82 00:06:52,920 --> 00:06:56,159 Speaker 1: her mother, her father buying the three of them matching 83 00:06:56,240 --> 00:06:59,960 Speaker 1: fur coats for the winter. A chalet that I am 84 00:07:00,040 --> 00:07:04,120 Speaker 1: imagine as a child sized version of the Marie Antoinette 85 00:07:04,240 --> 00:07:08,599 Speaker 1: Queen's Hamlet was built for Wilhelmina in the gardens, with 86 00:07:08,680 --> 00:07:12,600 Speaker 1: a dovecot, a duck pond, a playground, and a donkey 87 00:07:12,760 --> 00:07:17,680 Speaker 1: to ride. She remembers the estate's gun maker, who for 88 00:07:17,840 --> 00:07:22,360 Speaker 1: her acted as the quote good fairy, mending her broken 89 00:07:22,440 --> 00:07:27,640 Speaker 1: toys like Drosselmeyer in The Nutcracker, And in perhaps the 90 00:07:27,680 --> 00:07:33,560 Speaker 1: most stereotypical memory of a young princess's life, she joyfully 91 00:07:33,680 --> 00:07:38,600 Speaker 1: recalls her father announcing that Shetland ponies would be arriving 92 00:07:38,680 --> 00:07:43,480 Speaker 1: for her quote no less than four in number. Above all, 93 00:07:43,680 --> 00:07:47,920 Speaker 1: she describes a closeness with her parents that's often missing 94 00:07:48,040 --> 00:07:52,040 Speaker 1: in other accounts of royal life. The family lived between 95 00:07:52,080 --> 00:07:55,480 Speaker 1: the newer Deaned Palace in the Hague and Hetloo Palace 96 00:07:55,560 --> 00:07:58,720 Speaker 1: built by the House of Orange in Appledorn, which was 97 00:07:58,760 --> 00:08:06,440 Speaker 1: primarily used as a summer residence. This was the life 98 00:08:06,480 --> 00:08:10,000 Speaker 1: of the only child of King William the Third and 99 00:08:10,160 --> 00:08:15,760 Speaker 1: his second wife, Queen Emma. However, Princess Wilhelmina was not 100 00:08:16,040 --> 00:08:20,440 Speaker 1: initially raised to be a queen. When the widowed King 101 00:08:20,480 --> 00:08:24,760 Speaker 1: William married Emma, his second wife, in eighteen seventy nine, 102 00:08:25,360 --> 00:08:30,240 Speaker 1: two of three sons he had still lived, the marriage 103 00:08:30,360 --> 00:08:33,800 Speaker 1: was not intended to produce an air. In fact, the 104 00:08:33,880 --> 00:08:38,520 Speaker 1: existing heirs were older than their new stepmother. The king 105 00:08:38,880 --> 00:08:42,600 Speaker 1: was forty one years older than his twenty one year 106 00:08:42,640 --> 00:08:47,880 Speaker 1: old bride. Apparently, Emma was the fifth woman he tried 107 00:08:47,920 --> 00:08:51,560 Speaker 1: to marry after the death of his wife. Following a 108 00:08:51,800 --> 00:08:55,240 Speaker 1: French opera singer whom the government pressured him to break 109 00:08:55,320 --> 00:09:00,080 Speaker 1: up with his own niece, the Princess of Denmark and 110 00:09:00,120 --> 00:09:04,800 Speaker 1: Emma's older sister. Sounds like the making of an incredible 111 00:09:04,840 --> 00:09:10,640 Speaker 1: season of The Bachelor nineteenth century edition. Despite the lack 112 00:09:10,800 --> 00:09:15,320 Speaker 1: of political incentive, Emma did give birth to a child, 113 00:09:15,760 --> 00:09:21,000 Speaker 1: a daughter, Wilhelmina, in eighteen eighty. By this point, another 114 00:09:21,280 --> 00:09:25,960 Speaker 1: of the king's sons had died of typhus, which meant 115 00:09:26,040 --> 00:09:29,960 Speaker 1: that will Helmina was third in line to inherit the throne. 116 00:09:31,120 --> 00:09:33,839 Speaker 1: You might be thinking third in line she only had 117 00:09:33,880 --> 00:09:37,520 Speaker 1: one more living, older brother, but there was a semisalic 118 00:09:37,600 --> 00:09:42,040 Speaker 1: system in place at the time. Basically it meant men first, 119 00:09:42,400 --> 00:09:47,600 Speaker 1: so Wilhelmina was behind her uncle and her father's remaining son. 120 00:09:48,440 --> 00:09:51,600 Speaker 1: But Wilhelmina's uncle would die when she was just one 121 00:09:51,679 --> 00:09:55,600 Speaker 1: years old, and her half brother died when she was four, 122 00:09:56,240 --> 00:10:01,280 Speaker 1: which rapidly changed the importance not only a Wilhelmina's role, 123 00:10:01,760 --> 00:10:07,120 Speaker 1: but also of her mother's. This was increasingly true as 124 00:10:07,160 --> 00:10:10,640 Speaker 1: it became clear that William would likely not live to 125 00:10:10,679 --> 00:10:16,160 Speaker 1: see his daughter, his only remaining heir, reach adulthood. In 126 00:10:16,240 --> 00:10:22,360 Speaker 1: eighteen eighty seven, just before his seventieth birthday, William fell ill. 127 00:10:24,800 --> 00:10:29,520 Speaker 1: Wilhelmina recalls that during his last few years he hardly 128 00:10:29,600 --> 00:10:33,560 Speaker 1: left the house, No longer able to take the strolls 129 00:10:33,640 --> 00:10:36,320 Speaker 1: with his daughter that she had opened her book with. 130 00:10:37,360 --> 00:10:42,920 Speaker 1: While Wilhelmina's mother cared for her father, Wilhelmina spent more 131 00:10:42,960 --> 00:10:46,800 Speaker 1: time than ever with her governess, Miss Winter, who would 132 00:10:46,840 --> 00:10:49,240 Speaker 1: be a major influence on her life. 133 00:10:49,920 --> 00:10:50,240 Speaker 2: Quote. 134 00:10:50,320 --> 00:10:54,200 Speaker 1: She herself did not hide for anybody or evade anyone. 135 00:10:54,720 --> 00:10:59,120 Speaker 1: She was a bold woman, Wilhelmina writes of her. The 136 00:10:59,280 --> 00:11:03,199 Speaker 1: night that we will Wilhelmina's father died, Wilhelmina was sleeping 137 00:11:03,280 --> 00:11:06,760 Speaker 1: in her mother's bed, waiting for her to return from 138 00:11:06,840 --> 00:11:10,520 Speaker 1: her father's side. But when her mother did appear in 139 00:11:10,559 --> 00:11:14,319 Speaker 1: the doorway, it was with the news that her father 140 00:11:14,760 --> 00:11:21,680 Speaker 1: was gone. From that moment on, Wilhelmina reflected, many things changed. 141 00:11:22,240 --> 00:11:24,720 Speaker 1: My undisturbed playing had come. 142 00:11:24,520 --> 00:11:25,120 Speaker 2: To an end. 143 00:11:26,040 --> 00:11:29,880 Speaker 1: It was eighteen ninety and the ten year old princess, 144 00:11:29,920 --> 00:11:34,400 Speaker 1: who had been gifted Shetland ponies, had become Queen of 145 00:11:34,440 --> 00:11:39,680 Speaker 1: the Netherlands. Overnight after the funeral, Emma was sworn in 146 00:11:39,840 --> 00:11:44,760 Speaker 1: as regent and the family relocated permanently to court at 147 00:11:44,760 --> 00:11:51,400 Speaker 1: the Hague. Life became what Wilhelmina describes as quote, permanently 148 00:11:51,720 --> 00:11:55,760 Speaker 1: semi official. It was only when she was alone with 149 00:11:55,840 --> 00:11:58,839 Speaker 1: her mother, that she could fully be a child again. 150 00:11:59,520 --> 00:12:04,920 Speaker 1: Beyond that, Wilhelmina wrote, we were denied many innocent pleasures 151 00:12:04,960 --> 00:12:08,880 Speaker 1: for the sake of convention, which could also function as 152 00:12:08,920 --> 00:12:14,360 Speaker 1: the tagline for many episodes of this show. Wilhelmina writes, 153 00:12:14,800 --> 00:12:18,000 Speaker 1: I shall from now on refer to these conditions as 154 00:12:18,240 --> 00:12:23,800 Speaker 1: the cage. The name speaks for itself. One felt hedged 155 00:12:23,880 --> 00:12:28,400 Speaker 1: in and longed for freedom. It is the great irony 156 00:12:28,559 --> 00:12:33,880 Speaker 1: that has plagued royal families for generations. All the wealth, 157 00:12:34,160 --> 00:12:38,880 Speaker 1: power and privilege in the world, and a self designed 158 00:12:39,080 --> 00:12:47,120 Speaker 1: gilded cage to perform the same restrictive, monotonous motions. And 159 00:12:49,920 --> 00:12:54,400 Speaker 1: As a child queen with her mother in charge, Wilhelmina's 160 00:12:54,480 --> 00:12:59,880 Speaker 1: duties mostly consisted of royal visits and public appearances in 161 00:13:00,120 --> 00:13:05,360 Speaker 1: between her studies. Those events were highly important in restoring 162 00:13:05,480 --> 00:13:10,040 Speaker 1: the Dutch population's good opinion of the monarchy, which had 163 00:13:10,120 --> 00:13:13,079 Speaker 1: been unfavorable for years before. 164 00:13:13,120 --> 00:13:14,240 Speaker 2: They took a liking to. 165 00:13:14,320 --> 00:13:18,440 Speaker 1: Emma's greater emphasis on a connection to her people, a 166 00:13:18,520 --> 00:13:23,200 Speaker 1: notion that Wilhelmina would continue. The story goes that in 167 00:13:23,280 --> 00:13:27,959 Speaker 1: Wilhelmina's first public appearance as the ten year old monarch. 168 00:13:28,440 --> 00:13:32,360 Speaker 1: She asked her mother, MoMA, do all these people belong 169 00:13:32,520 --> 00:13:37,600 Speaker 1: to me? No, my child, the regent queen replied, it 170 00:13:37,760 --> 00:13:42,280 Speaker 1: is you who belong to all these people. When it 171 00:13:42,320 --> 00:13:46,640 Speaker 1: came to Wilhelmina's studies, she was devout in her Christianity 172 00:13:46,720 --> 00:13:51,040 Speaker 1: from an early age, and on top of her religious education, 173 00:13:51,600 --> 00:13:56,240 Speaker 1: she learned foreign languages and the sciences, but those lessons 174 00:13:56,320 --> 00:14:00,080 Speaker 1: eventually ceased in favor of a focus on Him, my 175 00:14:00,120 --> 00:14:05,720 Speaker 1: story and geography. Her education reaffirmed her belief of her 176 00:14:05,760 --> 00:14:08,400 Speaker 1: status as living within the cage. 177 00:14:09,120 --> 00:14:10,800 Speaker 2: In her notes at the time. 178 00:14:10,960 --> 00:14:14,800 Speaker 1: She expressed her frustration with the government handling of the 179 00:14:14,840 --> 00:14:19,160 Speaker 1: Boer War, a conflict in which the self governing Dutch 180 00:14:19,240 --> 00:14:24,160 Speaker 1: settlers of the Boer Republics resisted annexation by Great Britain. 181 00:14:25,000 --> 00:14:28,280 Speaker 1: The government did not fulfill the urge in their hearts, 182 00:14:28,680 --> 00:14:32,120 Speaker 1: she wrote at the time, referring to the people, and 183 00:14:32,320 --> 00:14:35,440 Speaker 1: I felt that the public wished to see me openly 184 00:14:35,600 --> 00:14:40,080 Speaker 1: revealing my sympathy for our kinsmen. How could I as 185 00:14:40,120 --> 00:14:45,560 Speaker 1: the head of state. These feelings shaped the young queen's politics. 186 00:14:46,160 --> 00:14:51,160 Speaker 1: She remained pro bore and anti British for life. In 187 00:14:51,200 --> 00:14:56,240 Speaker 1: another particular, anecdote, she notes being moved after learning about 188 00:14:56,280 --> 00:15:00,960 Speaker 1: the laws and religions in the Dutch East India modern 189 00:15:01,040 --> 00:15:06,239 Speaker 1: day Indonesia. She was quote stirred to pity by accounts 190 00:15:06,280 --> 00:15:10,840 Speaker 1: of human sacrifices made to appease evil spirits, and quote 191 00:15:11,360 --> 00:15:14,600 Speaker 1: took a warm interest in the efforts to spread the 192 00:15:14,640 --> 00:15:21,640 Speaker 1: gospel among these poor people, another very classic royal sentiment. 193 00:15:22,680 --> 00:15:27,280 Speaker 1: When Wilhelmina was nearly fifteen, she and her mother traveled 194 00:15:27,320 --> 00:15:28,360 Speaker 1: to England to. 195 00:15:28,400 --> 00:15:30,240 Speaker 2: Meet the then fifty eight. 196 00:15:30,160 --> 00:15:35,040 Speaker 1: Year old Queen Victoria and her family. In Victoria's diary, 197 00:15:35,360 --> 00:15:38,840 Speaker 1: she wrote, quote, the young Queen, who will be fifteen 198 00:15:38,920 --> 00:15:43,160 Speaker 1: in August, still has her hair hanging loose. She is 199 00:15:43,400 --> 00:15:48,160 Speaker 1: very slight and graceful, has fine features, and seems to 200 00:15:48,200 --> 00:15:52,880 Speaker 1: be very intelligent and a charming child. She speaks English 201 00:15:52,920 --> 00:15:58,080 Speaker 1: extremely well and has very pretty manners. There was a 202 00:15:58,240 --> 00:16:01,200 Speaker 1: composite photo made of the two of them at the 203 00:16:01,240 --> 00:16:05,920 Speaker 1: time to commemorate this historic visit. In the photo, Willhelmina 204 00:16:06,120 --> 00:16:09,960 Speaker 1: looks like a witch brought the American girl doll Samantha 205 00:16:10,040 --> 00:16:14,080 Speaker 1: to life, and Queen Victoria looks like the same witch 206 00:16:14,520 --> 00:16:18,120 Speaker 1: cursed her to sleep with her eyes open. I'll put 207 00:16:18,160 --> 00:16:25,880 Speaker 1: the photo on the Noble Blood Instagram and Patreon. Like England, 208 00:16:26,040 --> 00:16:31,360 Speaker 1: the Netherlands is a constitutional monarchy with a parliament where 209 00:16:31,400 --> 00:16:35,160 Speaker 1: the monarch acts as head of state, but a prime 210 00:16:35,200 --> 00:16:41,720 Speaker 1: minister wheeled greater political power. In her teenage years, Wilhelmina's mother, 211 00:16:41,920 --> 00:16:45,360 Speaker 1: as acting ruler, began to take her along to the 212 00:16:45,520 --> 00:16:47,040 Speaker 1: States General to. 213 00:16:47,120 --> 00:16:48,480 Speaker 2: Prepare for her role. 214 00:16:49,480 --> 00:16:53,520 Speaker 1: Will Helmina recalls that at the very moment when she 215 00:16:53,640 --> 00:16:58,120 Speaker 1: turned eighteen, she signed her first official papers, and with 216 00:16:58,240 --> 00:17:02,600 Speaker 1: that her reign began. She was formally sworn in a 217 00:17:02,640 --> 00:17:07,560 Speaker 1: few days later on September sixth, eighteen ninety eight. She 218 00:17:07,720 --> 00:17:11,840 Speaker 1: describes these early years of her tenure as a state 219 00:17:11,880 --> 00:17:16,439 Speaker 1: of limbo. Quote, behaving like a grown up, becoming reigning 220 00:17:16,560 --> 00:17:20,879 Speaker 1: queen is not the same thing as attaining one's full maturity, 221 00:17:21,359 --> 00:17:26,480 Speaker 1: she reflects fairly wisely, in my opinion, she understood she 222 00:17:26,560 --> 00:17:29,879 Speaker 1: gave off the illusion of being grown up. But in 223 00:17:29,960 --> 00:17:33,960 Speaker 1: her words, she was conscious of avoid in her existence, 224 00:17:34,320 --> 00:17:37,880 Speaker 1: which was going to be filled up only very slowly. 225 00:17:38,800 --> 00:17:43,040 Speaker 1: Not a girl, not yet a woman in this moment. 226 00:17:43,160 --> 00:17:46,400 Speaker 1: In her memoir, Wilhelmina takes a moment to note that 227 00:17:46,440 --> 00:17:49,800 Speaker 1: in the summer of eighteen ninety eight, her coming of 228 00:17:49,840 --> 00:17:55,320 Speaker 1: age coincided with the national exhibition of women's work put 229 00:17:55,359 --> 00:18:00,359 Speaker 1: on by the first Dutch women's organization, Tetzelshad, which is 230 00:18:00,400 --> 00:18:01,720 Speaker 1: still operating today. 231 00:18:02,359 --> 00:18:04,639 Speaker 2: It was an event styled after. 232 00:18:04,520 --> 00:18:09,879 Speaker 1: The World's Fair, which displayed art and handicrafts by Dutch women, 233 00:18:10,400 --> 00:18:15,800 Speaker 1: along with speeches, lectures, and performances. It was considered a 234 00:18:15,920 --> 00:18:21,440 Speaker 1: major moment in Dutch first wave feminism, and when Devrau 235 00:18:21,720 --> 00:18:25,440 Speaker 1: or the Woman was held as a follow up exhibition 236 00:18:25,680 --> 00:18:32,080 Speaker 1: in nineteen thirteen, the Queen attended twice. Wilhelmina doesn't comment 237 00:18:32,240 --> 00:18:36,960 Speaker 1: on the content of the conference, noting diplomatically that it 238 00:18:36,960 --> 00:18:40,800 Speaker 1: would be quote outside her scope, but her choice to 239 00:18:40,960 --> 00:18:44,680 Speaker 1: mention it despite that signifies that it must have had 240 00:18:44,720 --> 00:18:49,480 Speaker 1: an impact on her self perception during this adolescent era 241 00:18:49,640 --> 00:18:57,960 Speaker 1: of self actualization. The next major phase in that journey 242 00:18:58,520 --> 00:19:03,360 Speaker 1: was her engagement and marriage. In February of nineteen oh one, 243 00:19:03,840 --> 00:19:07,399 Speaker 1: less than two years after her official personal reign began, 244 00:19:08,080 --> 00:19:13,800 Speaker 1: Wilhelmina married Duke Henrik of Mecklenburg Schwerin. Their relationship can 245 00:19:13,920 --> 00:19:17,880 Speaker 1: perhaps best be described in the words of the tagline 246 00:19:17,960 --> 00:19:24,879 Speaker 1: of Greta Gerwig's barbie. She's everything, He's just ken. In 247 00:19:24,920 --> 00:19:28,880 Speaker 1: her memoir, she describes neither her engagement nor her husband 248 00:19:29,280 --> 00:19:32,919 Speaker 1: with even the slightest hint of romance, but she notes 249 00:19:33,000 --> 00:19:36,720 Speaker 1: that he liked hunting and boats, that he was kind 250 00:19:36,840 --> 00:19:42,520 Speaker 1: and helpful, and always accompanied by his faithful dot sound Helga. 251 00:19:43,119 --> 00:19:47,520 Speaker 1: He appears so infrequently in her memoir that we may 252 00:19:47,560 --> 00:19:50,000 Speaker 1: as well get it out of the way now that 253 00:19:50,080 --> 00:19:53,679 Speaker 1: he was known as a frequent adulterer and fathered a 254 00:19:53,800 --> 00:19:57,879 Speaker 1: child with a mistress. While Henrik may not have inspired 255 00:19:57,960 --> 00:20:01,919 Speaker 1: a great passion in her life, Wilhelmina recount that the 256 00:20:01,960 --> 00:20:07,000 Speaker 1: marriage itself catalyzed a major turning point in regards to 257 00:20:07,200 --> 00:20:11,480 Speaker 1: her perceptions of her own freedom. It seems that realizing 258 00:20:11,720 --> 00:20:14,320 Speaker 1: she didn't even have the freedom to act as a 259 00:20:14,400 --> 00:20:16,440 Speaker 1: traditional wife if she wanted to. 260 00:20:17,080 --> 00:20:18,240 Speaker 2: Stirred something greater. 261 00:20:18,359 --> 00:20:22,840 Speaker 1: In her quote, I sought and found my freedom of action, 262 00:20:23,480 --> 00:20:27,719 Speaker 1: not always without causing shocks my inner freedom I had 263 00:20:27,760 --> 00:20:32,240 Speaker 1: achieved years before. We took less and less notice of 264 00:20:32,280 --> 00:20:35,960 Speaker 1: the conventions of the cage and went our own way, 265 00:20:36,480 --> 00:20:40,960 Speaker 1: arousing a great deal of friction and criticism end quote. 266 00:20:41,600 --> 00:20:45,160 Speaker 1: The friction she mentions, appears to have been between herself 267 00:20:45,200 --> 00:20:49,400 Speaker 1: and the nation's politicians, not her husband, Politicians who did 268 00:20:49,400 --> 00:20:53,160 Speaker 1: not appreciate the queen having much of anything to say, 269 00:20:53,840 --> 00:20:59,600 Speaker 1: especially considering her pro Bore politics, which is actually slightly 270 00:21:00,280 --> 00:21:04,080 Speaker 1: leading name for people in this context who opposed the 271 00:21:04,119 --> 00:21:09,000 Speaker 1: Bore War, which was a colonial war happening in South Africa. 272 00:21:09,760 --> 00:21:13,679 Speaker 1: The people, however, felt more kinship with the monarchy than 273 00:21:13,720 --> 00:21:17,959 Speaker 1: they had for many many years. Wilhelmina was more on 274 00:21:18,000 --> 00:21:22,760 Speaker 1: the side of the people than the politicians. The next 275 00:21:22,760 --> 00:21:26,520 Speaker 1: major event in Wilhelmina's personal life is not discussed in 276 00:21:26,560 --> 00:21:30,120 Speaker 1: her memoir at all, the birth of a stillborn son 277 00:21:30,320 --> 00:21:34,560 Speaker 1: in nineteen o two. Four years later, her second pregnancy 278 00:21:34,680 --> 00:21:38,680 Speaker 1: would also end with a miscarriage. For the people whose 279 00:21:38,760 --> 00:21:41,960 Speaker 1: job it was to worry about these things, there was 280 00:21:42,080 --> 00:21:45,280 Speaker 1: increasing anxiety as to what would happen if the queen 281 00:21:45,480 --> 00:21:50,240 Speaker 1: did not produce an air But in April nineteen o nine, 282 00:21:50,760 --> 00:21:55,440 Speaker 1: the couple's daughter, Juliana, was born healthy. I must leave 283 00:21:55,480 --> 00:21:59,000 Speaker 1: it to the reader to imagine our parental happiness at 284 00:21:59,000 --> 00:22:03,040 Speaker 1: her arrival after we had waited eight years, Wilhelmina writes. 285 00:22:03,760 --> 00:22:07,000 Speaker 1: The mother daughter relationship would go on to mirror the 286 00:22:07,040 --> 00:22:11,440 Speaker 1: closeness of Wilhelmina and her own mother, and even when 287 00:22:11,480 --> 00:22:17,240 Speaker 1: writing as an old woman, Wilhelmina's memoir is constantly interjected 288 00:22:17,359 --> 00:22:21,720 Speaker 1: at random times with references to Juliana and her life. 289 00:22:22,560 --> 00:22:26,280 Speaker 1: Even as queen, Wilhelmina writes that she devoted every bit 290 00:22:26,280 --> 00:22:28,680 Speaker 1: of time she could to being a mother to her 291 00:22:28,720 --> 00:22:34,000 Speaker 1: only child. But only a few short years after Juliana's birth, 292 00:22:34,520 --> 00:22:40,480 Speaker 1: Wilhelmina's role as queen would take on new urgent levels 293 00:22:40,520 --> 00:22:49,680 Speaker 1: of responsibility. Those with an inside knowledge of politics had 294 00:22:49,760 --> 00:22:53,639 Speaker 1: long foreseen that the world would be plunged into a 295 00:22:53,680 --> 00:22:59,320 Speaker 1: war of unprecedented horror, Wilhelmina writes. She recalls that in 296 00:22:59,359 --> 00:23:02,960 Speaker 1: the early day days after Germany declared war on Russia 297 00:23:03,040 --> 00:23:07,080 Speaker 1: in nineteen fourteen, actions were taken with the intent of 298 00:23:07,240 --> 00:23:12,880 Speaker 1: minimizing national anxiety, like Wilhelmina taking a normal train from 299 00:23:12,960 --> 00:23:16,719 Speaker 1: Amsterdam back to the Hague. Even though the matter required 300 00:23:16,760 --> 00:23:22,199 Speaker 1: some urgency. The Netherlands maintained the policy of neutrality that 301 00:23:22,240 --> 00:23:26,320 Speaker 1: they had held since eighteen thirty, but the army still 302 00:23:26,400 --> 00:23:30,520 Speaker 1: had to be mobilized as an act of deterrence. There 303 00:23:30,600 --> 00:23:34,040 Speaker 1: was a march as the garrison from the Hague deported, 304 00:23:34,520 --> 00:23:40,080 Speaker 1: and Wilhelmina made a grand show of patriotism, holding Juliana 305 00:23:40,160 --> 00:23:43,760 Speaker 1: on her shoulders as the royal family, saying the national 306 00:23:43,800 --> 00:23:49,080 Speaker 1: anthem with the cheering crowds. As a woman, Wilhelmina could 307 00:23:49,160 --> 00:23:53,280 Speaker 1: not act as supreme commander of the armed forces, but 308 00:23:53,400 --> 00:23:57,680 Speaker 1: she still performed regular inspections of the army and navy, 309 00:23:58,240 --> 00:24:00,399 Speaker 1: not only to make sure that things were up to 310 00:24:00,520 --> 00:24:04,680 Speaker 1: the standards she wanted to set, but to reinforce morale 311 00:24:04,920 --> 00:24:10,199 Speaker 1: and set an example of endurance and tenacity. There's a 312 00:24:10,240 --> 00:24:14,440 Speaker 1: story that before the war began, the last German emperor, 313 00:24:14,560 --> 00:24:18,920 Speaker 1: Kaiser Wilhelm the second, boasted to the young queen, quote, 314 00:24:19,200 --> 00:24:22,320 Speaker 1: my guards are seven feet tall, and yours are only 315 00:24:22,440 --> 00:24:28,639 Speaker 1: shoulder high to them. Wilhelmina smiled politely and replied, quite true, 316 00:24:28,720 --> 00:24:32,640 Speaker 1: your majesty, your guards are seven feet tall, but when 317 00:24:32,680 --> 00:24:36,399 Speaker 1: we open our dykes, the water is ten feet deep. 318 00:24:37,520 --> 00:24:38,480 Speaker 2: A good comeback. 319 00:24:39,600 --> 00:24:44,440 Speaker 1: She understood the country's spiritual and psychological needs for a 320 00:24:44,560 --> 00:24:46,120 Speaker 1: leader and knew that. 321 00:24:46,160 --> 00:24:49,439 Speaker 2: It was a role that she had to fulfill. Quote. 322 00:24:49,480 --> 00:24:53,840 Speaker 1: A war makes special demands. The confidence that was sufficient 323 00:24:53,960 --> 00:24:58,240 Speaker 1: in peacetime is no longer enough. Confidence was the word 324 00:24:58,359 --> 00:25:02,320 Speaker 1: that echoed in me constantly. My thinking and acting were 325 00:25:02,400 --> 00:25:06,560 Speaker 1: long dominated by the thought I had to earn it end. 326 00:25:08,560 --> 00:25:12,520 Speaker 1: Just three days after Germany declared war on Russia on 327 00:25:12,560 --> 00:25:18,600 Speaker 1: August fourth, nineteen fourteen, Germany invaded Belgium, The Netherlands began 328 00:25:18,720 --> 00:25:23,080 Speaker 1: to accept Belgian refugees, and the Dutch began to learn 329 00:25:23,280 --> 00:25:27,760 Speaker 1: firsthand of the cruelty that people were being subjected to. 330 00:25:28,600 --> 00:25:32,760 Speaker 1: Wilhelmina notes that it was hard to remain neutral for 331 00:25:32,840 --> 00:25:36,960 Speaker 1: those four years, but neutrality is not an emotional stance, 332 00:25:37,080 --> 00:25:41,440 Speaker 1: but a political one. At heart, man is never neutral, 333 00:25:41,560 --> 00:25:46,600 Speaker 1: she reflected, despite no further divulgences, at least in her 334 00:25:46,640 --> 00:25:50,280 Speaker 1: writing as to which way her heart was leaning at 335 00:25:50,320 --> 00:25:56,639 Speaker 1: the moment. As it became clear that Germany was going 336 00:25:56,680 --> 00:25:59,879 Speaker 1: to lose the war and the war was approaching its end, 337 00:26:00,600 --> 00:26:05,480 Speaker 1: a surprising guest star returns to our story Kaiser Wilhelm 338 00:26:06,000 --> 00:26:09,159 Speaker 1: with the German war effort of failure. The Kaiser was 339 00:26:09,200 --> 00:26:13,320 Speaker 1: forced to abdicate in nineteen eighteen, marking the end of 340 00:26:13,359 --> 00:26:17,119 Speaker 1: the German Empire and the beginning of the German Republic. 341 00:26:17,920 --> 00:26:22,199 Speaker 1: Wilhelmina says she'll never forget the November morning, when she 342 00:26:22,320 --> 00:26:25,520 Speaker 1: woke to the news that the Kaiser had crossed their 343 00:26:25,560 --> 00:26:29,640 Speaker 1: borders into the province of Limburg. First, the news came 344 00:26:29,680 --> 00:26:32,760 Speaker 1: to her from the government, and it was soon followed 345 00:26:32,880 --> 00:26:37,560 Speaker 1: by a telegram from the Kaiser himself, attempting to explain 346 00:26:37,760 --> 00:26:42,120 Speaker 1: his actions. Wilhelmina did not seem fond of the Kaiser 347 00:26:42,160 --> 00:26:46,800 Speaker 1: before the war, and the sentiment would continue. At first, 348 00:26:46,840 --> 00:26:50,679 Speaker 1: she questioned if his decision to flee his country was 349 00:26:50,760 --> 00:26:55,000 Speaker 1: an attempt to prevent needless bloodshed, but it soon became 350 00:26:55,119 --> 00:26:58,280 Speaker 1: clear that he was only out to save his own 351 00:26:58,480 --> 00:27:02,960 Speaker 1: behind quote. His habit of listening to the councils of 352 00:27:03,000 --> 00:27:07,160 Speaker 1: these advisers, who had neither the statesmanship nor the courage 353 00:27:07,720 --> 00:27:11,760 Speaker 1: which the situation demanded, had been his undoing. 354 00:27:12,160 --> 00:27:12,720 Speaker 2: She wrote. 355 00:27:13,680 --> 00:27:17,840 Speaker 1: Despite her seemingly negative personal feelings towards the man, the 356 00:27:17,960 --> 00:27:22,959 Speaker 1: Dutch government allowed him to stay. Wilhelmina herself invited his 357 00:27:23,080 --> 00:27:28,520 Speaker 1: wife to join him in the Netherlands, not out of hospitality, apparently, 358 00:27:29,000 --> 00:27:32,040 Speaker 1: but out of the expectation that she would be a 359 00:27:32,080 --> 00:27:36,400 Speaker 1: good influence on her husband. Their son, the Crown Prince, 360 00:27:36,560 --> 00:27:41,520 Speaker 1: soon followed. The Allied governments, of course, attempted to extradite 361 00:27:41,640 --> 00:27:44,920 Speaker 1: the man and his son, but by virtue of the 362 00:27:44,960 --> 00:27:51,400 Speaker 1: netherlands neutrality and right of asylum, they refused. Despite this 363 00:27:51,600 --> 00:27:56,240 Speaker 1: and their neutrality, the Netherlands was still a founding member 364 00:27:56,359 --> 00:28:02,040 Speaker 1: of the New League of Nations. The revolution happening next 365 00:28:02,040 --> 00:28:07,280 Speaker 1: door stirred what Wilhelmina calls commotion in some groups of 366 00:28:07,320 --> 00:28:12,360 Speaker 1: the population, and notes that there were a tense few days. 367 00:28:13,200 --> 00:28:17,399 Speaker 1: That's all the credence she gives to Red Week the 368 00:28:17,600 --> 00:28:24,160 Speaker 1: unsuccessful Dutch Socialist revolution of nineteen eighteen, and while her 369 00:28:24,240 --> 00:28:28,480 Speaker 1: language is minimizing, it was quite literally only a few 370 00:28:28,600 --> 00:28:33,639 Speaker 1: days long. On October eleventh, the Dutch royal family was 371 00:28:33,720 --> 00:28:37,439 Speaker 1: relocated to the Hague for safety as talk of a 372 00:28:37,520 --> 00:28:42,800 Speaker 1: revolution grew, but by October thirteenth it was apparently clear 373 00:28:43,000 --> 00:28:48,720 Speaker 1: that the revolution was dead. Wilhelmina reflects on her personal 374 00:28:48,760 --> 00:28:51,760 Speaker 1: life during the four years of the First World War 375 00:28:52,360 --> 00:28:56,720 Speaker 1: as an essential time in her spiritual growth. She recalls 376 00:28:56,840 --> 00:29:01,480 Speaker 1: conversations with two older acquaintances, both of whom felt that 377 00:29:01,560 --> 00:29:06,560 Speaker 1: the war had disillusioned them about humanity. The Queen notes 378 00:29:06,600 --> 00:29:10,160 Speaker 1: that she was moved by their feelings, but also pitied 379 00:29:10,240 --> 00:29:14,000 Speaker 1: them as the strength of her faith prevented her from 380 00:29:14,000 --> 00:29:18,440 Speaker 1: the emptiness that they were experiencing, in fact, the emptiness 381 00:29:18,480 --> 00:29:21,920 Speaker 1: that so many in Europe and around the world were 382 00:29:21,920 --> 00:29:25,680 Speaker 1: feeling in the aftermath of the destruction of the First 383 00:29:25,800 --> 00:29:30,800 Speaker 1: World War. Wilhelmina now saw in her words that the 384 00:29:30,840 --> 00:29:34,200 Speaker 1: loneliness she had been plagued with from the minute she 385 00:29:34,280 --> 00:29:38,720 Speaker 1: became a young queen was her quote opportunity with God, 386 00:29:39,280 --> 00:29:42,640 Speaker 1: and she would fill her quiet moment with religious text 387 00:29:43,120 --> 00:29:44,800 Speaker 1: and spiritual reflection. 388 00:29:45,600 --> 00:29:46,080 Speaker 2: Quote. 389 00:29:46,320 --> 00:29:49,360 Speaker 1: In spite of all the worries the war caused us, 390 00:29:49,760 --> 00:29:54,240 Speaker 1: my personal problems were gradually solved. Thus the end of 391 00:29:54,320 --> 00:29:57,080 Speaker 1: the First World War was also the end of a 392 00:29:57,160 --> 00:30:00,760 Speaker 1: period in my life. That's what we in the business 393 00:30:00,800 --> 00:30:07,720 Speaker 1: call some positive personal framing. She also acknowledges that by 394 00:30:07,760 --> 00:30:10,920 Speaker 1: the time the war ended, she was no longer the 395 00:30:11,320 --> 00:30:15,000 Speaker 1: young queen. At thirty eight, she felt she was approaching 396 00:30:15,200 --> 00:30:19,080 Speaker 1: middle age. As to how the First World War changed 397 00:30:19,080 --> 00:30:23,600 Speaker 1: her as a ruler, Wilhelmina emphasized a need to adapt 398 00:30:24,000 --> 00:30:28,040 Speaker 1: to public displays of the monarchy. There should be no 399 00:30:28,160 --> 00:30:33,320 Speaker 1: more ostentation, she wrote, My conduct should always correspond with 400 00:30:33,480 --> 00:30:37,959 Speaker 1: people's profound feelings about life. There should be contact with 401 00:30:38,120 --> 00:30:42,840 Speaker 1: all classes of the population in their working, thinking, and feeling. 402 00:30:43,680 --> 00:30:47,160 Speaker 1: The war also presented her with the novel idea that 403 00:30:47,240 --> 00:30:51,680 Speaker 1: her staff had quote rights as well as duties, and 404 00:30:51,760 --> 00:30:57,040 Speaker 1: she essentially established an HR for them. There's no good 405 00:30:57,080 --> 00:30:59,840 Speaker 1: way to transition from that to the next thing that 406 00:30:59,840 --> 00:31:02,600 Speaker 1: I want to mention, which is that, while it's hard 407 00:31:02,640 --> 00:31:08,520 Speaker 1: to find sourcing on this fact, apparently Wilhelmina's business acumen 408 00:31:08,640 --> 00:31:12,880 Speaker 1: during the interwar period led her to become the world's 409 00:31:13,040 --> 00:31:17,800 Speaker 1: first female billionaire in dollars. This is not something will 410 00:31:17,800 --> 00:31:21,200 Speaker 1: Helmina herself talks about in her writing, so I don't 411 00:31:21,200 --> 00:31:24,320 Speaker 1: want to claim this as concrete fact, but we do 412 00:31:24,480 --> 00:31:30,040 Speaker 1: know that Wilhelmina had significant, if possibly not that significant, 413 00:31:30,280 --> 00:31:35,840 Speaker 1: personal wealth. She also learned how to paint. That brings 414 00:31:35,920 --> 00:31:40,840 Speaker 1: us to nineteen thirty eight. Wilhelmina notes that as early 415 00:31:41,040 --> 00:31:45,040 Speaker 1: as he was appointed, she apparently had no doubt in 416 00:31:45,120 --> 00:31:50,320 Speaker 1: her mind that Hitler would establish a dictatorship. She followed 417 00:31:50,440 --> 00:31:56,160 Speaker 1: closely as he invaded Austria then Czechoslovakia. She writes of 418 00:31:56,280 --> 00:32:00,320 Speaker 1: living in the knowledge that they were headed toward catastrophe. 419 00:32:00,720 --> 00:32:04,600 Speaker 1: Knowing Hitler's sights were set on Europe as a whole. 420 00:32:05,520 --> 00:32:11,000 Speaker 1: After British and the French declared war in nineteen thirty nine, 421 00:32:11,080 --> 00:32:16,440 Speaker 1: the Netherlands once again declared neutrality. Still they knew it 422 00:32:16,520 --> 00:32:19,880 Speaker 1: was only a matter of time before an attack, which 423 00:32:20,000 --> 00:32:25,720 Speaker 1: arrived months later in May nineteen forty. Wilhelmina spent the 424 00:32:25,840 --> 00:32:28,800 Speaker 1: night of May ninth in an air raid shelter, and 425 00:32:28,960 --> 00:32:33,760 Speaker 1: at four a m the Germans crossed the border. The 426 00:32:33,840 --> 00:32:36,600 Speaker 1: Hague was the source of an attack in the morning, 427 00:32:37,080 --> 00:32:40,080 Speaker 1: and it was becoming clear that the royal family could 428 00:32:40,160 --> 00:32:46,280 Speaker 1: no longer stay. Juliana, now grown, and her children left first. 429 00:32:46,600 --> 00:32:50,880 Speaker 1: Wilhelmina attempted to stay, and quote rang up the King 430 00:32:50,960 --> 00:32:55,320 Speaker 1: of England one night and asked for assistance. She writes 431 00:32:55,400 --> 00:32:58,520 Speaker 1: that she could hear the war approaching from her shelter, 432 00:32:59,080 --> 00:33:02,360 Speaker 1: and on the morning of May thirteenth, the commander in 433 00:33:02,480 --> 00:33:06,760 Speaker 1: chief advised that the Queen leave the Hague. She agreed 434 00:33:06,880 --> 00:33:10,920 Speaker 1: and hurriedly packed a few belongings and left with a 435 00:33:10,960 --> 00:33:15,160 Speaker 1: few others, including her head of security. The first place 436 00:33:15,200 --> 00:33:18,200 Speaker 1: they attempted to go was the Hook of Holland. 437 00:33:18,080 --> 00:33:20,560 Speaker 2: A town in the southwest. 438 00:33:19,920 --> 00:33:23,840 Speaker 1: Corner of the country, but bombs began to drop over 439 00:33:23,920 --> 00:33:27,840 Speaker 1: the town. As soon as they arrived. The group was 440 00:33:27,920 --> 00:33:31,320 Speaker 1: able to find a British destroyer ready to set sail, 441 00:33:31,680 --> 00:33:34,120 Speaker 1: and they attempted to go to the town of Zealand 442 00:33:34,200 --> 00:33:37,600 Speaker 1: in Flanders, but the British ship captain wasn't able to 443 00:33:37,640 --> 00:33:40,960 Speaker 1: make contact with the town. With no knowledge of what 444 00:33:41,040 --> 00:33:44,400 Speaker 1: they might be sailing into, the decision was made to 445 00:33:44,480 --> 00:33:48,640 Speaker 1: go instead to England. Of course, I was fully aware 446 00:33:48,760 --> 00:33:52,160 Speaker 1: of the shattering impression that my departure would make it home, 447 00:33:52,600 --> 00:33:57,040 Speaker 1: she reflected, but I considered myself obliged for the sake 448 00:33:57,160 --> 00:34:00,480 Speaker 1: of the country to accept the risk of appear to 449 00:34:00,560 --> 00:34:08,640 Speaker 1: have resorted to ignonymous flight. Wilhelmina was greeted in London 450 00:34:08,680 --> 00:34:12,600 Speaker 1: by her daughter Juliana and by King George, who invited 451 00:34:12,640 --> 00:34:15,279 Speaker 1: her to stay as a guest of the palace with 452 00:34:15,400 --> 00:34:19,439 Speaker 1: himself and the Queen of England. Juliana, however, would leave 453 00:34:19,480 --> 00:34:23,560 Speaker 1: with her children for Canada when it became clear that 454 00:34:23,600 --> 00:34:28,200 Speaker 1: Wilhelmina's stay in England would be indefinite. She purchased a 455 00:34:28,320 --> 00:34:30,400 Speaker 1: house for herself in Eton Square. 456 00:34:31,600 --> 00:34:32,600 Speaker 2: She tells the reader. 457 00:34:33,000 --> 00:34:35,920 Speaker 1: It was here that I met the first Engelin Varda, 458 00:34:36,000 --> 00:34:39,040 Speaker 1: which the book's translator note was the word used for 459 00:34:39,160 --> 00:34:42,400 Speaker 1: a Dutch person who had escaped to England, where I 460 00:34:42,560 --> 00:34:46,560 Speaker 1: heard the first broadcast of Radio Orange and received the 461 00:34:46,680 --> 00:34:50,239 Speaker 1: first letters from Juliana. And it was here that I 462 00:34:50,320 --> 00:34:55,239 Speaker 1: accustomed myself to exile. As to the experience of being 463 00:34:55,280 --> 00:34:59,520 Speaker 1: a queen in exile, Wilhelmina expresses that above all else, 464 00:34:59,640 --> 00:35:04,239 Speaker 1: she needed to maintain iron clad self control, which is 465 00:35:04,320 --> 00:35:09,759 Speaker 1: an ironic fate. Following the rigidity she once detested in 466 00:35:09,840 --> 00:35:14,000 Speaker 1: her eyes, Any decision making capabilities would be lost once 467 00:35:14,040 --> 00:35:18,600 Speaker 1: she gave rein to emotions and human pity. As a 468 00:35:18,680 --> 00:35:22,840 Speaker 1: ruler abroad, she sought to continue her rule, but a 469 00:35:22,920 --> 00:35:27,160 Speaker 1: government in exile couldn't function the same as one at home. 470 00:35:27,840 --> 00:35:31,040 Speaker 1: Military plans were kept secret from her, and much of 471 00:35:31,080 --> 00:35:34,399 Speaker 1: her work at this time was to keep in contact with. 472 00:35:34,480 --> 00:35:35,680 Speaker 2: Fellow heads of state. 473 00:35:36,680 --> 00:35:40,160 Speaker 1: The Battle of Britain soon began, and work was often 474 00:35:40,200 --> 00:35:44,640 Speaker 1: interrupted by the sirens urging citizens to make their way 475 00:35:44,719 --> 00:35:49,479 Speaker 1: to shelters. By September, Wilhelmina began to take her work 476 00:35:49,560 --> 00:35:53,800 Speaker 1: to the shelter daily at half past six and stay 477 00:35:53,840 --> 00:35:58,240 Speaker 1: there until the morning. Wilhelmina eventually moved to a house 478 00:35:58,320 --> 00:36:01,520 Speaker 1: in the country, then a new place in London in 479 00:36:01,640 --> 00:36:05,920 Speaker 1: Chester Square. The Eton Square House was set up by 480 00:36:06,000 --> 00:36:10,799 Speaker 1: the government as a home for England varters. During this 481 00:36:11,120 --> 00:36:15,640 Speaker 1: dark time, Wilhelmina felt booyed by the support of Dutch 482 00:36:15,719 --> 00:36:19,960 Speaker 1: people abroad seeking to aid their homeland. A collection of 483 00:36:20,080 --> 00:36:23,960 Speaker 1: funds was raised to support the war effort, and the 484 00:36:24,040 --> 00:36:28,000 Speaker 1: Queen often received letters of support from those abroad and 485 00:36:28,160 --> 00:36:32,719 Speaker 1: those still in her occupied homeland. Many even attempted to 486 00:36:32,960 --> 00:36:37,360 Speaker 1: encode secret messages to inform her of the situation at home, 487 00:36:38,000 --> 00:36:42,600 Speaker 1: and while Wilhelmina appreciated their efforts, she feared for the 488 00:36:42,680 --> 00:36:46,440 Speaker 1: safety of anyone trying to smuggle her messages. For the 489 00:36:46,520 --> 00:36:50,160 Speaker 1: first few months in exile, she was completely cut off 490 00:36:50,320 --> 00:36:53,640 Speaker 1: from the news in the Netherlands and the England Vard 491 00:36:53,800 --> 00:36:58,240 Speaker 1: connections to resistance groups at home became her major source 492 00:36:58,280 --> 00:37:02,360 Speaker 1: of information. In her writing, she holds them in great regard. 493 00:37:03,120 --> 00:37:06,640 Speaker 1: Many of those anglandvarters were resistance members who had fled 494 00:37:07,040 --> 00:37:09,400 Speaker 1: when it had become clear that they would soon be 495 00:37:09,520 --> 00:37:12,880 Speaker 1: unable to continue to fight at home, and so they 496 00:37:12,880 --> 00:37:17,240 Speaker 1: had come to join the forces in London. Wilhelmina note 497 00:37:17,280 --> 00:37:20,960 Speaker 1: that the Dutch abroad formed a community in London something 498 00:37:21,080 --> 00:37:25,880 Speaker 1: like a large village where everyone knew everyone. She worked 499 00:37:26,040 --> 00:37:31,200 Speaker 1: to establish a Dutch center to centralize information and resources, 500 00:37:31,560 --> 00:37:34,879 Speaker 1: as well as to further her own connection with the expats. 501 00:37:35,520 --> 00:37:39,279 Speaker 1: The opening of the center was the first time the 502 00:37:39,400 --> 00:37:44,280 Speaker 1: queen wore a Marguerite or daisy brooch, which would become 503 00:37:44,360 --> 00:37:48,560 Speaker 1: a symbol of Dutch resistance. She wanted the Dutch in 504 00:37:48,600 --> 00:37:53,560 Speaker 1: Britain to have an identifiable symbol of solidarity, and she 505 00:37:53,719 --> 00:37:58,799 Speaker 1: chose the daisy for something quote immaculate white, an expression 506 00:37:58,840 --> 00:38:03,320 Speaker 1: of sorrow and vope, and an object within everyone's reach. 507 00:38:04,160 --> 00:38:11,279 Speaker 1: Juliana's daughter, born during the war, was given the name Marguerite. 508 00:38:11,480 --> 00:38:15,520 Speaker 1: The British government sought to aid the Dutch community by 509 00:38:15,560 --> 00:38:20,040 Speaker 1: opening Netherlands House, a meeting place for both communities, where 510 00:38:20,120 --> 00:38:25,280 Speaker 1: social meetings, lectures, and musical gatherings were held. Wilhelmina herself 511 00:38:25,400 --> 00:38:30,040 Speaker 1: was often in attendance. She learned through these lectures that 512 00:38:30,080 --> 00:38:35,000 Speaker 1: the people were quote not only longing for liberation, but 513 00:38:35,080 --> 00:38:39,320 Speaker 1: also a new era. Liberation should not mean a return 514 00:38:39,480 --> 00:38:44,160 Speaker 1: to the old conditions. During this time, engelend Vards would 515 00:38:44,200 --> 00:38:47,960 Speaker 1: come to their office and share with her their visions 516 00:38:47,960 --> 00:38:53,400 Speaker 1: of the future and Wilhelmina held a conference specifically for 517 00:38:53,680 --> 00:38:58,400 Speaker 1: Dutch university students in Britain to share their experiences with 518 00:38:58,640 --> 00:39:03,840 Speaker 1: student resistant movement. Their ideas were so influential, in fact, 519 00:39:04,320 --> 00:39:08,440 Speaker 1: that Wilhelmina planned to oust the Prime Minister and build 520 00:39:08,480 --> 00:39:12,799 Speaker 1: a new cabinet entirely formed by resistance members who had 521 00:39:12,880 --> 00:39:17,120 Speaker 1: lived in the occupied state through the war. She writes 522 00:39:17,160 --> 00:39:21,520 Speaker 1: that she shared the people's ideas about future policies with 523 00:39:21,680 --> 00:39:25,880 Speaker 1: the current Prime Minister and informed him that she wanted 524 00:39:25,920 --> 00:39:28,239 Speaker 1: to be the one to lead the charge when it 525 00:39:28,280 --> 00:39:32,719 Speaker 1: came to reforms. This was the catalyst for Radio Orange, 526 00:39:33,120 --> 00:39:37,720 Speaker 1: which began this episode. My broadcast speeches were not only 527 00:39:37,760 --> 00:39:41,799 Speaker 1: concerned with the new Times, the Queen reflects, they also 528 00:39:41,960 --> 00:39:47,120 Speaker 1: aimed at inspiring and stiffening resistance against the oppressor and 529 00:39:47,280 --> 00:39:50,360 Speaker 1: at informing the nation of the government's policy. 530 00:39:51,280 --> 00:39:53,000 Speaker 2: Her desired effect. 531 00:39:52,880 --> 00:39:56,480 Speaker 1: Was achieved, As mentioned at the top of the episode, 532 00:39:57,040 --> 00:40:01,560 Speaker 1: Radio Orange was extremely popular among the people, and the 533 00:40:01,680 --> 00:40:06,160 Speaker 1: Queen was more popular than ever. Her New York Times 534 00:40:06,239 --> 00:40:10,960 Speaker 1: obituary shares an anecdote in which churchgoers in the fishing 535 00:40:11,000 --> 00:40:15,240 Speaker 1: town of Huisen sang one verse of the Dutch national 536 00:40:15,280 --> 00:40:21,040 Speaker 1: anthem Wilhelmus von Naussai on the queen's sixtieth birthday, but 537 00:40:21,200 --> 00:40:26,440 Speaker 1: the Nazis had explicitly forbidden any celebrations of the Queen's birthday, 538 00:40:26,880 --> 00:40:31,240 Speaker 1: and the town paid a fine of sixty thousand guilders. 539 00:40:31,960 --> 00:40:35,560 Speaker 1: In nineteen forty two, after the attack on Pearl Harbor, 540 00:40:36,080 --> 00:40:40,240 Speaker 1: Wilhelmina traveled to the United States for a national tour 541 00:40:40,360 --> 00:40:45,000 Speaker 1: at the invitation of President Roosevelt. She greatly admired both 542 00:40:45,040 --> 00:40:48,920 Speaker 1: the President himself as well as the First Lady, namely 543 00:40:49,000 --> 00:40:53,440 Speaker 1: for her independence in addition to her devotion to her husband. 544 00:40:54,239 --> 00:40:59,480 Speaker 1: During this trip, Wilhelmina became the first queen to address Congress. 545 00:41:00,160 --> 00:41:04,680 Speaker 1: Back in England, Wilhelmina also began to meet more frequently 546 00:41:04,800 --> 00:41:08,640 Speaker 1: with Churchill, who once called her the only real man 547 00:41:08,840 --> 00:41:14,160 Speaker 1: among the governments in exile. Wilhelmina finally returned to the 548 00:41:14,200 --> 00:41:18,400 Speaker 1: Netherlands in nineteen forty five, when she crossed the Dutch 549 00:41:18,480 --> 00:41:23,640 Speaker 1: border on foot. The reception from her people was incredibly warm. 550 00:41:23,920 --> 00:41:27,360 Speaker 1: While there were certainly those who resented the queen for leaving, 551 00:41:27,960 --> 00:41:31,080 Speaker 1: by and large, the Dutch citizens were thrilled at their 552 00:41:31,160 --> 00:41:36,080 Speaker 1: queen's return. In her later years after the war, Wilhelmina 553 00:41:36,160 --> 00:41:39,279 Speaker 1: opted for life in the countryside and could often be 554 00:41:39,360 --> 00:41:43,240 Speaker 1: seen doing what the Dutch liked to do best, riding 555 00:41:43,280 --> 00:41:48,000 Speaker 1: her bike. Her reign would only continue three more years. 556 00:41:48,600 --> 00:41:52,200 Speaker 1: In nineteen forty eight, she abdicated as her health began 557 00:41:52,280 --> 00:41:57,160 Speaker 1: to fail. Juliana had already briefly taken over her monarchical 558 00:41:57,239 --> 00:42:01,000 Speaker 1: duties at the end of nineteen forty seven, but now 559 00:42:01,040 --> 00:42:04,719 Speaker 1: she was officially to be sworn in as queen. How 560 00:42:04,800 --> 00:42:09,480 Speaker 1: numerous were and are my reasons for gratitude, Wilhelmina reflects 561 00:42:09,880 --> 00:42:13,719 Speaker 1: my confidence in Juliana's warm feelings for the people we 562 00:42:13,880 --> 00:42:17,080 Speaker 1: both loved so much, and in her devotion to the 563 00:42:17,200 --> 00:42:20,880 Speaker 1: task that was awaiting her. Then also the fact that 564 00:42:21,000 --> 00:42:25,000 Speaker 1: my office was transferred to her during my lifetime, and 565 00:42:25,040 --> 00:42:28,319 Speaker 1: that I might have the opportunity to see some of 566 00:42:28,360 --> 00:42:32,759 Speaker 1: her reign. Really, there is no room, Wilhelmina wrote, for 567 00:42:32,960 --> 00:42:37,560 Speaker 1: sadness in my heart. Her reign was fifty seven years 568 00:42:37,960 --> 00:42:43,000 Speaker 1: and two hundred and eighty six days. Wilhelmina did get 569 00:42:43,040 --> 00:42:46,560 Speaker 1: to see over a decade of her daughter's reign before 570 00:42:46,600 --> 00:42:50,319 Speaker 1: she died of cardiac arrest at Hetloo Palace. At the 571 00:42:50,360 --> 00:42:54,680 Speaker 1: age of eighty two. At her request, the royal family 572 00:42:54,800 --> 00:42:58,880 Speaker 1: held a white funeral, a symbol of the Queen's faith, 573 00:42:59,320 --> 00:43:02,840 Speaker 1: which signified her belief that death was only the beginning 574 00:43:03,000 --> 00:43:12,400 Speaker 1: of eternal life. That's the story and tumultuous long life 575 00:43:12,480 --> 00:43:16,439 Speaker 1: of Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands. But stick around after 576 00:43:16,480 --> 00:43:18,640 Speaker 1: a brief sponsor break for a. 577 00:43:18,560 --> 00:43:29,960 Speaker 3: Little sweet fact. A book called Sweets, A. 578 00:43:30,000 --> 00:43:33,080 Speaker 1: History of Candy might not be the place you'd expect 579 00:43:33,080 --> 00:43:36,600 Speaker 1: to find royal history, but in the section devoted to 580 00:43:36,640 --> 00:43:41,360 Speaker 1: the Netherlands, author Tim Richardson notes the candy that's quote 581 00:43:41,719 --> 00:43:46,879 Speaker 1: most Dutch of all, the Wilhelmina Mint. In eighteen ninety two, 582 00:43:47,120 --> 00:43:51,000 Speaker 1: the head of the Dutch candy company Fortune asked the 583 00:43:51,040 --> 00:43:55,000 Speaker 1: young Queen Wilhelmina if he could name his new peppermint 584 00:43:55,120 --> 00:43:59,200 Speaker 1: after her as a celebration of her twelfth birthday. Queen 585 00:43:59,239 --> 00:44:02,240 Speaker 1: Regent Emma wrote a reply on behalf of her daughter, 586 00:44:02,800 --> 00:44:06,040 Speaker 1: saying that it's fine and she leaves it entirely up 587 00:44:06,120 --> 00:44:10,520 Speaker 1: to him, a very diplomatic answer. He went ahead with 588 00:44:10,600 --> 00:44:15,040 Speaker 1: the idea and produced a line of candies featuring Wilhelmina's 589 00:44:15,120 --> 00:44:19,399 Speaker 1: portrait on each mint. The peppermints were such a hit 590 00:44:19,640 --> 00:44:23,520 Speaker 1: with the Royal family that Fortune received the predicate of 591 00:44:24,000 --> 00:44:28,200 Speaker 1: Purveyor to the Royal Household in eighteen ninety six. It's 592 00:44:28,239 --> 00:44:39,520 Speaker 1: a title that the candy company still holds to this day. 593 00:44:41,080 --> 00:44:45,400 Speaker 1: Noble Blood is a production of iHeartRadio and Grim and 594 00:44:45,480 --> 00:44:49,800 Speaker 1: Mild from Aaron Manki. Noble Blood is created and hosted 595 00:44:49,880 --> 00:44:54,560 Speaker 1: by me Dana Shchwort, with additional writing and researching by 596 00:44:54,640 --> 00:45:00,000 Speaker 1: Hannah Johnston, Hannahswick, Mira Hayward, Courtney Sender, and Lori Goodnes. 597 00:45:00,640 --> 00:45:04,440 Speaker 1: The show is edited and produced by Noemi Griffin and 598 00:45:04,680 --> 00:45:10,360 Speaker 1: rima Il Kahali, with supervising producer Josh Thain and executive 599 00:45:10,400 --> 00:45:15,080 Speaker 1: producers Aaron Manke, Alex Williams, and Matt Frederick. For more 600 00:45:15,120 --> 00:45:21,040 Speaker 1: podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or 601 00:45:21,080 --> 00:45:23,120 Speaker 1: wherever you listen to your favorite shows.