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This 1908 condensed edition of Motley's "Rise of the Dutch Republic" is available for reading on-line HERE.
Though an American historian writing in English, Motley's history of the Netherlands' long, terrible war against Spain to win independence is considered the best history of this extremely important chapter in world history.
Religious tolerance for all faiths was a temporary emergency war measure. After Spain was defeated and the sovereign Republic declared, the national assembly met and considered ending religious tolerance, reverting the Netherlands to the primacy of the state religion, the Dutch Reform Church, and removing legal guarantees of the rights of worship of other religions.
But a speaker pointed out that the coalition created by tolerating all religions had made the Netherlands powerful, victorious and wealthy, and he suggested postponing for a year the vote to rescind the emergency war measure.
The temporary emergency war measure of tolerance for all religions remains in effect in the Netherlands to the present day.
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