Willem V en Wilhelmina van Pruisen verwelkomd door de Amsterdamse stedenmaagd, 1768 1768

This print from 1768 commemorates Prince Willem V of Orange and his wife Wilhelmina of Prussia being welcomed to Amsterdam. Such images served a vital public role in the Dutch Republic. We see the couple greeted by the Amsterdamse stedenmaagd, a virgin figure representing the city. The print presents a carefully constructed image of civic pride and loyalty to the House of Orange, the hereditary Stadtholders of the Republic. Amsterdam's opulent architecture is visible in the background. It’s worth remembering that this was a period of political tension. Support for the Stadtholder was not universal, and the House of Orange had its critics among those who favoured a more republican form of government. Prints like this were intended to shore up popular support for the existing regime. To fully understand the image, historians turn to archives, pamphlets, and other visual materials to reconstruct the political and social context in which it was made and consumed. By studying these sources, we can gain a deeper understanding of the public role of art in the Dutch Republic.