van der capellen's "aan het volk van nederland" did not relate the history of the netherlands from the perspective of the orange family or the regenten, but that of 'the people'. mostly the house of orange, but the regenten as well, had tried their best to take away the natural and historical freedoms from the people. the ancient batavians were free, but the inhabitants of the netherlands had been doing worse ever since. in the middle ages, counts and dukes had ruled, afterwards the burgundians and habsburgers. the dutch had rebelled against philip ii, but the princes of orange, who did save the northern netherlands from spanish tyranny, were actually also seeking to enlarge their own power, the pamphlet claimed.