In 1677 William III married Mary Stuart, the elder daughter of the Duke of York and the direct heir to the British throne. William III was an astute politician and statesman who sought to preserve the balance of power in Europe by means of alliances and was especially anxious to thwart Louis XIV's expansionist aims and his religious zeal. In 1685 Louis revoked the Edict of Nantes, which had granted the Huguenots freedom of worship. In response, 400,000 skilled and educated Protestants fled the country and sought refuge in the Republic, Britain and the Protestant German principalities. This gave rise to a new wave of anti-French feeling in the Republic. In Britain, the Catholic James II (William III's father-in-law) came to the throne. He quickly introduced pro-Catholic measures and concluded an alliance with France. The English parliament pleaded with William and his wife Mary to intervene. In November 1688, with the consent of the States General, William set sail with a great army to restore the laws and freedoms of England. James II promptly fled to France and the 'Glorious Revolution' resulted in a constitutional monarchy. When in 1689 the English parliament proclaimed William and Mary joint monarchs, William III became a King, as well as being Stadholder of the Republic.

William III's constant aim had been to create a grand alliance against the French. He finally succeeded in the same year as he was crowned King in England. The anti-French coalition included the Austrian emperor, several German states and even Spain. But by that time war had already broken out between the Republic and France. It was to last nine years and bring little success. The heavy costs involved inflicted great damage on the economy, leading to higher unemployment. This provoked a popular uprising among the people of Amsterdam, who were tired of costly wars.