Willem was the son of King Willem II and Anna Paylovna of Russia and on the death of his father in 1849, he succeeded as king of the Netherlands where ruled until his death in 1890.
William III was a man of immense stature with a boisterous voice, standing at 6’5″ (196 cm) he was an exceptionally large and strong man. Known to be a philanderer he had several dozen illegitimate children from various mistresses. He could be gentle and kind, then suddenly he could become intimidating and even violent. He was inclined to terrorize and humiliate his courtiers and servants. His ministers were afraid of him and most people around him agreed that he was, to some degree, insane.
He married his first cousin, Sophie, daughter of King William I of Württemberg and Grand Duchess Catherine Pavlovna of Russia on 18 June 1839. This marriage was unhappy and was characterized by struggles about their children. Sophie was a liberal intellectual, hating everything leaning toward dictatorship, such as the army. Whereas William was simpler, more conservative, and loved the military. His extramarital enthusiasms, however, led the New York Times to call him “the greatest debaucher of the age”. Another cause of marital tension (and later political tension) was his capriciousness as he could rage against someone one day and be extremely polite the next.
After years of turmoil, Sophie and Willem mutually wished to have a divorce, but a divorce was seen as an impossible scandal because of their position. By the mediation of Prince Frederick of the Netherlands, a formal separation without divorce was finalized in 1855, and it was decided that the couple was to remain formally married in public, but allowed to live separate lives in practice. Willem was to be given full right to decide about the upbringing of their eldest son, who would become King, while Sophie was given full custody of their youngest. Sophie was to fulfill her representational duties as Queen in public, but allowed to live her private life as she wished.
Sophie was an unusual queen with her left leaning political opinions and scientific interests, and her non-dogmatic views on religion, her support for progressive development and her disdain for etiquette gave her the soubriquet “la reine rouge” (‘The Red Queen’). Sophie died at Huis ten Bosch Palace in the Hague in 1877 and she was buried in her wedding dress, because, in her own view, her life had ended on the day she married.
During his reign, the king became more and more unpopular with his bourgeois-liberal subjects, his whims provoking their resistance and mockery, but he remained quite popular with the common people.
Willem III had two sons by his marriage with Sophia, Willem (1841–1879), and Alexander (1843–1884). Both of them died unmarried and the death of Prince Alexander left the house of Orange without a direct male heir. After the death of Queen Sophia in 1877 the prospect of a disputed succession was averted by the marriage of the king in 1879 with the twenty year old princess Emma of Waldeck-Pyrmont, who managed to produce an heir.
From this union a daughter, Wilhelmina, was born in 1880. In 1888 and 1889, the ailing king became increasingly demented and died in 1890. On her father’s death Wilhelmina succeeded him as Queen of the Netherlands and ruled for 57 years until her abdication in 1948.
Abandoned and forgotten, a magnificent bronze bust of King Willem III lies in a side garden and usually behind a locked door, in the rear of the former Dutch Colonial headquarters on the island of Pulau Banda in Eastern Indonesia. Perhaps he should be rescued and brought back to the Netherlands,
spiceislandsblog 
A most engaging story.
Traveling in and writing about the ‘East Indies’, does not mean automatically becoming an expert on the history of the Netherlands’ Royal Family. For example, one of the concluding lines of this story states: “On her father’s death Wilhelmina succeeded him as Queen of the Netherlands and ruled for the next 58 years until
her death in 1948.” The not very popular Willem III
had died in 1890. While Wilhelmina succeeded him, she did not “rule” for the next 58 years, because some Dutch constitutional rules and later historical events prevented that. They arguably made her ‘rule’ for just 47 years. When Wilhelmina obtained the title ‘Queen’, she was 12 years old and not entitled to ‘rule’ yet. She had to wait to take on that actual job until she was 18. The talented Queen Emma did that job for her, legally and actually. Wilhelmina was a popular and appreciated queen, a relationship built with her people already in those first 6 years, when everywhere the popular Queen Emma went to represent the Crown, she took Wilhelmina with her, grooming her into the position. So the locals would welcomed their TWO queens. Then, when Nazi Germany conquered and occupied The Netherlands in the 2nd World War (during 1940-’45), Queen Wilhelmina fled to England and arguably did not ‘rule’ The Netherlands for those 5 years of occupation either, although she tried hard and kept the position and was as active as she could from a distance. Hitler ruled the country for those 5 years, indeed with an iron fist. Yet, Wilhelmina regularly ‘addressed’ and encouraged her people over the radio from London. Just listening to it was not without its risks. With source publication of this Willem III story not being provided, there may be other aspects that require some explanation.
Thanks for this interesting article Ian. I remember seeing that bust of King Willem III with you in Banda Neira. One correction needs to be made. Queen Wilhelmina did not die in 1948, she abdicated in that year, and died 14 years later in 1962.