William III was King of England, Scotland and Ireland from 1689 until his death in 1702, ruling jointly with his wife Mary II until her death in 1694. Born a Dutch prince of the House of Orange, he came to the English throne following the Glorious Revolution of 1688, which removed his father-in-law James II.
William's reign brought English taste into close contact with the Netherlands and with French Protestant craftsmen who had fled to England and Holland. He commissioned Sir Christopher Wren to remodel Hampton Court Palace and expanded Kensington Palace, and the Huguenot designer Daniel Marot shaped many royal interiors, gardens and furnishings. Dutch influence is seen in walnut furniture, marquetry, tall-backed chairs, cabinets on stands, formal gardens with clipped topiary and canals, and the fashionable display of blue and white porcelain and Delftware. Silver of the period shows the Huguenot style of cut-card work and strapwork. In the antiques trade the name appears mainly in the stylistic label William and Mary, but furniture and silver made after Mary's death are sometimes described as William III. Period pieces with good provenance are rare and keenly studied.
