Complex sentence: Thus, combining the United Provinces of the Netherlands with the former Austrian Netherlands, in order to create a strong buffer state north of France, and with the unification of all the provinces the Netherlands was indeed a rising power.
Split into simpler sentences: Thus, combining the United Provinces of the Netherlands with the former Austrian Netherlands, in order to create a strong buffer state north of France. And with the unification of all the provinces the Netherlands was indeed a rising power.