After William of Orange's invasion of the Netherlands in 1572, Spain had consistently failed to quash the seemingly inferior army of the Dutch rebels that were then enabled to form a stronghold in William's stadtheld provinces of Holland and Zealand.
Development of such a basis for rebellion could be seen as the first mistake of many not just under Alva- the Commander at the time- but also by his successors Requesens and Don John, who held commanding positions up to 1576.
Alva"s arrival in 1568 signalled a more aggressive stance in policy in the Netherlands- the order was to restore royal order to the country through whatever means necessary.
His actions may have been acceptable to Philip II but weren't to those who lived in the Netherlands at the time.
The Tenth Penny tax was unpopular when implemented through the States General in 1568, but when a year later he forced the taxes upon the people it proved to be even more disliked to the point of ostracisation. His Council of Blood also proved to be unpopular, using extreme measures to eradicate heresy and severe punishment to heretics and traitors. A "cruel instrument of Spanish repression" that highlighted Alva's policy of alienating Grandees, Protestants and Netherlanders in general.
However, by Orange's invasion of 1568, the lack of support for the revolt typified the feeling that despite not being necessarily happy with Alva's actions, the people of the Netherlands weren't angered enough to rise against the Commander, leaving Orange with rather limited support from abroad leading to Orange's eventual defeat.
Alva's actions could be seen as a necessary action that as a consequence created anti-Spanish feeling throughout the Netherlands. Alva was ordered to stop the heresy that was spreading across the provinces, and despite his overly aggressive stance towards doing it, it may have been necessary. As for the 10th Penny Tax, the funding to the Netherlands was very limited due to the Spain's dwindling resources and foreign distractions that proved to be very expensive.
