Constitutionalism: The Dutch Republic, 1600-1689
I. The Dutch Republic
- A. Political Independence
- 1. Each of the seven Dutch provinces was politically independent.
- 2. Unlike the other continental nations, the Dutch were not governed by an absolute ruler.
- 3. Instead, political power passed into the hands of wealthy merchants.
- B. Religious Toleration
- 1. Calvinism was the dominant religion.
- 2. However, Catholics, Lutherans, Anabaptists, and Jews all enjoyed religious freedom.
- 3. This religious toleration helped create a cosmopolitan society that promoted commerce.
- C. Economic Prosperity
- 1. The Dutch Republic was Europe’s leading commercial power during most of the seventeenth century. Amsterdam remained Europe’s financial center until the French Revolution.
- 2. Shipbuilding played a key role in the Dutch economy. The Dutch fleet of 10,000 ships was the largest in the world.
- 3. As trade routes shifted from the Mediterranean to the Atlantic, the Dutch replaced the Italians as the bankers of Europe. Founded in 1609, the Amsterdam Exchange Bank quickly won a reputation as the safest, soundest bank in Europe.
- 4. The Dutch East Indies Company displaced the Portuguese and gained control of the lucrative spice trade in the East Indies.
- D. Artistic Creativity
- 1. The Dutch Republic was a Protestant nation without an absolute ruler. This made the Dutch art very different from the baroque art in Rome and Madrid. Baroque artists working in these cities created works of art designed to glorify the Catholic Church and the ruling monarchs.
- 2. Lacking commissions from the Catholic Church and from royal officials, Dutch artists turned to their nation’s prosperous merchants. As self-made entrepreneurs they wanted to purchase paintings of themselves, their families, their possessions, and their land.
- 3. Dutch artists focused on painting individual and group portraits, landscapes, and genre scenes of everyday life.
- 4. During the 1600s, the Dutch Republic supported an astonishing number of great artists. Led by Frans Hals, Rembrandt, and Jan Vermeer, the Dutch enjoyed a golden age of artistic achievement.
- E. Economic Decline
- 1. Costly wars with England and France damaged the Dutch Republic.
- 2. As the Dutch Republic declined, England and France became the dominant European powers.
NOTE: The Dutch Republic generates a number of very predictable questions. For example, almost every APEURO exam has had a question designed to see if you know that Amsterdam was Europe’s leading commercial center during the seventeenth century. Also be sure that you know the unique characteristics and subjects of Dutch art.
