Editing Economy of the Netherlands (section)

==History==
{{see also|Economic history of the Netherlands (1500–1815)|Financial history of the Dutch Republic}}

After declaring its independence from the empire of [[Philip II of Spain]] in 1581, the Netherlands experienced almost a century of explosive economic growth. A technological revolution in capital, due to Protestant traders of Flanders who fled to the Netherlands, helped the young Republic become the dominant trade power by the mid-17th century. In 1670 the Dutch merchant marine totalled 568,000 tons of shipping—about half the European total. The main reasons for this were the dominance of the [[Amsterdam Entrepôt]] in European trade, and that of the [[Dutch East India Company|Dutch East India Company (or Verenigde Oost-Indische Companie – VOC)]] and [[Dutch West India Company|West India Companies]] in intercontinental trade. These companies were based on the English model and the success of England's joint-stock enterprises and trading guilds.<ref>{{Cite web |last=KENNARD |first=MATT |date=2023-05-18 |title=How the modern corporation was invented in England |url=https://www.declassifieduk.org/how-the-modern-corporation-was-invented-in-england/ |access-date=2024-07-23 |website=Declassified Media Ltd |language=en-US}}</ref>

Beside trade, an early "industrial revolution" (powered by wind, water and [[peat]]), land reclamation from the sea, and agricultural revolution, helped the Dutch economy achieve the highest standard of living in Europe (and presumably the world) by the middle of the 17th century. Affluence facilitated what is known as the [[Dutch Golden Age]]. This economic boom abruptly came to an end by a combination of political-military upheavals and adverse economic developments around 1670. Still the Netherlands kept a high level of prosperity, due to trade and agriculture.

Towards the 1800s, the Netherlands did not industrialize as rapidly as some other countries in Europe. One explanation for this is that the Netherlands were struggling to come to terms with having lost their dominant economical (based mainly on trade and agriculture) and political position in the world. Griffiths argues that government policies made possible a unified Dutch national economy in the 19th century. They included the abolition of internal tariffs and guilds; a unified coinage system; modern methods of tax collection; standardized weights and measures; and the building of many roads, canals, and railroads.

The rest of Europe in the 19th century saw the gradual transformation of the Netherlands into a modern middle-class industrial society. The number of people employed in agriculture decreased while the country made an effort to revive its stake in the highly competitive industrial and trade business. The Netherlands lagged behind Belgium until the late 19th century in industrialization, then caught up by about 1920. Major industries included textiles and (later) the great Philips industrial conglomerate. Rotterdam became a major shipping and manufacturing center.<ref>{{cite book|author=Loyen, Reginald|title=Struggling for Leadership: Antwerp-Rotterdam Port. Competition 1870–2000|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QG1R4StCc1gC|year= 2003|publisher=Springer|display-authors=etal|isbn=978-3-7908-1524-5}}</ref> Poverty slowly declined and begging largely disappeared along with steadily improving working conditions for the population.

In 1959, the Netherlands discovered large natural gas fields. The export of natural gas led to large windfall profits. However, as an unforeseen consequence, these were believed to have led to a decline in the manufacturing sector in the Netherlands.<ref name="The Economist pp. 82-83">"The Dutch Disease" (26 November 1977). ''The Economist'', pp. 82–83.</ref>