Editing History of the Netherlands (section)

==Dutch Republic: Regents and Stadholders (1649–1784)==
{{Main|Dutch Republic}}
[[File:Hendrick Avercamp - A Scene on the Ice - WGA01076.jpg|thumb|''Skating fun'', a traditional rural scene by 17th-century Dutch painter [[Hendrick Avercamp]]]]The ''United Provinces of the Netherlands'', commonly referred to in [[historiography]] as the ''Dutch Republic'', was a [[confederation]] of provinces that existed from 1579 until the [[Batavian Revolution]] in 1795. It was the first independent Dutch state. The republic was established after seven Dutch provinces revolted against [[Spanish Empire|Spanish rule]], declaring their independence in 1581. As the Netherlands was a republic, it was largely governed by an aristocracy of city-merchants called the [[Regenten|regents]], rather than by a king. Every city and province had its own government and laws, and a large degree of autonomy. After attempts to find a competent sovereign proved unsuccessful, it was decided that sovereignty would be vested in the various provincial Estates, the governing bodies of the provinces. The [[Estates-General of the Netherlands|Estates-General]], with its representatives from all the provinces, would decide on matters important to the Republic as a whole. Each province was led by an official known as the {{lang-for|nl|[[stadtholder]]|steward}}; this office was nominally open to anyone, but most provinces appointed a member of the [[House of Orange]]. The position gradually became hereditary, with the [[Prince of Orange]] simultaneously holding most or all of the stadtholderships, making him effectively the [[head of state]]. This created tension between political factions: the [[Orangism (Dutch Republic)|Orangists]] favoured a powerful stadtholder, while the Republicans favoured a strong States General. The Republicans forced two [[Stadtholderless Period (disambiguation)|Stadtholderless Periods]], 1650–1672 and 1702–1747, with the latter causing [[Orangist revolution|national instability]] and the end of [[Great Power]] status. In the [[Peace of Westphalia]] (1648) the republic gained approximately 20% more territory, located outside the member provinces, which was ruled directly by the States General as [[Generality Lands]].

Although the state was small and had only around 1.5&nbsp;million inhabitants, it controlled a worldwide network of seafaring [[trade route]]s. Through its trading companies, the [[Dutch East India Company]] (VOC) and the [[Dutch West India Company]] (GWC), it established an empire. 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>

&nbsp; The income from this trade allowed the Dutch Republic to compete militarily against much larger countries. It amassed a huge fleet of 2,000 ships, initially larger than the fleets of England and France combined. Major conflicts were fought in the Eighty Years' War against Spain, the [[Dutch–Portuguese War]] (1602–1663), four [[Anglo-Dutch Wars]], the [[Franco-Dutch War]] (1672–1678), [[War of the Grand Alliance]] (1688–1697), the [[War of the Spanish Succession]] (1702–1713), the [[War of Austrian Succession]] (1744–1748), and the [[War of the First Coalition]] (1792–1795) against the [[Kingdom of France]].

The republic was more tolerant of different religions and ideas than contemporary states, allowing [[freedom of thought]] to its residents. Artists flourished under this regime, including painters such as Rembrandt. So did scientists, such as [[Hugo Grotius]], [[Christiaan Huygens]] and [[Antonie van Leeuwenhoek]]. Dutch trade, science, armed forces, and art were among the most acclaimed in the world during much of the 17th century, a period which became known as the Dutch Golden Age.

The economy, based on Amsterdam's role as the center of world trade, was strong in the 17th century. In 1670 the Dutch merchant marine totalled 568,000 tons of shipping—about half the European total.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Tim William Blanning |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rmkcaEfwcsQC&pg=PA96 |title=The Pursuit of Glory: Europe, 1648–1815 |publisher=Penguin |date=2007 |isbn=9780670063208 |page=96}}</ref> The province of Holland was highly commercial and dominated the country. Its nobility was small and closed and had little influence, for it was numerically small, politically weak, and formed a strictly closed caste. Most land in the province of Holland was commercialized for cash crops and was owned by urban capitalists, not nobles; there were few links between Holland's nobility and the merchants. By 1650 the burgher families which had grown wealthy through commerce and become influential in government controlled the province of Holland, and to a large extent shaped national policies. The other six provinces were more rural and traditional in life style, had an active nobility, and played a small role in commerce and national politics. Instead they concentrated on their flood protections and land reclamation projects.<ref>{{Cite book |last=E.H. Kossmann |title=The Dutch Republic |editor-first=F. L. |editor-last=Carsten |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FzQ9AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA275 |volume =5. The Ascendancy of France, 1648–88 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |date=1961 |isbn=9780521045445 |pages=275–276 |author-link=Ernst Kossmann}}</ref>{{Sfnp|Israel|1995|pages=277–279, 284}}

Economic decline led to a period of political instability known as the [[Patriottentijd]] (1780–1787).<ref name=":022">{{Cite book |last=Rietbergen |first=P. J. A. N. |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/52849131 |title=A Short History of the Netherlands: From Prehistory to the Present Day |publisher=Bekking |year=2000 |isbn=90-6109-440-2 |edition=4th |location=Amersfoort |pages=159 |oclc=52849131 |access-date=26 September 2023 |archive-date=26 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231126115046/https://search.worldcat.org/title/52849131 |url-status=live}}</ref> This unrest was temporarily suppressed by a [[Prussian invasion of Holland|Prussian invasion]] in support of the stadtholder. The [[French Revolution]] and subsequent [[War of the First Coalition]] reignited these tensions. Following military defeat by France, the stadtholder was expelled in the [[Batavian Revolution]] of 1795, ending the Dutch Republic, which was succeeded by the [[Batavian Republic]].