Chapter 13: The Great Powers in Conflict: The Protestant ...



Chapter 15: The Great Powers in Conflict: the Dutch Republic – Lesson 6

Opening the Lesson:

1. Begin with a review of the Dutch Revolt covered in Lesson 2. Note that the Dutch financed their revolt against the Spanish with the money earned from the distribution of Portuguese goods. When Spain took control of Portugal in 1580, the Dutch seized the Portuguese colonies in the East Indies.

2. To what extent did political factors account for the economic success of the Dutch in the 17th Century? This question is connected with the handout – The Commercial Revolution

Developing the lesson:

V. The Dutch Republic 1602-1672

A. The Golden Age of the Netherlands; the 17th Century

1. The Netherlands wielded power and influence far beyond its geographic and population size. Why?

a. part of her success rested on her commercial prosperity

1) for years she had been at the crossroads for trade

2) the fishing industry was the cornerstone of her economy

3) profits from the fishing industry stimulated shipbuilding

a) Dutch merchant marine was the largest in Europe

b) 16,000 ships; half the European total

4) organized the Dutch East India Co. in 1602

a) joint stock company in which investors received a percentage of profits proportional to their investment

b) they established New York and settled in So. America

c) she was Japan’s sole link to the West

d) took South Africa from Portugal

5) founded the Bank of Amsterdam in 1609

a) European money was in chaos because countries continually debased their coins by adding more alloy while leaving old coins in circulation so anyone handling money accumulated coins of uncertain value

b) the bank accepted deposits of all money, assessed the gold and silver content, and at rates of exchange fixed by the bank, allowed depositors to withdraw equivalent values in gold florins minted by the bank

c) Dutch gold florins were of unchanging weight and purity and became the accepted international currency

d) depositors were allowed to draw checks and deposits were guaranteed

e) the bank’s actions drew deposits from all over Europe making loans possible for a large number of purposes

f) Amsterdam was the financial center of Europe until the French Revolution

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b. religious toleration

1) all faiths were welcome

2) as long as people conducted their religion in private, the government did not bother them

3) toleration attracted foreign capital and investment

c. political conditions favored the dutch

1) the merchant class dominated the state and laws favored their economic interests

2) France was involved in the 30 years War and the wars of Louis XIV

3) England was embroiled in the struggle between king and Parliament

4) the Italians and Germans were unable to unite

5) Spain was more interested in religion than in industry or commerce

2. What caused the Dutch decline?

a. the English Navigation Acts beginning in 1651 which built the British Empire were aimed at Dutch commerce and led to wars with the English – review the acts and their intentions

1) the Dutch and the English fought two naval wars in the late 17th C.: 1652-54 and 1665-67

2) in these wars the Dutch warships were handicapped

a) the draft of the Dutch ships were limited by shallow bars at the entrance to her harbors while England had deep water ports

b) English ships could thus increase the tonnage and guns carried on her ships

3) the competition between England and the Netherlands ended when William of Orange and his wife Mary took the English throne in 1689

4) England came to realize the benefit of having a friend on the other side of the Channel

b. the Dutch occupy a small area with few resources and could not sustain a position of world power

B. Dutch Art

1. She achieved her greatest distinction in the arts

a. Frans Hal

b. Jan Vermeer

c. Rembrandt

2. Rembrandt

3. Jan Vermeer (1632-1675)

a. was almost unknown during his lifetime

b. only 40 of his works are known but he is considered one of history’s greatest artists

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c. The Letter

1) captures the quiet, gentle mood of the women as they are inspired by the arrival of a letter; everything stops at the moment of the letter arrives

2) we watch as the letter reaches its destination from the vantage point of the darkened room

3) what message does the letter contain? what importance do the women attach to the letter?

4) the seated woman has stopped playing the lute and takes the letter from the smiling servant girl; is the letter from someone special?

5) the painting of the ship may be a clue

4. The Dutch did not paint as the artists of Italy, Spain or France

a. Holland was Protestant and this influenced the kind of art

b. there were no princely courts to pay for majestic paintings and no Catholic churches to be decorated

c. artists turned from creating historical and religious paintings to portraits, landscapes and scenes of ordinary people going about their daily tasks

d. artists lived mostly in poverty; Vermeer left wife and children heavily in debt

Concluding the Lesson:

1. Prepare students for DBQ

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