The Dutch trade during the Anglo- Dutch wars. The Anglo-Dutch wars were instigated by differences over trade between the Dutch Republic and the English Commonwealth

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Hoogerduijn,

“The direct use of force is such a poor solution to any problem; it is generally employed only by small children and large nations”. Wars are never a solution to a problem, as was found by both the Dutch Republic and England after the Anglo-Dutch wars. The Anglo- Dutch wars were a series of wars between England and the Dutch Republic in the seventeenth and eighteenth century. The start of the Anglo-Dutch wars coincides with the height of the Dutch Golden Age as well as the reformation of England into a Commonwealth under its new leader Oliver Cromwell. The end of the Anglo- Dutch wars also signified the end of the Dutch Golden Age. Since the Dutch Republic had found the rout to India under Cornelis Houtman and Jan Huyghen can Linschoten the Dutch Republic started to become one of the largest trading nations in the world. The Golden Age was approximately a century in which the Dutch Republic was among the richest and most prosperous countries in the world because of it international trading empire. The Anglo-Dutch wars were instigated by differences over trade between the Dutch Republic and the English Commonwealth and those same differences combined with the events which occurred during the wars in turn caused one war after the other war. In total there were 5 Anglo- Dutch wars, the first starting in 1651 and the fifth one ending in 1801. The Anglo- Dutch wars caused the Dutch trade to prosper and collapse trough treaties, the Anglo-Dutch wars themselves and the causes of the wars.

The first Anglo-Dutch war was instigated by the passing of the Navigation Act by the British government in October, 1651. The Navigation Act stated that all goods that were to be imported into England had to be either carried by an English ship or by a ship sailing under the nation of origin. The Navigation Act also stated that all ships must salute English ships by striking their flag, no matter where they were at the time and pay a tribute for any herring caught 30 miles from the English shore. Although The Navigation Act did not affect the Dutch trade itself, it did give pirates the opportunities to take over Dutch ships legally as many Dutch ships refused to strike there flags. The striking of the flag was seen as a sign of submission and was not taken very kindly by many Dutch captains, and on May 29, 1652 Admiral Maarten Tromp refused to strike his flag. This resulted in England declaring war on the Dutch Republic on July 10, 1652. The first Anglo-Dutch war started with minor battles; however the Dutch eventually pushed the English navy back into the English Channel. Yet the English fought back leaving both sides claiming victory in 1654. During the war Admiral Tromp died from being hit by a canon ball. England and the Dutch Republic also competed over the Danish sound so that they could determine who would lead in the Baltic trade which consisted mainly of grain. The War officially ended on April 5th with the Treaty of Westminster (1654). This treaty stated that the Dutch accepted the terms of the Navigation Act and that the Dutch Republic would not elect a new Stadholder. The Dutch republic had been governed by Stadholders since the middle Ages and not having a Stadholder would spread the Dutch power over multiple provinces making the Dutch Republic weaker. Since the treaty of Westminster never really solved the problems that caused the war in the first place it only set the stage for the second Anglo Dutch War. Because the Treaty of Westminster abolished the Stadhouder Johan de Witt rose to power in the Dutch Republic. The first Anglo- Dutch war was mainly caused by trading differences and only affected the Dutch trade by making it legal for English mutineers to take over Dutch ships because England and the Dutch republic were at war.

The second Anglo Dutch war was a result of the king of England, Charles II, pressuring his nephew, Prince Willem III, to become stadholder of the Dutch Republic. Charles II attempted to get his nephew into the position with some military pressure. With or without military pressure, electing a new stadholder was against the Treaty of Westminster and when the English population found out of there king’s actions they were getting a great desire for war as this was a opportunity to try and take over the leading trading role in Europe. In 1664, England and the Dutch republic were once again at war. The second Anglo-Dutch saw some major naval battles, including the Four Day battle. During the Four Day battle in 1664 the Dutch Admiral Michael de Ruyter fought a four day naval battle against Admiral Blake of England, resulting in a victory for the Dutch Admiral. However Admiral Blake did manage to conquer the Dutch colony of New Netherlands (present day New York). The final battle of the second Anglo- Dutch war was the battle of Medway, where Admiral de Ruyter led the Dutch fleet up the Thames River by braking trough the defensive chains guarding the river and defeating the English fleet. The war officially ended with the treaty of Breda in 1667. The Treaty of Breda stated that England was allowed to keep all the territories gained during the war and the Navigation Act was modified to allow the Dutch republic to import goods into England from several other nations. Also, the stadholder was official abolished forever and Charles II had to join the Triple Alliance (an alliance between Sweden, the Dutch Republic and England). With England joining the Triple Alliance the French king Louis had to stop his plans of taking over the southern Netherlands. The second Anglo- Dutch war was mainly caused by the same problems as the first Anglo- Dutch war, England wanted to take over the Dutch position of being the world’s master traders and the War itself made it hard for Dutch traders to continue their work because of England and the Dutch republic being at war.

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The Third Anglo Dutch war is viewed by some historians as the final Anglo-Dutch war because it was the last War between England and the Dutch Republic in the seventeenth century. The Third Anglo Dutch war was more a naval conflict between England and the Dutch Republic in a larger war between the Dutch Republic and France. The third Anglo-Dutch war was caused by Charles II secretly signing the Treaty of Dover. The Treaty of Dover stated that Charles II would help the French king, Louis, to prepare and execute an invasion on the Southern Netherlands and that Charles II ...

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