| After gaining their independence from the Spanish Habsburgs at the end of the sixteenth century, the United Provinces -- today’s Netherlands -- entered their Golden Age, roughly corresponding with the seventeenth century.
Quickly establishing itself as the dominant power in world trade, the United Provinces also excelled in the fields of arts and sciences, arguably becoming the most wealthy and technologically advanced nation in Europe.
This Golden Age came to an end as economic upheaval caused by the famous Tulip Fever of the mid-1700s, political strife between royalists and republicans, and the rise of Britain as the dominant power in world trade sapped the strength of the Dutch republic.
This online exhibit addresses several different aspects of the Dutch Golden Age and showcases some of the most interesting items about this period in UCLA Library collections. |
