Dutch Rep Dbq

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AP European History! Mr. Walters 1996 DBQ: Dutch Republic & Rival States1 Task: Identify and analyze the challenges to the security, unity and prosperity of the Dutch Republic, 1650-1713. Take into account both Dutch and foreign opinions. [Historical setting: In 1650 the Dutch Republic, a political union of seven provinces, was a formidable commercial, financial, and naval power. The wealthiest and most powerful province was Holland, dominated by the influential merchant elite of Amsterdam, the leading banking and trading center of Europe. For the Dutch Republic, the period from 1650 to the Peace of Utrecht (1713) was one of shifting alliances and a series of military conflicts with other European powers.] Document 1 The Dutch Republic and Rival States in the late Seventeenth Century 1 Adapted from the 1996 AP European History DBQ Page 1 Document 2 Baltic Sea Trade, 1645-1695 Percentage of Voyages by Dutch Ships 80 60 40 20 0 1645 1655 1670 Year 1680 1690 1695 Document 3 Estimated Losses to Merchant Shipping in the Three Anglo-Dutch Wars, 1652-1674 Dutch Ships Seized by the English English Ships Seized by the Dutch 2,000-2,7000 500 Page 2 Document 4 "The government of the Dutch Republic is a shattered and divided thing; the province Holland alone must expect to bear the financial burden in a war because the other provinces are poor.” ––Sir George Downing, English ambassador to the Dutch Republic, letter to the English government, 1664 Document 5 "We must make defensive fortifications on land as well as outfit warships at sea; but we must also try to end the heavy taxes that are most burdensome on our merchants, especially those taxes levied to provide convoys for merchant ships. We who are naturally merchants must have low taxes, peace, and trade as well as protection, and we cannot be turned into
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