Anglo-Dutch Wars
The Anglo-Dutch Wars were fought in the 17th and 18th centuries between Britain and the United Provinces for control over the seas and trade routes. They are known as the Dutch Wars in England and as the English Wars in the Netherlands.
Background
The collapse of Spanish power at the end of the Thirty Years' War in 1648 meant that the colonial possessions of the Portuguese and Spanish Empires were effectively up for grabs. This brought the Commonwealth of England and the United Provinces of the Netherlands, former allies in the Eighty Years' War, into conflict. The Dutch had the largest mercantile fleet of Europe, and a dominant position in European trade. They had annexed most of Portugal's territory in the East Indies giving them control over the enormously profitable trade in spices. They were even gaining significant influence over England's maritime trade with her North American colonies, profiting from the turmoil that resulted from the English Civil War.
The first war, 1652–1654
Main article: First Anglo-Dutch War
In order to protect its position in North America, in 1651 the Parliament of the Commonwealth of England passed the first of the Navigation Acts, which mandated that all goods from her American colonies must be carried by English ships. In a period of growing mercantilism this was the spark that ignited the first Anglo-Dutch war and led to sporadic naval engagements across the globe.
The English were initially successful, Admiral Robert Blake defeating the Dutch Admiral Witte de With in the Battle of the Kentish Knock in 1652. Believing that the war was all but over, the English divided their forces and in 1653 were routed by the fleet of Dutch Admiral Maarten Tromp at the Battle of Dungeness in the North Sea. The Dutch were also victorious at the Battle of Leghorn and had effective control of both the Mediterranean and the English Channel. Blake, recovering from an injury, rethought the whole system of naval tactics, and in mid 1653 used the line of battle to drive the Dutch navy back to its ports in the battles of Portland and the Gabbard. In the final Battle of Scheveningen on 10 August 1653 Tromp was killed, a blow to Dutch morale which led to peace negotiations.
The war ended on 1654-04-05 with the signing of the Treaty of Westminster, but the commercial rivalry was not resolved.
The second war, 1665–1667
Main article: Second Anglo-Dutch War
This war witnessed quite a few significant Dutch victories, such as the surrender of the Royal Prince in 1666 which was the subject of a famous painting by Willem van de Velde and the burning of the English fleet whilst docked at Chatham in June 1667 when a flotilla of ships led by Admiral de Ruyter broke through the defensive chains guarding the Medway and wrought havoc on the anchored English ships.
The third war, 1672–1674
Main article: Third Anglo-Dutch War
The fourth war, 1780–1784
Main article: Fourth Anglo-Dutch War
The Glorious Revolution of 1688 ended the conflict by placing Prince William of Orange on the English throne as co-ruler with his wife Mary.
However, the regime change brought about the ultimate downfall of the Dutch Republic. The Dutch merchant elite immediately began to use London as a new operational base. Dutch economic growth slowed. From about 1720 Dutch wealth declined. Around 1780 the per capita gross national product of the Kingdom of Great Britain surpassed that of the Dutch Republic. Now the Dutch who in turn became prone to petty jealousy and began to support the American rebels. This led to the fourth war, and the loss of the alliance made the Dutch Republic fatally vulnerable to the French. Soon it would be subject to regime change itself.
Later wars
In the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars of 1793–1815, France reduced the Netherlands to a satellite and finally annexed the country in 1810. Britain took over all the Dutch colonies, with the exception of Java and the trading post at Deshima in Japan.
Some historians count the conflicts during the Napoleonic era as Anglo-Dutch wars.
See also
External links
- Painting of Anglo-Dutch sea battle (http://www.zeeburgnieuws.nl/specials/scheepvaart/voc-foto01-dt.html) (Third War) (National Maritime Museum London).
- National Maritime Museum London (http://www.nmm.ac.uk/) official site.
- Dutch Admiral Michiel de Ruyters' flagship 'The Seven Provinces' (http://www.bataviawerf.nl/7provincien.html) is being rebuilt in Dutch town Lelystad.
- A short history of the Anglo-Dutch Wars (http://www.contemplator.com/history/dutchwar.html)
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