The Dutch Golden Age was a period in the history of the Netherlands, roughly spanning the 17th century, when the Dutch Republic became a leading power in trade, science and art. The Dutch East India Company and the West India Company created global trading networks, and Amsterdam became the leading financial center, with the world's first stock exchange. The age produced painters such as Rembrandt, Vermeer and Frans Hals, scientists such as Christiaan Huygens and Antonie van Leeuwenhoek, the philosopher Baruch Spinoza and the legal thinker Hugo Grotius. A relative religious tolerance attracted refugees. The prosperity also depended on colonial exploitation and the slave trade. It ended with the Disaster Year of 1672 and the wars with England and France.
Before and after
- 24 August 1572St. Bartholomew's Day massacre
- 11 November 1572Tycho's Supernova
- 1574Construction of Selimiye Mosque
- from 12 July 1574 to 13 September 1574Conquest of Tunis
- from 1575 to 1675Dutch Golden Age
- 8 February 1575Founding of Leiden University
- 1576Founding of Uraniborg
- 4 November 1576Sack of Antwerp
- 1577Construction of Mehmed Paša Sokolović Bridge
More in Civilizations & archaeology
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- from 1526 to 1857Mughal Empire
- from 1616 to 1912Qing dynasty
- from 22 October 1721 to 1 September 1917Russian Empire
The era
This moment belongs to the Early modern world (1500 CE to 1760 CE), voyages, printing and new ideas. You can also browse everything in the 16th century.