Dutch Golden Age

The Dutch Golden Age was a period in Dutch history, roughly spanning the 17th century, in which Dutch trade, science, and art were among the most acclaimed in the world.

Science

Due to its climate of intellectual tolerance the Dutch Republic attracted scientists and other thinkers from all over Europe. Especially the renowned University of Leiden (established in 1575 by the Dutch stadholder as a token of gratitude for Leiden's fierce resistance against Spain during the Eighty Years War) became a gathering place for these people. For instance French philosopher René Descartes lived in Leiden from 1628 till 1649.

Related Topics:
Europe - University of Leiden - 1575 - Stadholder - Philosopher - René Descartes - 1628 - 1649

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Dutch lawyers were famous for their knowledge of international law of the sea and commercial law. Hugo Grotius (1583-1645) laid the foundations for international law. He invented the concept of the Free seas or Mare liberum, which was fiercely contested by England, Holland's main rival for domination of world trade. He also formulated laws with regard to conflicts between nations in his book De iure belli ac pacis (On laws of war and peace).

Related Topics:
Lawyer - Law of the sea - Commercial law - Hugo Grotius - 1583 - 1645 - International law - England

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Christiaan Huygens (1629-1695) was a famous mathematician, physicist and astronomer. He invented the pendulum clock, which was a major step forward towards exact timekeeping. Among his contributions in astronomy was his explanation of Saturn's planetary rings. He also contributed to the field of optics. The most famous Dutch scientist in the area of optics is certainly Anton van Leeuwenhoek, who invented or greatly improved the microscope (opinions differ) and was the first to methodically study microscopic life, thus laying the foundations for the field of cell biology.

Related Topics:
Christiaan Huygens - 1629 - 1695 - Mathematician - Physicist - Astronomer - Pendulum clock - Planetary ring - Optics - Anton van Leeuwenhoek - Microscope - Cell biology

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Famous Dutch hydraulic engineers were Simon Stevin (1548-1620) who was also a mathematician and Jan Leeghwater (1575-1650). Especially Leeghwater (whose name translates to Void of water) gained important victories in Holland's eternal battle against the sea. Leeghwater added a lot of land to the republic by converting several large lakes into polders, pumping all water out with windmills.

Related Topics:
Simon Stevin - 1548 - 1620 - Jan Leeghwater - 1575 - 1650 - Polder

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Again due to the Dutch climate of tolerance, book publishers flourished. Many books about religion, philosophy and science that might have been deemed controversial abroad were printed in the Netherlands and secretly exported to other countries. Thus during the 17th Century the Dutch Republic became more and more Europe's publishing house.

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See also Dutch Golden Age, List Of People - Science

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