Despite its small size and population, the Dutch Republic functioned as the hub of world trade, shipping, and finance for nearly two centuries. This is the first detailed account of that hegemony from its sixteenth-century origins to the final collapse of the Dutch trading system in the eighteenth century.

"substantial and welcome study ... packed with detail, and presented in a lively and readable style, it is a completely successful work ... a work of impressive scholarship ... a must, not only for students of Dutch history, but for anyone interested in the economic history of Europe in this period" - Times Higher Education Supplement

"a formidable work which makes compelling reading ... it will become a standard work" - Times Literary Supplement