This book focuses on the Dutch Golden Age. The age of Spinoza, Rembrandt and Vermeer, it was also remarkable for its impact in commerce, finance, shipping, and ... » 

This book focuses on the Dutch Golden Age. The age of Spinoza, Rembrandt and Vermeer, it was also remarkable for its impact in commerce, finance, shipping, and technology. This is an account of the Dutch Republic from the revolt against Spain, to its abolition by Napoleon.Jonathan Israel's 1,231-page blockbuster forms the inaugural volume of a new series, the Oxford History of Early Modern Europe, and offers a comprehensive, integrated account of the northern part of the Netherlands over almost 350 years...The Dutch Republic represents the fruit of 12 years of research, contemplation and writing, and brims over with interesting detail.--The New York Times Book Review Israel performs the great service of charting a path through this literature and presents a coherent and comprehensive picture of the Dutch Republic.... Comprehensive in scope and yet so clearly and carefully written that it could serve as a textbook for graduate history courses. Because it is so thoroughly researched and up-to-date, it is also the kind of indispensable handbook that deserves a place on every early modernist's bookshelf.--American Historical Review «