The Dutch Golden Age

How the Dutch Republic became the world's leading economy in the 1600s through trade, the Dutch East India Company, the Amsterdam stock exchange and tulip mania.

In the 1600s, the Dutch Republic led the world economy.

Trade

Dutch ships dominated Baltic grain and Asian spice trade.

VOC

The Dutch East India Company (VOC), founded in 1602, was one of the first companies to issue tradable shares, and it colonised parts of Indonesia.

Amsterdam exchange

Amsterdam hosted one of the first stock exchanges.

Tulip mania

In 1636-37, tulip bulb prices soared and crashed, often cited as an early bubble (though historians debate its scale).

Institutions

The Bank of Amsterdam (1609).
Religious tolerance attracted skilled migrants.

Dark side

Wealth came partly from colonialism and the slave trade.

The share certificate

Investors bought VOC shares in Amsterdam and traded them with others, an early stock market.

Thinking stock markets began in New York

Amsterdam was among the first.

Key takeaways

The Dutch led the 1600s economy.
The VOC issued tradable shares from 1602.
Tulip mania is an early bubble story.
Wealth came partly from colonialism.