| Anglo-Dutch Wars |
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| First – Second – Third – Fourth |
The Fourth Anglo-Dutch War (1780 - 1784) was a conflict between the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Dutch Republic. The war, motivated by imperial competition, was a disaster for the Netherlands, whose republic was reduced to a Prussian puppet.
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Background
At the end of the 18th century, unrest was growing in the Netherlands. Fights were starting between the Orangists, wanting stadtholder William V of Orange to exercise more power, and the patriots, who under influence of the American Revolution and the Enlightenment wanted a more democratic government. The government tried to resolve internal conflicts by uniting the people against a common enemy. Though Great Britain and the Republic had been allies since the Glorious Revolution of 1688, the Dutch had become very much the junior partner in the alliance, losing their erstwhile world trade dominance to the British. This led to resentment and so Britain was the ideal scapegoat, especially as the patriots were pro-French. The United Provinces were the first country to salute the American flag, and Great Britain was ever after suspicious of the Dutch. These suspicions seemed to be confirmed when the Dutch refused to take its side in the war against France, even though the Republic was obliged by treaty (1678) to do so. Also, the Dutch claimed the British had no right searching their ships for weapons for the rebels, contending that "contraband" should be interpreted in the narrow sense of goods belonging to the enemy. The Republic then officially adopted a policy of armed neutrality. This would allow the French to use Dutch colonies - that is, in effect all the key locations in the trade to Asia - as supply stations.
The war
Britain declared war before the Dutch could join a group of neutral countries sworn to mutual assistance. The direct cause of the war was the discovery of a secret trade treaty proposed by the city of Amsterdam to the Americans. The Dutch had not at all expected such a severe reaction; they had foolishly given the British a perfect pretext to reduce Dutch power even more. This Fourth Anglo-Dutch War (1780-1784) proved a disaster for the Netherlands, particularly economically. Dutch naval power had been in decline since 1712. The Dutch navy, now having only twenty ships of the line, was no match for the British navy. Britain had already gained supremacy of the high seas over France long before, in the Seven Years' War. The Dutch fought a minor skirmish with the British at the Battle of Dogger Bank, but had to avoid any other fighting. The Dutch had already hastily embarked on a major shipbuilding project of 84 warships between 1777 and 1789. Due to all kinds of misfortune (storms, collisions, strandings), about a third of the Dutch fleet sank between 1782 and 1784. Coordination with its war allies, France and Spain, was poor. The new ships were not ready in time to prevent Britain from taking effective control of the Dutch colonies and making William V a puppet, only able to rule with Prussian military assistance (Triple Alliance (1788)). The Republic joined a cease fire between Britain and France in January 1783. The signing of the Treaty of Paris (1784) made Negapatnam, in India, a British colony. Ceylon, though taken was nominally given back. The British gained the right of free trade with part of the Dutch East Indies.
Bibliography
- Hobson, Rolf and Tom Kristianson, eds (2004). Navies in Northern Waters. Portland, OR: Frank Cass
- Israel, Jonathan (1995). The Dutch Republic: Its Rise, Greatness, and Fall, 1477-1806. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
- Kumar, Ann (1997). The Familial State: Ruling Families And Merchant Capitalism In Early Modern Europe. Ithaca: Cornell University Press.
- Moore, Bob, et al, eds (2003). Colonial Empires Compared: Britain and the Netherlands, 1750-1850. Aldershot: Ashgate.
