Public finance of the Dutch Republic in comparative perspective : the viability of an early modern federal state (1570s-1795) / by Wantje Fritschy.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Fritschy, Wantje, author.

Series:

Library of economic history ; 1877-3206 v. 9.

Library of economic history, 1877-3206 ; volume 9

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Finance, Public--Netherlands--History.

Finance, Public.

History.

Netherlands.

Genre:

History.

Physical Description:

xvi, 429 pages ; 25 cm.

Place of Publication:

Leiden ; Boston : Brill, [2017]

Summary:

This study offers the first complete overview of the remarkable public finances of the Dutch Republic of the United Provinces. Wantje Fritschy has analysed the development and structure of its public revenue and expenditure. She argues that a 'tax revolution' and the 'fiscal resilience' of the provinces together were more important for its surprising performance than Holland's public debt alone, and the institutional and economic characteristics of its 'urban system' were more important than wealth due to foreign trade. Comparisons with the fiscal systems of three more centralized states - the Venetian Republic, Britain and the Ottoman Empire - underline the crucial importance of long-term 'urbanization trajectories' in understanding early-modern fiscal performance. It was not because it was federal that the Dutch Republic collapsed. Book jacket.

Contents:

Part 1 The Development of the Fiscal System of the Dutch Republic

Introduction to Part 1 29

The Union of Utrecht: The Start of a New State? 29

Historical Backgrounds and Institutional Characteristics 31

The Concept 'Public Finance of the Dutch Republic', the Data and the Estimates 42

1 Financing the First Phase of the Revolt against Spain (1566-1572) 47

1.1 Calvinist Donations and the Credit of the Prince of Orange 47

1.2 A Prince in Search of New Sources of Finance 53

1.3 The First Financial Decisions of the 'Free' States of Holland 56

1.4 Conclusion 62

2 From Under-taxed Pan of an Empire to Heavily Taxed Republic (1550S-1609) 63

2.1 Holland and the Spanish Empire 64

2.2 The Development of Holland's Fiscal System until 1609 81

2.3 The Other Provinces 103

2.4 The Financial Scope of the 'Generality' 125

2.5 Conclusion 141

3 Public Finance of the Dutch Republic in the 17th and 18th Centuries 146

3.1 The Increasing Public Expenditure of the Dutch Republic 147

3.2 The Resilience of the Provincial Revenue Systems 166

3.3 Conclusion 201

Part 2 The Fiscal System of the Dutch Republic in International Comparative Perspective

Introduction to Part 2 207

4 A Comparison with the Venetian Republic 209

4.1 Common Characteristics but Long-Term Differences 209

4.2 'Survive and Prosper on the Cheap' 220

4.3 Taxation in a Centralized and in a Federal Urbanized Republic 227

4.4 Differing Debt Developments 233

4.5 Conclusion 248

5 A Comparison with Britain 251

5.1 The Comparability of Britain and the Netherlands 252

5.2 National Public Finance: A Long-Term Perspective 255

5.3 Public Expenditure in Two 'Maritime States' 259

5.4 Public Revenue in Two 'Commercial States' 269

5.5 A Comparison of Loan Financing and Public Debt 288

5.6 Conclusion 308

6 A Comparison with the Ottoman Empire 311

6.1 Two Incomparable States 311

6.2 Contrastive Long-Term Trajectories of State Formation 316

6.3 A Comparison of Public Revenue 336

6.4 Deficits, 'Advance Payments', Advances and Debt 349

6.5 Conclusion 369.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Other Format:

Online version: Fritschy, Wantje. Public finance of the Dutch Republic in comparative perspective.

ISBN:

9789004341272

9004341277

OCLC:

979994240

Publisher Number:

99972632829