Ottoman-Dutch economic relations in the early modern period 1571-1699

In recent years, interest in the relations between the Ottomans and Western nations has increased considerably. This study focuses on the Ottoman-Dutch economic relations in the early modern period (1571-1699). While the last decades of the sixteenth century witnessed strong commercial and economic expansion of the Northwestern European nations, for the Ottoman Empire, after having achieved its pre-eminent position in the Balkans, the Arabian peninsula, Northern Africa and the Mediterranean, those years marked the beginning of a period of stagnation. The Dutch merchants became very important for Ottoman society in the seventeenth century. The trading cities and ports of the Ottoman Empire witnessed Dutch merchants using new capitalist strategies and techniques in orde to maximise their profits in these regions. A strong commercial network was created from the North to the South and from the West to the East. The main aim of Bulut's study is to demonstrate that the economic relations between the two countries were of special interest for both countries as well as for the world economy in general. Using both Dutch and Ottoman sources Bulut presents a balanced analysis from the point of view of the Ottoman Empire and of the Dutch Republic.