"First edition published in Dutch as "Gouden eeuw. Het raadsel van de Republiek" by Uitgeverij SUN, Nijmegen, 2002 and à Uitgeverij SUN, Nijmegen, 2002."

Maarten Prak is Professor Emeritus of Social and Economic History at the Department of History and Art History, Utrecht University. He has published extensively on Dutch social and economic history, the Dutch Golden Age, and is an expert on European craft history. His recent publications include Citizens Without Nations: Urban Citizenship in Europe and the World, c. 1000¿1789 (Cambridge, 2018) and the co-edited volume Apprenticeship in Early Modern Europe (Cambridge, 2019).

Introduction: the Enigma of the Republic; I. War without End: 1. Turbulent beginnings; 2. A new country (1609¿1650); 3. A world power (1650¿1713); 4. The armed forces; II. Golden Age: Economy and Society: 5. A market economy; 6. Worldwide trading network; 7. Riches; 8. Toil and trouble; III. Unity and Discord: Politics and Governance: 9. Community; 10. The authorities; 11. A dissonant chorus; 12. Freedom against all odds; IV. An Urban Society: 13. The urban landscape; 14. A lettered land; 15. Religious pluralism; 16. A new approach to science and philosophy; 17. Paintings, paintings everywhere; Conclusion: the end of the golden age.