Cooperación y competencia políticoeconómica en la larga duración: Holanda en la ruta del Mediterráneo (1621-1702).

Abstract

Long-term political-economic competition and cooperation: the Dutch on the Mediterranean route (1621-1702)

From the 1610s onwards the economic and political evolution of the Mediterranean strongly depended on the activity of transporters from northern Europe, who vied with others in a space characterized by competition and une-qual exchange between native towns of diverse socio-religious characteristics.
That space was disturbed on many occasions by war, epidemics and privateering, resulting in a historiographical perception of decadence and continuous crisis. The political events that marked the relations of the Hispanic Monarchy and the new Republic of the United Provinces influenced, however, the development of a maritime and commercial relationship that linked important market areas and economic spaces. This article presents a general outline of Dutch participation in this space through what they called the Straatvaart route (navigation of the Strait of Gibraltar). I will focus on the characteristics of this long-lasting phenomenon, dwelling on the political-military events that marked its destiny and the relationship of the Republic of the United Provinces with the Hispanic Monarchy.