Katakura WBLC and did you know this about The Netherlands?

Are you planning to study or live in The Netherlands for the next couple of months? Then it would be nice if you know something about the past of The Netherlands. Ofcourse it might come in handy to know the language as well. That’s why many people attend the courses of Katakura WBLC. On https://katakura-wblc.nl/ you can easily run through the entire program of courses Dutch that Katakura WBLC is offering for you! The courses are designed to be easy to comprehend and put into practice at your job, study or day-to-day life.

The Dutch republic

After declaring the Independence of the republic. The provinces of Groningen, Zeeland, Holland, Utrecht, Overijssel and Gelderland formed a confederation. All the individual countries in the confederation had their own government and States-Provincial. The so-called States General were a confederation which were seated in The Hague and consisted of all the representatives of these provinces. Even the Province Drenthe was part of the Republic even though it was sparsely populated.  The population of the countries surrounding the Dutch Republic were mainly Roman Catholic and resided in Flanders, Limburg and Brabant.

The Dutch golden age

The 17th century is known as the Golden age in the Netherlands. The Dutch empire grew to become the one of the biggest economic powers trough seafaring. Alongside Portugal, France, England and Spain, The Netherlands were an economic superpower. Alongside the seafaring the Dutch were known for their knowledge about science, art and military. By the year of 1650, the Dutch owned more than 16.000 merchant ships.  The East India Company and Dutch west India Company were establishing big trading posts all over the world. The colonisation of America began great for the Dutch. They found New Amsterdam in 1614 what would now be considered Southern Manhattan!