The “New” Navy, 1652-1713

This chapter analyses the ‘New’ period in the history of the Dutch Navy, classified as between 1652 and 1713. It is divided into six sections: the reasons for the old navy’s obsolete status; the components of John de Witt’s ‘new’ navy; the various campaigns against England, France, and the Baltic; the changes that took place within Naval administration; the careers of Michiel de Ruyter and other naval officers; and the manning of ships in the ‘new’ period. It concludes with the War of the Spanish Succession (1701-1714), and the financial toll this took on the Dutch navy, a gradual process that wore down their capacity to operate. It concludes that financial problems coupled with the diminished threat from France forced the Dutch Navy to fundamentally alter their structure and subsequently redefine their role within the republic.