Before 1650, the Dutch Republic was the richest and most powerful province of Holland through Amsterdam, the driving force of trade and banking. Many European nations were jealous of their success and wanted it for themselves, which resulted in conflicts between the Dutch and many European powers. As a result, the Dutch Republic entered a period of decline until the Peace of Utrecht of 1713. Costly wars with England and France, the decline of trade, and mistrust between the Dutch provinces led to challenges to security, unity and the prosperity of the Republic. Wars with England and France threatened the national security of the Dutch Republic. According to Document 1, many naval battles between the English and the Dutch occurred along Dutch trading and fishing routes. The constant attacks posed a threat to national security as Dutch traders and citizens were captured by foreign governments. The reason why the English attacked Dutch ships so much is to take over their ships. Document 3 shows that the English seized at least 1,500 more ships than the Dutch, who seized only 500. This means that the Dutch became weaker as they lost their ships and their enemies, the English, became stronger as they lost their ships. as they gained ships. The English could use the newly obtained ships to carry out further naval attacks against the Dutch, further straining the security of the provinces. Some merchants were more afraid of sailing and supported the free protection of warships, such as the anonymous merchant in document 5. This document shows that merchants were beginning to lose faith in the security of their government and were worried about being attacked during the trade. Attacks on merchant ships were not the only source of threat to the Dutch Republic...... half of the document ......t expressed in document 10. Written by an anonymous wealthy citizen of Amsterdam, the author he claims that as the government is ready to start wars, there are no sources of funding to support them, meaning that only wealthy citizens like him have to pay. This document is obviously biased because, being a rich citizen, he does not want to spend money on the government and may overextend himself with the high taxes he has to pay. However, it also shows the challenge of war and how it affects the government's economy. There were also external factors that caused economic problems for the Dutch. Document 7 states that many countries, such as France and England, but not only, are trying to take over parts of the Dutch economy. This is an external economic challenge because foreign countries threaten the Dutch economy by trying to weaken it for their own benefit.