"Very little work has been done on tracing the development of the form of government that was to become characteristic of the Dutch Republic during its 'Golden Age.' The discussion of the development of representative institutions in the Low Countries within a European-wide comparative framework is valuable. . . . [Holland's] structure of representation came to differ significantly from its neighbors. It was not supposed to work, according to political theory of the time, and yet it did. Learning how it came about helps to understand how it managed to stand as the only viable form of political organization outside of increasing royal absolutism in early modern times."--William H. TeBrake, University of Maine at Orono <br>
