Russian-Dutch relations during the Great Embassyand during the first stage of the Northern War (1697–1709)

The article examines Russian-Dutch relations during the period of the Great Embassy and in the first phase of the Northern War. The Great Embassy, having played an important role in terms of developing trade relations with the Netherlands, establishing personal contacts etc., has not achieved great success in the diplomatic sphere in Holland. In the early years of the Northern War, the difference in the positions towards Russia of the official government in The Hague and the city of Amsterdam led to the fact that Russian foreign policy was focused on the city of Amsterdam namely on its leadership and on the top of the merchant class. This period is characterized by Russia's attempts to settle relations with Sweden. Because of this fact the efforts were being made to involve the Netherlands as an intermediary for the conclusion of a Russian-Swedish treaty. The main goal of Russian diplomacy towards the Netherlands was to worsen Dutch-Swedish relations and to prevent Dutch assistance to Sweden. In this regard, the author comes to the conclusion that this task was generally solved due to a number of factors. These are the involvement of the Netherlands in the war of the Spanish Succession, the rapprochement of Sweden with France and the energetic activity of the Russian ambassador to the Netherlands Andrey Matveev. All the above-mentioned issues are considered in the context of international relations in Europe