For this episode, I talk with Dr. Kees Boterbloem, a history Professor at the University of South Florida, about his book, The Dirty Secret of Early Modern Capitalism. In it, Kees shows how the Dutch accumulation of great wealth was closely linked to their involvement in warfare. By charting Dutch activity across the globe, the book explores Dutch participation in the international arms trade, and in wars both at home and abroad. In doing so, Kees ponders the issue of how capitalism has often historically thrived best when its practitioners are ruthless and ignore the human cost of their search for riches.

Kees Boterbloem, Ph.D. is a history Professor at the University of South Florida where he teaches courses on Russian and Soviet History, Dutch History, and Cultural, Social-Economic, and Military-Political History of European Empires.