If a question were asked concerning the single greatest achievement of that tradition known as Dutch Calvinism, a viable answer would be its theology. The theological faculties, the theological interest, and acumen of the Dutch Reformed Church have been its chief adornment during long periods of its history, and that was never more true than during the seventeenth century, the main period of our study. lts schools, amply supported by local governments so that substantial libraries could be funded and the ablest scholars attracted, soon became the most famous in Europe and drew students from as far away as Hungary where during a century and a half over 3,000 young men set out on the 1,000 mile trek to the low countries in order to study theology and then return to their homes. But not only ministers and theological students pursued this "highest science," as it was often called, but laymen, particularly the thousands of elders in local churches, read and discussed theological literature so that there were actually times when and places where the words "Dutch" and "theology" seemed synonymous.