 Whereas in the 17th century the commercial success of the Dutch had inspired English jealousy and admiration, in the late 18th century the growth of British power, and the concurrent loss of Amsterdam's preeminence, led to Dutch resentment.When the Dutch Republic began to support the Americans who had rebelled against the British Crown this led to the fourth war, and made the Dutch Republic in turn fatally vulnerable to the French—soon it would be subject to regime change itself.The Dutch navy was by now only a shadow of its former self, having only about twenty ships of the line, so there were no large fleet battles.