Amsterdam
Amsterdam (), the official
capital of the
Netherlands, lies on the banks of two bodies of water, the
IJ bay and the
Amstel river. Founded in the late
12th century as a small fishing village on the banks of the
Amstel, it is now the largest city in the country and its financial and cultural centre. As of 2005, the population of the city proper is 742,951
[City of Amsterdam statistics service in Dutch]; the population of the greater Amsterdam area is approximately 1.5 million.
Amsterdam has one of the largest historic city centres in
Europe, dating largely from the 17th century. At this time, a series of concentric, semi-circular canals ("grachten") were dug around the old city centre. Along the canals houses and warehouses were build. The canals still define Amsterdams layout and appearance today. Many fine houses and mansions are situated along the canals. Some of the narrow brick houses are gradually sinking because they are built on wooden
piles to cope with the marshy subsoil.
Although Amsterdam is officially designated as the capital of the Netherlands, it has never been (save a brief period between
1808 and
1810), the seat of the court, government, or parliament of the Netherlands, which are all located at
The Hague. Amsterdam is also not the capital of the province in which it is located,
North Holland, whose capital is located at
Haarlem. See
capital of the Netherlands for more information.
Amsterdam was founded as a fishing village in the
13th century. According to legend Amsterdam was founded by two
Frisian fishermen, who landed on the shores of the Amstel in a small boat with their dog. The damming of the river
Amstel gave it its name (in Dutch: Amstelredam "Dam in the Amstel", turned into Amsterdam in the course of time). It was given
city rights in
1300 or
1301. From the
14th century on, Amsterdam flourished, largely on the basis of trade with the cities of the
Hanseatic League.
In the
16th century the Dutch rebelled against
Philip II of Spain and his successors. The revolt escalated into the
Eighty Years' War which ultimately led to Dutch independence. After the break with Spain the Dutch Republic became known for its relative religious tolerance.
Jews from
Spain and
Portugal, prosperous merchants from
Antwerp (economic and religious refugees from the part of the Low Countries still controlled by Spain),
Huguenots from
France (persecuted for their religion) sought safety in Amsterdam. It was the rich, refined migrants from Flanders who set the tone (their Brabant dialects became the basis of standard written Dutch) and made Holland a
mercantile power.
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Dam Square in the late 17th century: painting by Gerrit Adriaensz. Berckheyde (Gemäldegalerie, Dresden) |
The
17th century is considered Amsterdam's "Golden Age". In the early 17th century Amsterdam became one of the wealthiest cities in the world. Ships sailed from Amsterdam to
North America,
Africa and present-day
Indonesia and
Brazil and formed the basis of a worldwide trading network. Amsterdam's merchants had the biggest share in the
VOC and
WIC. These companies acquired the overseas possessions which formed the seeds of the later Dutch colonies. Amsterdam was the most important point for the trans-shipment of goods in Europe and it was the leading financial centre of the world. Amsterdam's stock exchange was the first to trade continuously.
The population grew from slightly over 10,000 around 1500 to 30,000 around 1570, 60,000 around 1600, 105,000 in 1622 and almost 200,000 around 1700 (a twenty fold increase in 200 years). Thereafter, the population did not change much for another century and a half. During the century before
World War II it almost quadrupled to 800,000, but then remained fairly constant again to this day.
The 18th and early 19th centuries saw a decline in Amsterdam's prosperity. The wars of the Dutch Republic with the
United Kingdom and
France took their toll on Amsterdam. During the
Napoleonic Wars Amsterdam's fortunes reached their lowest point. However, with the establishment of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in
1815, things slowly began to improve. In Amsterdam new developments were started by people like
Samuel Sarphati who found their inspiration in Paris.
The end of the 19th century is sometimes called Amsterdam's second Golden Age. New museums, a train station, and the Concertgebouw were built. At this time the
Industrial Revolution reached Amsterdam. The
Amsterdam-Rhine Canal was dug to give Amsterdam a direct connection to the
Rhine and the
North Sea Canal to give the port a shorter connection to the
North Sea. Both projects improved communication with the rest of Europe and the world dramatically.
Joseph Conrad gives a brief description of Amsterdam, seen from the sea at this period, in
The Mirror of the Sea(1906).
Shortly before the
First World War the city began expanding and new suburbs were built. During
World War I, the Netherlands remained neutral. Amsterdam suffered a food shortage and heating fuel became scarce. The shortages sparked riots in which several people were killed.
Germany invaded the Netherlands in
10 May 1940, taking control of the country after five days of fighting. The Germans installed a Nazi civilian government in Amsterdam that cooperated in the persecution of Jews. However, a minority of people in Amsterdam helped the Jews in hiding and suffered persecution themselves in doing so. More than 103-105,000
Jews were deported to concentration camps, of whom perhaps the most famous was a young German girl,
Anne Frank. Only 5,000 Dutch Jews survived the war. In the last months of the war communication with the rest of the country broke down and food and fuel became scarce. Many inhabitants of the city had to travel to the countryside to collect food. Dogs, cats and raw sugar beets were consumed to stay alive. Most of the trees in Amsterdam were cut down for fuel and all the wood of the apartments from the Jewish people who were deported.
The coat of arms of Amsterdam is composed of three
St Andrew's crosses, aligned vertically, but rotated 90 degrees for the flag. Historians believe they represent the three dangers which have traditionally plagued the city: flood, fire, and pestilence. The city's official motto,
Heldhaftig, Vastberaden, Barmhartig ("Valiant, Resolute, Merciful") which is displayed on the coat of arms, was bestowed on it by
Queen Wilhelmina in 1947 in recognition of the city's bravery during World War II. The lions were added in the sixteenth century.
The
Imperial Crown of Austria was awarded to the city in 1489 by
Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor, out of gratitude for services and loans. The crown was a sign of imperial protection and acted as a seal of approval for Amsterdam merchants abroad. The Westertoren also features the imperial crown.
As all Dutch municipalities, Amsterdam is governed by a
mayor, his
aldermen, and the
municipal council. However, unlike most other Dutch municipalities, Amsterdam is subdivided into fifteen
stadsdelen (boroughs), a system that was implemented in the 1980s to improve local governance. The
stadsdelen are responsible for many activities that previously had been run by the central city. Fourteen of these have their own council, chosen by a popular election. The fifteenth, Westpoort, covers the harbour of Amsterdam, has very few inhabitants, and is governed by the central municipal council. Local decisions are made at borough level, and only affairs pertaining to the whole city, such as major infrastructure projects, are handled by the central city council.
See also: List of mayors of Amsterdam |
Leaning buildings are common in Amsterdam due to settling of the soft ground and fill underneath |
Amsterdam is noted for many outstanding museums, including the
Rijksmuseum, the
Stedelijk Museum,
Rembrandt House Museum, and its world-class symphony orchestra, the
Concertgebouworkest, whose home base is the
Concertgebouw. The
Van Gogh Museum houses the largest collection of Van Gogh's paintings and drawings in the world. An unlikely tourist treat is the moving story of Anne Frank at the
Anne Frank House.
Notable is its
red-light district,
de Wallen. Prostitution is legal in the Netherlands. The red-light district is located in the center of the city along major canals and is clearly marked on maps.
Centred around the Wallen, but also elsewhere in the city,
coffee shops sell high quality
cannabis (marijuana) products. This is not completely legal but is tolerated when small quantities of the drug are involved.
Amsterdam enjoys a moderate temperate climate, with the weather patterns being strongly influenced by Amsterdam's proximity to the Atlantic Ocean to the west and the prevailing westerly winds. Winters are mild and average above freezing, although frosts are not uncommon during periods of easterly or northeasterly winds that blow from the interior of the continent. Summers are comfortably warm but seldom hot. However, although days with measureable precipitation are common, Amsterdam does not have an overly wet climate and averages less than 760 mm of precipitation annually. The amount of precipitation seems greater than it is in reality, as much of it falls as protracted drizzle or light rain. Cloudy and damp days are common, particularly in the cooler months.
Amsterdam has two universities: the
University of Amsterdam (Universiteit van Amsterdam), and the
Vrije Universiteit. Other institutions for higher education include an art school, De Rietveldacademie, the Hogeschool van Amsterdam, the Hogeschool voor Economische Studies Amsterdam and the Amsterdamse Hogeschool voor de Kunsten. Amsterdam's
International Institute of Social History is one of the world's largest documentary and research institutions concerning social history, and especially the history of the labour movement. Amsterdam's
Hortus Botanicus, founded in the early 1600s, is one of the oldest
botanical gardens in the world, with many old and rare specimens, amongst which the coffee plant that served as the parent for the entire coffee culture in Central and South America.
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NS double-decker train at Amsterdam Central Station |
Public transport in Amsterdam, operated by
Gemeentelijk Vervoerbedrijf,
Connexxion,
Arriva, and
Nederlandse Spoorwegen, consists of:
* national and international
train connections
* 3
metro lines, 1
light rail line and 1 under construction, together the
Amsterdam metro* 16
tram lines
* An express tram line (IJtram)
* 55 local bus lines
* regional bus lines
* several
ferries for pedestrians and cyclists across the
IJ (free of charge)
* a Fast Flying Ferry towards
Velsen-Zuid on the North Sea shore
A new underground line, the
North/South Line (
Noord/Zuidlijn) is under construction. The estimated completion date is in 2012.(See also
Gemeentelijk Vervoerbedrijf,
Amsterdam metro,
Amsterdam Centraal).
As of the start of 2006 most of the regional transport is handled by
Arriva,
Connexxion used to handle all of regional transport and still operates a few lines.
History
During the construction of the
Amsterdam metro, plans to demolish the entire
Jewish neighbourhood near the
Nieuwmarkt led to strong protests. The metro was still built (wall decorations at the Nieuwmarkt station are dedicated to the protests), but plans to build a highway through the neighbourhood in the centre of Amsterdam were abolished.
|
A few of the ubiquitous cyclists in Amsterdam |
Amsterdam is known as one of the most
bicycle-friendly cities in the world and is a center of
bicycle culture. Most main streets have bike paths. Bike racks are
ubiquitous throughout the city. There are about 700,000 bicycles in the city. Each year, about 80,000 of them are stolen and 25,000 end up in the canals. In the city centre, driving a car is discouraged, parking fees are steep and a great number of streets are closed off for cars.
Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, is less than 20 minutes by train from Amsterdam Central Station. It is the biggest airport in the Netherlands, and the fourth largest in Europe. It handles about 42 million passengers a year and is home base to
KLM, since 2004 part of
Air France-KLM.
Amsterdam is the home town of
Ajax, a team in the
Dutch Football League. Its home base is the modern stadium
Amsterdam ArenA, located in the south-east of the city. The team shares that facility with the
Amsterdam Admirals, an
American football team.
In 1928, Amsterdam hosted the
Games of the IXth Olympiad. The
Olympic Stadium built for the occasion has been completely restored and is now used for cultural and sporting events.
Amsterdam also is home to a famous
ice rink, the
Jaap Eden baan. The
Amstel Tijgers play in this arena in the Dutch
ice hockey premier league. In
speed skating many international championships have been fought in the 400-meter lane of this ice rink.
The city also has a
baseball team, the
Amsterdam Pirates who play in the Dutch Major League. Three
field hockey teams, Amsterdam, Pinoké and Hurley, and a
basketball team, the
Amsterdam Astronauts who play in the Dutch premier division and play their games in the Sporthallen Zuid, near the Olympic Stadium.
* April -
Koninginnedag,
Queen's day,
30 April, the former
Queen's (
Juliana) birthday
* June - The
Amsterdam Roots Festival, last week of June. International music festival
* June -
Holland Festival is an international festival for theater, music, dance, opera, film and art, throughout the month of June.
* August -
Amsterdam Pride, first weekend of August,
gay pride weekend
* August -
Hartjesdag, 3rd Weekend in August.
* August -
Uitmarkt, last weekend in August, the start of the cultural season
* August -
Amsterdam Tournament, late August, International Football-tournament hosted by
AFC Ajax* August -
Sail Amsterdam, a five-yearly event, when
tall ships from all over the world can be visited. Next event 2010.
* October -
Amsterdam Marathon, mid-October
* October â€" The
Bokbier Beer Festival in the
Beurs van Berlage (Old stock Exchange)
* October â€"
Grachtenrace (Canal Race), 25km rowing race, 2nd Saturday in October.
* November â€" The
International Documentary Filmfestival Amsterdam* November -
Cannabis Cup, mid-November annual cannabis competition, hosted by
High Times.
* November â€" The arrival of
Sinterklaas*
Karel Appel - painter
*
George Hendrik Breitner - painter
*
Simon Carmiggelt - writer and columnist
*
Theophilus Cazenove (1740-1799), born in Amsterdam, noted financier
*
Johan Cruijff - football player
*
Max Euwe - chess player
*
Anne Frank - Holocaust diarist
*
Theo van Gogh - filmmaker and colummnist
*
André Hazes - singer
*
Freddy Heineken - beer magnate
*
Meindert Hobbema - painter
*
Jozef Israëls - painter
*
Wim Kok - former prime minister
*
Frits Bolkestein - Dutch politician and former EU commissioner
*
Harry Mulisch - writer
*
Multatuli - writer
*
Rembrandt - painter
*
Gerard Reve - writer
*
Frank Rijkaard - football player
*
Baruch Spinoza - philosopher
*
Paul Verhoeven - film director
For an overview of more famous Amsterdammers see
this category
*
WikiSatellite view of Amsterdam at WikiMapia *
Official website of the city of Amsterdam (
English Version)
roa-rup:Amsterdamnds-nl:Amsterdam
