The History of Amsterdam, Netherlands
Amsterdam, Netherlands has quite a big numbers of history behind. Wars, rebellions, barbarians hoards, but despite all these, it is still the greatest planned city of the Northern Europe, and it surely has inherited a lot from their ancestors. It was the center of the world economy during the 17th century, and now the city of Amsterdam, Netherlands is known for its permissive legislation, which attracts lots of tourists eager to experience pleasures which are forbidden in their native countries.
How Amsterdam, Netherlands Began
Once upon a time, there was a fishermen village nearby the Amstel river. The community there built a dam in the 12th century, and the place was then known as Amstelledamme. The new city of Amsterdam, Netherlands grew rapidly as Holland’s economy and commerce were developing, and it soon became one of the milestones of Holland and even of Europe.
Unfortunately, the buildings were made of wood, so they did not resist the passage of time, due to its vulnerability to water and bad weather. Very few medieval buildings, like Houten Huis, can still be admired today in Amsterdam.
Amsterdam Had A Golden Period
Between 1585 and 1672, Amsterdam, Netherlands crossed an exceptionally flourishing period of time, when commerce was at its apogee. This is the age when the architectural basis of Amsterdam, Netherlands was set, as well as the overall city plan. One of the buildings from this period is the actual Royal Palace which can be admired in the Dam Square. This is not the only construction from this stage, but we are not going to discuss the other ones in this article, as it is only a brief review of the past Amsterdam.
Less Gold, But Still Good
Amsterdam, Netherlands was devastated in 1972, like many other Dutch cities, due to foreign invasions from French and English armies. It was a very tough time, many achievements were lost and ruined, many people suffered, but Amsterdam, Netherlands was able to come back in force after the war and recover in good part from the disaster.
Dutch people had to re-build their homes, so during this time many dwellings appeared on the canals and in other places, as there were many people who afforded to raise new homes for their families.
Amsterdam’s Hardest Times
In 1795 Dutch rebels abolished the Republic and a new era was born for Amsterdam. Netherlands were to be occupied by French and the economic recession began, putting its footprint on all cities and their inhabitants. The worst recession was recorded from 1795 to 1813, when Amsterdam, Netherlands stagnated its development. Although there were persons who let their buildings collapse in ruins, because they didn’t have money for consolidation works, there are still lots of remains such as facades, or even whole buildings from the Empire period.
After 1813, Amsterdam, Netherlands started a long recovery period, in which the city managed again to prove that it is a force in Europe in areas like commerce and tourism.