Part 16 (1/2)
Festivals and events
August De Parade First two weeks First two weeks munity celebrates, with street parties and performances held along the Amstel, Warmoesstraat and Reguliersdwarsstraat. The Ca.n.a.l Parade takes place on the 2pm and Sat.u.r.day between 26pm, a flotilla of up to 75 boats cruising along the Prinsengracht, watched by over 350,000 people.
Grachtenfestival Starts second or third weekend Starts second or third weekend ing programme of events during this weekend, with free preview performances held over three days around Dam Square, Waterlooplein and Nieuwmarkt.
Festivals and events
September Open Monument Day Second weekend Second weekend For two days monuments throughout the Netherlands that are normally closed or have restricted opening times throw open their doors to the public for free.
Jordaan Festival Second or third weekend Second or third weekend mercial fair on Palmgracht, talent contests on Elandsgracht, a few street parties and a culinary fair on the Sunday afternoon at the Noordermarkt.
Festivals and events
October Amsterdam City Marathon Usually third Sunday Usually third Sunday A 42-kilometre course around Amsterdam starting at and finis.h.i.+ng inside the Olympic Stadium, pa.s.sing through the old city centre along the way.
Amsterdam Dance Event Late Oct Late Oct A four-day club festival, hosting hundreds of national and international DJs taking over every dance venue in the city. Also a conference for turntable professionals. Tickets for all events have to be purchased separately and tend to sell out quickly.
Festivals and events
November Museum Night First Sat.u.r.day First Sat.u.r.day panied by DJs and music. Tickets 20.
Parade of Sint Nicolaas Second or third Sunday. The traditional parade of Second or third Sunday. The traditional parade of Sinterklaas Sinterklaas (Santa Claus) through the city on his white horse. Starting from behind Centraal Station where he arrives by steam boat, he proceeds down the Damrak towards Rembrandtplein, accompanied by his helpers the (Santa Claus) through the city on his white horse. Starting from behind Centraal Station where he arrives by steam boat, he proceeds down the Damrak towards Rembrandtplein, accompanied by his helpers the Zwarte Pieten Zwarte Pieten (”Black Peters”) so called because of their blackened faces who hand out sweets and little presents. It all finishes in Leidseplein on the balcony of the Stadsschouwburg. (”Black Peters”) so called because of their blackened faces who hand out sweets and little presents. It all finishes in Leidseplein on the balcony of the Stadsschouwburg.
International Doc.u.mentary Film Festival Mid- to late Nov Mid- to late Nov . Five-day ”harvest festival” organized by High Times High Times magazine with seminars, tours and music events held at the magazine with seminars, tours and music events held at the Powerzone Powerzone, which also hosts a compet.i.tion to find the best cultivated seed. Judging is open to the general public, but a judge pa.s.s is pricey (250).
Festivals and events
December Pakjesavond (Present Evening) Dec 5. Though it tends to be a private affair, Pakjesavond, rather than Christmas Day, is when Dutch kids receive their Christmas presents. If you're in the city on that day and have Dutch friends, it's worth knowing that it's traditional to give a present together with an amusing poem you have written caricaturing the recipient. Dec 5. Though it tends to be a private affair, Pakjesavond, rather than Christmas Day, is when Dutch kids receive their Christmas presents. If you're in the city on that day and have Dutch friends, it's worth knowing that it's traditional to give a present together with an amusing poem you have written caricaturing the recipient.
New Year's Eve Dec 31. New Year's Eve is big in Amsterdam, with fireworks and celebrations everywhere. Most bars and clubs stay open until morning make sure you get tickets in advance. This might just qualify as the wildest and most reckless street partying in Europe, but a word of warning: Amsterdammers seem to love the idea of throwing lit fireworks around and won't hesitate to send one careering into the crowd. Dec 31. New Year's Eve is big in Amsterdam, with fireworks and celebrations everywhere. Most bars and clubs stay open until morning make sure you get tickets in advance. This might just qualify as the wildest and most reckless street partying in Europe, but a word of warning: Amsterdammers seem to love the idea of throwing lit fireworks around and won't hesitate to send one careering into the crowd.
Contexts History Dutch art Books
History To a large extent, a history of Amsterdam history of Amsterdam is a history of the whole of the Netherlands, which includes the province of Holland. In turn, the Netherlands of today was an integral part of the is a history of the whole of the Netherlands, which includes the province of Holland. In turn, the Netherlands of today was an integral part of the Low Countries Low Countries modern Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands until the late sixteenth century. It was then that the Dutch broke with their Spanish Habsburg masters and, ever since, Amsterdam has been at the centre of Dutch events. The city was the country's most glorious cultural and trading centre throughout its seventeenth-century heyday, the so-called modern Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands until the late sixteenth century. It was then that the Dutch broke with their Spanish Habsburg masters and, ever since, Amsterdam has been at the centre of Dutch events. The city was the country's most glorious cultural and trading centre throughout its seventeenth-century heyday, the so-called Golden Age Golden Age, and, after a long downturn in the eighteenth century, picked itself up to emerge as a major metropolis in the nineteenth. In the 1960s Amsterdam was galvanized by its youth, who took to hippy culture hippy culture with gusto; their legacy is a social progressiveness most conspicuously over drugs and prost.i.tution that still underpins the city's international reputation, good and bad, today. with gusto; their legacy is a social progressiveness most conspicuously over drugs and prost.i.tution that still underpins the city's international reputation, good and bad, today.
History
Medieval foundations Amsterdam's earliest history is as murky as the marshes from which it arose. Legend a.s.serts that two Frisian fishermen were the first inhabitants and, it is indeed likely that the city began as a fis.h.i.+ng village at the mouth of the River Amstel River Amstel. Previously, this area had been a stretch of peat bog and marsh, but a modest fall in the sea level permitted settlement on the high ground along the riverside. The village was first given some significance when the local lord built a castle here around 1204, and then, some sixty years later, the Amstel was dammed hence Amstelredam and it received its munic.i.p.al charter charter from a new feudal overlord, Count Floris V, in 1275. Designating the village a toll port for beer imported from Hamburg, the charter led to Amsterdam flouris.h.i.+ng as a trading centre from around 1300, when it also became an important transit port for Baltic grain, destined for the burgeoning cities of the Low Countries (broadly Belgium and the Netherlands). from a new feudal overlord, Count Floris V, in 1275. Designating the village a toll port for beer imported from Hamburg, the charter led to Amsterdam flouris.h.i.+ng as a trading centre from around 1300, when it also became an important transit port for Baltic grain, destined for the burgeoning cities of the Low Countries (broadly Belgium and the Netherlands).
As Amsterdam grew, its trade trade diversified. In particular, it made a handsome profit from English diversified. In particular, it made a handsome profit from English wool wool, which was imported into the city, barged onto Leiden and Haarlem where it was turned into cloth and then much of it returned to Amsterdam to be exported. The cloth trade drew workers into the town to work along Warmoesstraat and the Amstel, and s.h.i.+ps were able to sail right up to Dam Square to pick up the finished work and drop off imported wood, fish, salt and spices.
Though the city's population population rose steadily in the early sixteenth century, to around 12,000, Amsterdam was still small compared with Antwerp or London; building on the waterlogged soil was difficult and slow, requiring timber piles to be driven into the firmer sand below. And with the extensive use of timber and thatch, rose steadily in the early sixteenth century, to around 12,000, Amsterdam was still small compared with Antwerp or London; building on the waterlogged soil was difficult and slow, requiring timber piles to be driven into the firmer sand below. And with the extensive use of timber and thatch, fires fires were a frequent occurrence. A particularly disastrous blaze in 1452 resulted in such destruction that the city council made building with slate, brick and stone obligatory; one of the few wooden houses that survived the fire still stands today in were a frequent occurrence. A particularly disastrous blaze in 1452 resulted in such destruction that the city council made building with slate, brick and stone obligatory; one of the few wooden houses that survived the fire still stands today in the Begijnhof the Begijnhof. In the mid-sixteenth century the city underwent its first major expansion expansion, as burgeoning trade with the Hanseatic towns of the Baltic made the city second only to Antwerp as a marketplace and warehouse for northern and western Europe. The trade in cloth, grain and wine brought craftsmen to the city, and its merchant fleet grew; by the 1550s three-quarters of all grain cargo out of the Baltic was carried in Amsterdam vessels. The foundations were being laid for the wealth of the Golden Age.
History
The rise of Protestantism At the beginning of the sixteenth century, the corruption and elaborate ritual of the established (Catholic) Church Church found itself under attack throughout northern Europe. First, Erasmus of Rotterdam promoted ideas of reformation, and then, in 1517, found itself under attack throughout northern Europe. First, Erasmus of Rotterdam promoted ideas of reformation, and then, in 1517, Martin Luther Martin Luther (14831546) went one step or rather, leap further, producing his 95 theses against the Church practice of indulgences, a prelude to his more comprehensive a.s.sault on the entire inst.i.tution. Furthermore, when Luther's works were disseminated his ideas gained a European following among a range of reforming groups branded as (14831546) went one step or rather, leap further, producing his 95 theses against the Church practice of indulgences, a prelude to his more comprehensive a.s.sault on the entire inst.i.tution. Furthermore, when Luther's works were disseminated his ideas gained a European following among a range of reforming groups branded as Lutheran Lutheran by the Church, while other reformers were drawn to the doctrines of by the Church, while other reformers were drawn to the doctrines of John Calvin John Calvin (150964). Luther a.s.serted that the Church's political power should be subservient to that of the state; Calvin emphasized the importance of individual conscience and the need for redemption through the grace of Christ rather than the confessional. Luther's writings and Bible translations were printed in the Netherlands, but the doctrines of Calvin proved more popular in Amsterdam, setting the seal on the city's religious transformation. Calvin was insistent on the separation of Church and State, but the lines were easily fudged in Amsterdam by the Church's ruling council of ministers and annually elected elders, who soon came to exercise considerable political clout. The council also had little time for other (more egalitarian) Protestant sects, and matters came to a head when, in 1535, one of the radical splinter groups, the (150964). Luther a.s.serted that the Church's political power should be subservient to that of the state; Calvin emphasized the importance of individual conscience and the need for redemption through the grace of Christ rather than the confessional. Luther's writings and Bible translations were printed in the Netherlands, but the doctrines of Calvin proved more popular in Amsterdam, setting the seal on the city's religious transformation. Calvin was insistent on the separation of Church and State, but the lines were easily fudged in Amsterdam by the Church's ruling council of ministers and annually elected elders, who soon came to exercise considerable political clout. The council also had little time for other (more egalitarian) Protestant sects, and matters came to a head when, in 1535, one of the radical splinter groups, the Anabaptists Anabaptists, occupied Amsterdam's town hall, calling on pa.s.sers-by to repent. Previously the town council had tolerated the Anabaptists, but, prompted by the Calvinists, it acted swiftly when civic rule was challenged; the town hall was besieged and, after its capture, the leaders of the Anabaptists were executed on the Dam.
History
The revolt of the Netherlands In 1555, the fanatically Catholic Philip II Philip II succeeded to the Spanish throne. Through a series of marriages the Spanish monarchy and succeeded to the Spanish throne. Through a series of marriages the Spanish monarchy and Habsburg Habsburg family had come to rule over the Low Countries, and Philip was determined to rid his empire of its heretics, regardless of whether they were Calvinists or Anabaptists. Philip promptly garrisoned the towns of the Low Countries with Spanish mercenaries, imported the family had come to rule over the Low Countries, and Philip was determined to rid his empire of its heretics, regardless of whether they were Calvinists or Anabaptists. Philip promptly garrisoned the towns of the Low Countries with Spanish mercenaries, imported the Inquisition Inquisition and pa.s.sed a series of anti-Protestant edicts. However, other pressures on the Habsburg Empire forced him into a tactical withdrawal and he transferred control of the Low Countries to his sister, and pa.s.sed a series of anti-Protestant edicts. However, other pressures on the Habsburg Empire forced him into a tactical withdrawal and he transferred control of the Low Countries to his sister, Margaret of Parma Margaret of Parma, in 1559. Based in Brussels, the equally resolute Margaret implemented the policies of her brother with gusto. In 1561 she reorganized the Church and created fourteen new bishoprics, a move that was construed as a wresting of power from civil authority, and an attempt to destroy the local aristocracy's powers of religious patronage. Right across the Low Countries, Protestantism Protestantism and Protestant sympathies spread to the n.o.bility, who now formed the ”League of the n.o.bility” to counter Habsburg policy. The League pet.i.tioned Margaret for moderation but were dismissed out of hand by one of her (French-speaking) advisers, who called them ” and Protestant sympathies spread to the n.o.bility, who now formed the ”League of the n.o.bility” to counter Habsburg policy. The League pet.i.tioned Margaret for moderation but were dismissed out of hand by one of her (French-speaking) advisers, who called them ”ces geux” (those beggars), an epithet that was to be enthusiastically adopted by the rebels. In 1565 a harvest failure caused a winter famine among the urban workers of the region and, after years of repression, they struck back. In 1566 a Protestant sermon in the tiny Flemish textile town of Steenvoorde incited the congregation to purge the local church of its ”papist” idolatry. The crowd smashed up the church's reliquaries and shrines, broke the stained-gla.s.s windows and terrorized the priests, thereby igniting what is commonly called the Iconoclastic Fury Iconoclastic Fury. The rioting spread like wildfire and within ten days churches had been ransacked from one end of the Low Countries to the other, nowhere more so than in Amsterdam hence the plain, whitewashed interiors of many of the city's churches today.
History
The revolt of the Netherlands The revolt of the Netherlands
The Council of Blood and the Waterguezen The ferocity of this outbreak shocked the upper cla.s.ses into renewed support for Spain, and Margaret regained the allegiance of most n.o.bles with the princ.i.p.al exception of the country's greatest landowner, Prince William of Orange-Na.s.sau, known as William the Silent William the Silent, who prudently slipped away to his estates in Germany. Meanwhile, Philip II was keen to capitalize on the increase in support for Margaret and, in 1567, he dispatched the Duke of Albe Duke of Albe, with an army of ten thousand men, to the Low Countries to suppress his religious opponents absolutely. One of Albe's first acts was to set up the Commission of Civil Unrest, which was soon nicknamed the ”Council of Blood”, after its habit of executing those it examined. No fewer than twelve thousand citizens were polished off, mostly for taking part in the Fury. Initially the repression worked; in 1568, when William attempted an invasion from Germany, the towns, including Amsterdam, offered no support. William withdrew and conceived other means of defeating Albe, sponsoring the Protestant privateers, the so-called Waterguezen Waterguezen or sea-beggars, who took their name from the epithet provided by Margaret's advisor. In April 1572, the Waterguezen entered Brielle on the Maas and captured it from the Spanish in the first of several commando-style attacks. At first, the Waterguezen were obliged to operate from England, but it was soon possible for them to secure bases in the Netherlands, whose citizens had grown to loathe the autocratic Albe and his Spanish army. or sea-beggars, who took their name from the epithet provided by Margaret's advisor. In April 1572, the Waterguezen entered Brielle on the Maas and captured it from the Spanish in the first of several commando-style attacks. At first, the Waterguezen were obliged to operate from England, but it was soon possible for them to secure bases in the Netherlands, whose citizens had grown to loathe the autocratic Albe and his Spanish army.
After the success at Brielle, the revolt spread rapidly. By June the rebels controlled all of the province of Holland except for Amsterdam, which steadfastly refused to come off the fence. Albe and his son Frederick fought back, but William's superior naval power frustrated him and a mightily irritated Philip replaced Albe with Luis de Resquesens Luis de Resquesens. Initially, Resquesens had some success in the south, where the Catholic majority were more willing to compromise with Spanish rule than their northern neighbours, but the tide of war was against him most pointedly in William's triumphant relief of Leiden in 1574. Two years later, Resquesens died and the (unpaid) Habsburg garrison in Antwerp mutinied and a.s.saulted the town, slaughtering some eight thousand of its people in what was known as the Spanish Fury Spanish Fury. The ma.s.sacre alienated the south and pushed its peoples including the doubting Thomases of Amsterdam into the arms of William, whose troops now swept into Brussels, the heart of imperial power. Momentarily, it seemed possible for the whole region to unite behind William and all signed the Union of Brussels Union of Brussels, which demanded the departure of foreign troops as a condition for accepting a diluted Habsburg sovereignty.
History
The revolt of the Netherlands The revolt of the Netherlands
The formation of the United Provinces Philip was, however, not inclined to compromise, especially when he realized that William's Calvinist sympathies were giving his newly found Walloon and Flemish allies (of modern-day Belgium) the jitters. The king bided his time until 1578, when, with his enemies arguing among themselves, he sent another army from Spain to the Low Countries under the command of Alessandro Farnese, the Duke of Parma Duke of Parma. Events played into Parma's hands. In 1579, tiring of all the wrangling, seven northern provinces agreed to sign the Union of Utrecht Union of Utrecht, an alliance against Spain that was to be the first unification of the Netherlands as an identifiable country the United Provinces United Provinces. It was then that Amsterdam formally declared for the rebels and switched from Catholicism to Calvinism in what became known as the ”Alteratie” of 1578. The rebels had conceded freedom of religious belief, but in Amsterdam, as elsewhere, this did not extend to freedom of wors.h.i.+p. Nonetheless, a pragmatic compromise was reached in which a blind eye was turned to the celebration of the Ma.s.s if it was done privately and inconspicuously. It was this ad hoc arrangement that gave rise to ”clandestine” Catholic churches (schuilkerken) like that of the Amstelkring on Oudezijds Voorburgwal Oudezijds Voorburgwal.
The a.s.sembly of these United Provinces was known as the States General States General, and it met at Den Haag (The Hague); it had no domestic legislative authority, and could only carry out foreign policy by unanimous decision, a formula designed to rea.s.sure the independent-minded merchants of every Dutch city. The role of Stadholder Stadholder was the most important in each province, roughly equivalent to that of governor, though the same person could occupy this position in any number of provinces. Meanwhile, in the south and also in 1579 representatives of the southern provinces signed the was the most important in each province, roughly equivalent to that of governor, though the same person could occupy this position in any number of provinces. Meanwhile, in the south and also in 1579 representatives of the southern provinces signed the Union of Arras Union of Arras, a Catholic-led agreement that declared loyalty to Philip II and counterbalanced the Union of Utrecht in the north. Thus, the Low Countries were, de facto, divided into two the Spanish Netherlands Spanish Netherlands and the United Provinces beginning a separation that would lead, after many changes, to the creation of Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. With the return of more settled times, Amsterdam was now free to carry on with what it did best trading and making money. and the United Provinces beginning a separation that would lead, after many changes, to the creation of Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. With the return of more settled times, Amsterdam was now free to carry on with what it did best trading and making money.
History
The Golden Age The brilliance of Amsterdam's explosion onto the European scene is as difficult to underestimate as it is to detail. The size of its merchant fleet merchant fleet carrying Baltic grain into Europe had long been considerable and even the Spaniards had been unable to undermine Dutch maritime strength. Furthermore, with the decline of Antwerp, whose skilled workers had fled north after their city had been incorporated into the Spanish Netherlands, Amsterdam now became the unrivalled emporium for the products of northern and southern Europe as well as the East and West Indies. The city didn't prosper from its market alone, though, as Amsterdam s.h.i.+ps also carried produce, a cargo trade that greatly increased the city's wealth. Dutch carrying Baltic grain into Europe had long been considerable and even the Spaniards had been unable to undermine Dutch maritime strength. Furthermore, with the decline of Antwerp, whose skilled workers had fled north after their city had been incorporated into the Spanish Netherlands, Amsterdam now became the unrivalled emporium for the products of northern and southern Europe as well as the East and West Indies. The city didn't prosper from its market alone, though, as Amsterdam s.h.i.+ps also carried produce, a cargo trade that greatly increased the city's wealth. Dutch banking and investment banking and investment brought further prosperity, and by the middle of the seventeenth century Amsterdam's wealth was spectacular. The Calvinist bourgeoisie indulged themselves in fine ca.n.a.l houses, and commissioned images of themselves in group portraits. Civic pride knew no bounds as great monuments to self-aggrandizement, such as the new brought further prosperity, and by the middle of the seventeenth century Amsterdam's wealth was spectacular. The Calvinist bourgeoisie indulged themselves in fine ca.n.a.l houses, and commissioned images of themselves in group portraits. Civic pride knew no bounds as great monuments to self-aggrandizement, such as the new town hall town hall (now (now the Koninklijk Paleis the Koninklijk Paleis), were hastily erected, and, if some went hungry, few starved, as the poor were cared for in munic.i.p.al almshouses.
The arts flourished and religious tolerance religious tolerance was extended even to the traditional scapegoats, the Jews, and in particular the Sephardic Jews, who had been hounded from Spain by the Inquisition, but were guaranteed freedom from religious persecution under the terms of the Union of Utrecht. By the end of the eighteenth century, Jews accounted for ten percent of the city's population. Guilds and craft a.s.sociations thrived, and in the first half of the seventeenth century Amsterdam's population quadrupled; the relatively high wages paid by the city's industries attracted agricultural workers from every part of the country and Protestant refugees arrived from every corner of Catholic Europe. was extended even to the traditional scapegoats, the Jews, and in particular the Sephardic Jews, who had been hounded from Spain by the Inquisition, but were guaranteed freedom from religious persecution under the terms of the Union of Utrecht. By the end of the eighteenth century, Jews accounted for ten percent of the city's population. Guilds and craft a.s.sociations thrived, and in the first half of the seventeenth century Amsterdam's population quadrupled; the relatively high wages paid by the city's industries attracted agricultural workers from every part of the country and Protestant refugees arrived from every corner of Catholic Europe.
History