Dam Square

The heart of Amsterdam and the navel of the Netherlands: Dam Square is the country’s national square. It is flanked by the Royal Palace, the National Monument and the Nieuwe Kerk. And since time immemorial, this is where official events, national celebrations, public demonstrations and commemorations are held. As revealed by its historical genesis, it is also a very unusual square. It actually consists of two squares, which more or less makes it a failed square. The many paintings and photographs of the square, which are sometimes combined to create a 360-degree view, show how differently it has looked throughout the centuries. In the lavishly illustrated book Dam Square, the writer Fred Feddes explains how the square has been used since the thirteenth century, how it acquired its present-day appearance, and what remarkable events have taken place here, historically and more recently.