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Amsterdam information : Attractions
Damsquare Amsterdam
The Dam covers 17,000 square metres and is the national square of the Netherlands. It is also the oldest part of Amsterdam and almost 1,000 years ago fishermen, shipbuilders and craft workers settled in the area. Visual highlights around the square include the National War Monument and the Royal Palace.
The neoclassical Royal Palace served as the city hall from 1655 until its conversion to a royal residence in 1808. Either side of the Palace, you can also see the 15th-century Gothic Nieuwe Kerk (New Church) and the Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum.
The opposite side of the square is dominated by National Monument, a white stone pillar erected in 1956 to memorialize the victims of World War II. The Dam derives its name from its original function of being a dam on the Amstel River, hence also the name of the city. Built in approximately 1270, the dam formed the first connection between the settlements on the sides of the river. Over the course of the 19th and 20th centuries, Amsterdam's main square became a"national" square well-known to early everyone in the Netherlands.
Nowadays it is a hive of activity for tourists thanks to the numerous cafes and terraces, the colourful street entertainers and also special events like a funfair which visits regularly throughout the year.
Attraction near by: Madame Tussaud's, Shopping Klavertoren, Bijenkorf, redlight district & central staion