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Dam Review

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Dam

Dam Square

Category: Memorials/Monuments
Location: Old City Center

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Fodor's Review:

Home to the Koninklijk Paleis (Royal Palace) and the Nieuwe Kerk, this is Amsterdam's official center. The square traces its roots to the 12th century, when wanderers from central Europe came floating in their canoes down the Amstel River and decided to stop to build a dam. It became the focal point of the small settlement and the location of the local weigh house. Folks came here to trade, talk, protest, and be executed. Ships once sailed right up to the weigh house, along the Damrak. But in the 19th century the Damrak was filled in to form the street leading to Centraal Station and King Louis, Napoléon's brother, had the weigh house demolished in 1808 because it spoiled the view from his bedroom window in the Royal Palace. Regardless, the Dam, with its fresh and glistening white cobblestones, remains the city's true center.

The towering white obelisk in the center of the square was erected in 1956 as a memorial to the Dutch soldiers who died in World War II. Designed by architect J. J. P. Oud (who thought that De Stijl minimalism was in keeping with the monument's message), it's the national focal point for Remembrance Day on May 4. Every year, the queen walks from the Koninklijk Paleis to the monument and lays flowers. The monument contains 12 urns: 11 are filled with earth from all the Dutch provinces and the 12th contains earth from the former colonies (Indonesia, Suriname, and the Antilles). Oud designed the steps to be used as seating and today it's still a favored rest spot and a great place to watch the world go by. It is also the best place in the city to meet people. Just schedule meetings next to the giant phallus. Follow Damrak south from Centraal Station. Raadhuisstraat leads from Dam to intersect main canals.

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