Netherlands: Notable Cities

Amsterdam (All Facts)

• Established itself as the refugee capital of Europe by the time / period of the Protestant Reformation

  • Among the most conspicuous of the refugees are Sephardic Jews (from Spain and Portugal), many of whom were successful merchants

• As per the Union of Utrecht, religious toleration was granted

• In return for its generosity, the namesake city gained an unrivaled access to the world’s most profitable trading networks

• By 1630, it had welcomed 100K refugees who fled the Catholic Southern Netherlands who were persecuted there, which, by that time, comprised 30% of the namesake city’s population

• By 1639, it was the maritime capital of Europe characterized by the

  • emergence of

    • new and inexpensive cargo ships

    • navigational skills

    • aggressive exploitation of new markets

  • enablement of the Dutch to

    • expand their shipping trade to unprecedented heights worldwide

    • make the namesake city Europe’s marine insurance capital

Delft (All Facts)

• City which harbored a certain school of painters / painting during the Dutch Golden Age characterized by scenes of domestic middle-class and low-class life in the Netherlands during the time of the Dutch Republic

• City whose rich Dutch merchants were enthusiastic picture collectors, thus leading to the widespread and varied styles of painting exhibited by the school of the namesake city

Rotterdam (All Facts)

The Hague (All Facts)

Leiden (All Facts)