Nieuwmarkt
Encyclopedia
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
capital Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
. The surrounding area is known as the Nieuwmarktbuurt (Nieuwmarkt district).
The square is located in Amsterdam's Chinatown
Chinatown
A Chinatown is an ethnic enclave of overseas Chinese people, although it is often generalized to include various Southeast Asian people. Chinatowns exist throughout the world, including East Asia, Southeast Asia, the Americas, Australasia, and Europe. Binondo's Chinatown located in Manila,...
, next to the De Wallen
De Wallen
De Wallen is the largest and best-known red-light district in Amsterdam and a major tourist attraction. It is located in the heart of the oldest part of Amsterdam, covering several blocks south of the church Oude Kerk and crossed by several canals....
(Red Light District
Red-light district
A red-light district is a part of an urban area where there is a concentration of prostitution and sex-oriented businesses, such as sex shops, strip clubs, adult theaters, etc...
). There are over 20 cafés and coffeeshops facing the square. There is a daily market on the square, as well as an organic food market on Saturdays and a market for antiques and books on Sundays in the summer months.
The Nieuwmarkt is dominated by a building known as De Waag
Waag
A weigh house or weighing house is a public building at or within which goods, and the like, are weighed. Most of these buildings were built before 1800, prior to the establishment of international standards for weights...
, originally a gate in the Medieval city walls but converted into a weighing house after the walls were demolished in the 17th century. The square was created when the canals around the Waag were filled in 1614, and was used as a marketplace (hence the name). In World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
the square was used by the Nazis as a collection point for Jews who had been rounded up to be sent to the concentration camps.
In the 1970s many buildings on and around the square were torn down to make way for a planned metro and highway which was to run right through the Nieuwmarkt neighbourhood. This led to heavy rioting (the Nieuwmarktrellen ) in 1975 and, ultimately, abandonment of the highway plans. The metro, however, was constructed, and Nieuwmarkt is now a station on the Amsterdam metro
Amsterdam Metro
The Amsterdam Metro is a mixed rapid transit and light rail system in Amsterdam, and its surrounding municipalities Amstelveen, Diemen, and Ouder-Amstel in the Netherlands. The network is owned by the city of Amsterdam and operated by the Gemeentelijk Vervoerbedrijf, the company that also operates...
(subway) system.