Royal Palace Amsterdam, A Palace on Stilts, an Architectural Marvel
Dam 1, 1012 AA Amsterdam
3.9
Introduction
The Royal Palace of Amsterdam (Dutch: Koninklijk Paleis Amsterdam or Paleis op de Dam) is located on the west side of Dam Square in the city center of Amsterdam, adjacent to the Nieuwe Kerk. The palace was built during the 17th century Dutch Golden Age and originally served as the city hall. After its unveiling on July 20, 1655, it was converted into a royal palace by Louis Bonaparte, Napoleon's brother, during the French occupation, but the Dutch royal family does not reside here. Today, the palace is sometimes used as a reception venue for heads of state and is open to the public during the summer. This palace is built on 13,659 wooden piles that are 14-16 meters deep underground, with a stone foundation, and buildings constructed on top of it, thus being referred to as the world's eighth wonder of architecture, the "Palace on Piles".
The Kingdom of the Netherlands has four royal palaces, and the Royal Palace of Amsterdam is one of them. The official name of the Netherlands is in Dutch "Koninkrijk der Nederlanden", while the term "Holland" strictly refers to a region within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, namely the combined provinces of North Holland and South Holland. Although "Holland" is commonly used to refer to the entire Kingdom of the Netherlands, it is not necessarily widely accepted by the Dutch, especially among residents from other provinces, as using "Holland" to refer to the country can be considered impolite. In formal occasions, the Kingdom of the Netherlands would use its official name "Nederlanden". In Chinese translations, it is generally referred to as "荷兰王国" (Kingdom of Holland), thus the original names in the two terms are not the same. Opening hours Not open to the public during the use or hosting of royal events by the Royal Netherlands from 10:00 to 17:00 every day.
Transportation Public transportation: Take any bus from the Central Station and get off at Dam Square; Train: Depart from the Central Station and walk straight along Damrak to reach Dam Square, with the palace on your right, which should take about 10 minutes in total.
A palace that is actually still in use
