The Grimburgwal is a small canal and street in the center of

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

Location

The canal was the southern border of the city until 1425 and is now the southern border of

De Wallen De Wallen () or De Walletjes () is the largest and best known red-light district in Amsterdam. It consists of a network of alleys containing approximately 300 one-room cabins rented by prostitutes who offer their sexual services from behind a win ...

, the red light district. The

Nes The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) is an 8-bit third-generation home video game console produced by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan in 1983 as the commonly known as the The NES, a redesigned version, was released in American ...

street and the

Oudezijds Voorburgwal The Oudezijds Voorburgwal, often abbreviated to OZ Voorburgwal, is a street and canal in De Wallen in the center of Amsterdam. The OZ Voorburgwal runs from the Grimburgwal in the south to the Zeedijk in the north, where it changes into the Oud ...

and

Oudezijds Achterburgwal The Oudezijds Achterburgwal, often abbreviated to ''OZ Achterburgwal'', is a street and canal in De Wallen, the red light district in the center of Amsterdam. Location and characteristics Just like the Oudezijds Voorburgwal, the OZ Achterburgwa ...

canals end at the Grimburgwal. The Grimburgwal, continuing east from the Langebrugsteeg, runs from the Nes, past the Oudezijds Voorburgwal to the Oudezijds Achterburgwal. From here, pedestrians can walk to the

Kloveniersburgwal Kloveniersburgwal is an Amsterdam canal flowing south from Nieuwmarkt to the Amstel River on the edge of the medieval city, lying east of the dam in the centre of Amsterdam. History The Kloveniersburgwal was dug at the end of the 15th century. ...

via the Oudemanhuispoort . A large part of the

University of Amsterdam The University of Amsterdam (abbreviated as UvA, nl, Universiteit van Amsterdam) is a public research university located in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The UvA is one of two large, publicly funded research universities in the city, the other being ...

is located in the Binnengasthuis and Oudemanhuispoort complex on the Grimburgwal. There are also a number of cafés, restaurants, galleries and shops on the canal.

History

The Grimburgwal was originally a tributary of the

Amstel The Amstel () is a river in the province of North Holland in the Netherlands. It flows from the Aarkanaal and Drecht in Nieuwveen northwards, passing Uithoorn, Amstelveen, and Ouderkerk aan de Amstel, to the IJ in Amsterdam. Annually, the riv ...

, the Grim (meaning "muddy ditch"). In the 14th century it was dug into a moat with an earthen wall ("burgwal") to protect the medieval city. The neighborhood around the canal was called Grimmenes. Amsterdam was further expanded around 1424 and the part between Grimburgwal and Amstel was included in the city. The Grimnessesluis was constructed in 1546, as an extension of the Nes, to close off the Grimburgwal from the Amstel. This lock, sketched by

Rembrandt Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (, ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), usually simply known as Rembrandt, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker and draughtsman. An innovative and prolific master in three media, he is generally consid ...

, remained until it was demolished in 1868. Seven years earlier a bridge was built over the Grimburgwal, now part of the Oude Turfmarkt, near the statue of Wilhelmina. The Nes still runs between buildings to the water, reminiscent of the former lock.

Notable buildings

Before the

Alteratie The Alteratie (Eng: Alteration) is the name given to the change of power in Amsterdam on May 26, 1578, when the Catholic city government was deposed in favor of a Protestant one. The coup should be seen in the context of the greater Dutch Revolt t ...

(Alteration) of 1578 there were a number of monasteries on or around the Grimburgwal. The Old and New Nunneries were on the current Binnengasthuis site. The Sint Claraconvent was located between the Nes and the Oudezijds Voorburgwal, but did not reach the Grimburgwal, probably because this was originally the city wall. The Gebed zonder End (Prayer Without End) alley, which opens onto the Grimburgwal, is a remnant of this monastery. On the south side of the Grimburgwal, now the Binnengasthuis site, there was first a "schafferij" (city carpenter's garden), then the De Sleutel brewery (a name preserved in the Sleutelbrug, the stone arch bridge on the Oudezijds Voorburgwal / Grimburgwal corner), and from 1647 the Oudezijds Heerenlogement. This chic inn for distinguished guests was later renamed Lokaal voor Publieke Verkoopingen (Public Salesroom) and used as an auction hall. The building was demolished in 1874 to make way for new buildings on the Binnengasthuis. The entrance gate to this inn has been moved and is now at Keizersgracht 367. A striking building on the Grimburgwal, which has continued to exist, is the

Huis aan de Drie Grachten The Hui people ( zh, c=, p=Huízú, w=Hui2-tsu2, Xiao'erjing: , dng, Хуэйзў, ) are an East Asian ethnoreligious group predominantly composed of Chinese-speaking adherents of Islam. They are distributed throughout China, mainly in the ...

(House on the Three Canals). This building from 1610 owes its name to the fact that it is surrounded on three sides by canals: the Grimburgwal on the south side, the

on the west side and the

on the east side. It is a double house with a stepped gable on each canal . During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

the

August Aimé Balkema August Aimé (Guus) Balkema (6 October 1906, in Avereest – 4 September 1996, in Rotterdam), or A. A. Balkema, was a Dutch book trader and publisher active in Amsterdam and South Africa. He played a prominent role in the South African publishing ...

bookstore in the House on the Three Canals was a clandestine publisher of illegal literature. In the 1980s and 1990s, the Grimburgwal was primarily known as a place where drug addicts offered stolen bicycles for sale. Today, the area is mainly populated by students, tourists, and the public. File:Grimburgwal.jpg, The Grimburgwal seen from the Grimnessesluis File:Rembrandt van Rijn 189.jpg, Rembrandt van Rijn. View of the Grimnessesluis in Amsterdam. Pen and brown ink, brown wash. File:Grimnessesluis Amsterdam 002.jpg, The Grimnessesluis, seen towards the Rokin. Photo: Amsterdam City Archives; around 1860. File:Fre Cohen 1926 (Hoogty) Grimburgwal.jpg,

Fré Cohen Frederika Sophia "Fré" Cohen (11 August 1903 – 14 June 1943) was a Dutch artist and graphic designer. Early life Frederika Sophia Cohen was born on 11 August 1903 in Amsterdam in the Netherlands.Philip van Praag,Cohen, Frederika Sophia (1 ...

, 'Grimburgwal' (1926).

Notes

Sources

External links

Een stad uit niets

Amsterdamse kloosters.pdf op theobakker.net
* Kunstenplan 2005-2008 - Gemeente Amsterdam: gebiedsdocument Unesco juni 2007 {{DEFAULTSORT:Grimburgwal Canals in Amsterdam