The Prinsengracht is a -long canal that runs parallel to the

Keizersgracht The Keizersgracht (; "Emperor's canal") is a canal in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. It is the second of the three main Amsterdam canals that together form the Grachtengordel, or canal belt, and lies between the inner Herengracht and outer Prinsengr ...

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 ...

. The canal, named after the

Prince of Orange Prince of Orange (or Princess of Orange if the holder is female) is a title originally associated with the sovereign Principality of Orange, in what is now southern France and subsequently held by sovereigns in the Netherlands. The title ...

, is the fourth of the four main canals belonging to the canal belt.

History

Construction started in 1612 on the initiative of Mayor Frans Hendricksz. Oetgens, after a design by city carpenter Hendrick Jacobsz Staets and city surveyor Lucas Jansz Sinck. The part between the

Leidsegracht The Leidsegracht () is a canal in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. It is a cross-canal in Amsterdam-Center that connects Herengracht, Keizersgracht, Prinsengracht and Lijnbaansgracht and flows into the Singelgracht at Marnixstraat. History The Leid ...

and the Amstel was developed during the city explanation of 1658. The section to the east of the Amstel was constructed during the last expansion. This part was named Nieuwe Prinsengracht. The Korte Prinsengracht is in the extension of the Prinsengracht between the Brouwersgracht and the Westerdok.

Architecture and monuments

Café Papeneiland - Amsterdam - 20020095 - RCE

There are many monuments and monumental canal houses on the Prinsengracht, including: * A

crow-stepped gable A stepped gable, crow-stepped gable, or corbie step is a stairstep type of design at the top of the triangular gable-end of a building. The top of the parapet wall projects above the roofline and the top of the brick or stone wall is stacked in ...

on the corner with the Brouwersgracht at Prinsengracht 2–4. * The van Brienenhofje, or Rk. St Van Brienens Founded The Star at Prinsengracht 89–133. * A frame facade at Prinsengracht 124. * 't Casteel van Beveren from around 1720 at Prinsengracht 299. * The

Anne Frank House The Anne Frank House ( nl, Anne Frank Huis) is a writer's house and biographical museum dedicated to Jewish wartime diarist Anne Frank. The building is located on a canal called the Prinsengracht, close to the Westerkerk, in central Amsterdam ...

from 1635 with the Secret Annex from 1740 at Prinsengracht 263 (near the Westertoren). * 'De Roode Vos' with a clock gable at Prinsengracht 300. * The Palace of Justice from 1829 at Prinsengracht 436. * A typical example of a 19th-century so-called Ojief spout facade at Prinsengracht 556. * The Prinsengracht Hospital at Prinsengracht 769. * The best-preserved copy of five identical neck gables from 1701 at Prinsengracht 849. * The 17th-century Deutzen Hofje at Prinsengracht 899.

Churches

*Between Prinsengracht 16 and 18 - at Westerstraat - there is the

Noordermarkt The Noordermarkt (; en, Northern Market) is a square in the Jordaan neighborhood of Amsterdam in the Netherlands. The square is dominated by the 17th-Century Noorderkerk church, and is lined by cafés and restaurants. Markets are held on the squ ...

with the

Noorderkerk The Noorderkerk ("northern church") is a 17th-century Protestant church in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. A number of other towns in the Netherlands also have a Noorderkerk church, including The Hague, Hoorn and Kampen. History The church was built i ...

built around 1623. *The

Westerkerk The Westerkerk (; en, Western Church) is a Reformed church within Dutch Protestant Calvinism in central Amsterdam, Netherlands. It lies in the most western part of the Grachtengordel neighborhood ( Centrum borough), next to the Jordaan, betwe ...

with the Westertoren on Prinsengracht 281 (on the Westermarkt). *Between Prinsengracht 1047 and 1049 - at the Utrechtsestraat - there is the Amstelveld with the special Amstelkerk, built as a temporary ‘Wooden barn’ in 1670. *Prinsengracht 756 contains the De Duif church building from 1858. (Until 1974 it was the Catholic Sint-Willibrorduskerk within the Veste.) File:Balthasar Florisz. van Berckenrode - Amsterdam (1625) 1-2.jpg, Map of Amsterdam by Balthasar Florisz. van Berckenrode (1625). Detail of the larger map with the still short Prinsengracht ending at the Leidsegracht (top center). File:Koppelaar cityscape.jpg, Prinsengracht with Westertoren , fall. Frans Koppelaar

Numbering and orientation

The Prinsengracht starts in the north at the Brouwersgracht, bends parallel to the

to the southeast and flows into the Amstel. The odd numbered side of the canal is on the side of the heart of the city (

Dam Square Dam Square or the Dam () is a town square in Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands. Its notable buildings and frequent events make it one of the best-known and most important locations in the city and the country. Location and description ...

). *At Prinsengracht 182 and 281 is the intersection with

Rozengracht The Rozengracht is a street in the Jordaan neighbourhood of Amsterdam. It runs between the Prinsengracht at the Westermarkt and the Singel canal at De Clercqstraat. The name means "Rose canal". The Rozengracht is one of the six former canals in ...

and

Raadhuisstraat Raadhuisstraat is a street in Downtown Amsterdam, in the Netherlands. It is located between Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal and Prinsengracht. The street is named after the former City Hall or Town Hall, now the Royal Palace and it contains the galle ...

respectively *At Prinsengracht 444 and 707 you will find the intersection with

Leidsestraat Leidseplein (English: Leiden Square) is a square in central Amsterdam, Netherlands. It lies in the Weteringschans neighborhood ( Centrum borough), immediately northeast of the Singelgracht. It is located on the crossroads of the Weteringschans, Ma ...

(Filmtheater de Uitkijk is at number 452) *At Prinsengracht 644 and 927 is the intersection with Vijzelgracht and Vijzelstraat respectively *At Prinsengracht 806 and 1055 is the intersection with Utrechtsestraat *To the east of the Prinsengracht, between the

and the Leidsegracht are the so-called

Negen Straatjes De Negen Straatjes (; en, Nine Little Streets) is a neighbourhood of Amsterdam, Netherlands located in the Grachtengordel, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. De Negen Straatjes De Negen Straatjes comprises nine side streets off the Prinsengracht, Ke ...

(Nine Small Streets).

Bridges

The Prinsengracht is spanned by 14 bridges, all fixed:

Trivia

*Other cities, such as Hasselt and Meppel, also have a Prinsengracht. The (filled-in) Prinsegracht (without N) is located in

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital of ...

. *Since 1981 the

Prinsengrachtconcert The Prinsengrachtconcert is an annual open-air concert of classical music held annually in August since 1981 on the Prinsengracht in Amsterdam. The orchestra is situated on a pontoon anchored in front of the Hotel Pulitzer; much of the audience w ...

has been held annually in August on a pontoon in front of Hotel Pulitzer. *In the Dutch comedy series Het Zonnetje in Huis, the main café of main character Piet Bovenkerk, Café Vijf Bier, is located on the Prinsengracht.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Prinsengracht Canals in Amsterdam