The Smallepadsgracht is a short and narrow canal in the
Amsterdam-Centrum
Amsterdam-Centrum is the inner-most borough and historical city centre of Amsterdam, Netherlands, containing the majority of the city's landmarks. Established in 2002, Amsterdam-Centrum was the last area in the city to be granted the status of s ...
district 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 ...
.
It is in the
Westelijke Eilanden
Westelijke Eilanden (, Western Islands) are three islands in the Centrum district of Amsterdam: Bickerseiland, Prinseneiland and Realeneiland.
They are located to the south of the IJ and the Zeeheldenbuurt, to the north of the railway line betwee ...
(Western Islands) neighborhood.
Description
The Smallepadsgracht is on the west side of the Realeneiland and connects the
Zoutkeetsgracht
The Zoutkeetsgracht (Salt sheds canal) is a canal to the west of the center of Amsterdam.
Location
The canal separates the Westelijke Eilanden (Western Islands) of the Centrum district from the Zeeheldenbuurt in Amsterdam-West.
It connects the ...
with the
Realengracht
The Realengracht is a canal in Amsterdam, in the Centrum district.
Location
The canal is on the south side of the Realeneiland and connects the junction of the Smallepadsgracht and the Prinseneilandsgracht with the Westerdok near the Zandhoek. ...
and
Prinseneilandsgracht
The Prinseneilandsgracht is a canal in the Centrum district of Amsterdam. It runs between Prinseneiland, an artificial island, to the east and the mainland to the west. Until after World War II (1939–45) the canal was bordered almost exclusively ...
.
Unusually, there are no bridges over this canal, nor is there a quay that runs along the canal.
Vierwindenstraat on Realeneiland terminates on the canal.
Smallepadsgracht originated in the defenses of Amsterdam added outside the Haarlemmerdijk and Hogendijk during the expansion of the city, with the active advice of
Maurice, Prince of Orange
Maurice of Orange ( nl, Maurits van Oranje; 14 November 1567 – 23 April 1625) was ''stadtholder'' of all the provinces of the Dutch Republic except for Friesland from 1585 at the earliest until his death in 1625. Before he became Prince o ...
.
A path ran along the strongholds, ramparts and mills, the Smalle Pad (Narrow Path).
The counterpart of the
Lijnbaansgracht
Lijnbaansgracht () is a partly filled-in canal in Amsterdam which bends beyond the boundary of the center, Amsterdam-Centrum. The canal runs parallel to the Singelgracht, between the Brouwersgracht and the Reguliersgracht.
History
The Lijnbaa ...
outside the dike was a ditch along that Narrow Path, sometimes called the Smallepadsgracht.
The ''Brandspuitenboek'' by
Jan van der Heyden
Jan van der Heyden (5 March 1637, Gorinchem – 28 March 1712, Amsterdam) was a Dutch Baroque-era painter, glass painter, draughtsman and printmaker. Van der Heyden was one of the first Dutch painters to specialize in townscapes and became ...
has is an etching of the path and canal: "Fire on June 24, 1680 in three ropemakers on the Schans on the Smallepadsgracht".
Another engraving, attributed to Laurens Scherm, shows the ruins of the three burnt out ''lijnbanen''.
On the Schutterswijkkaart from around 1770 the present Planciusstraat is named "Het Smalle Pad", with the Smalle Pads Graft converging towards the road at its northern end towards the lock on Zoutkeetsgracht.
Gallery
File:Jan van der Heijden (1637-1712), Afb 010094005371.jpg , Brand op 24 juni 1680 in drie lijnbanen op de Schans aan de Smallepadsgracht. Jan van der Heyden
Jan van der Heyden (5 March 1637, Gorinchem – 28 March 1712, Amsterdam) was a Dutch Baroque-era painter, glass painter, draughtsman and printmaker. Van der Heyden was one of the first Dutch painters to specialize in townscapes and became ...
(1690)
File:Stadsarchief Amsterdam, Afb OSIM00009001132.jpg , Construction Zoutkeetsbrug (Bridge 318) over the Zoutkeetsgracht. Left: Vierwindenstraat 27-31 warehouses. Center: Smallepadsgracht and rear of Planciusstraat 1-23. Right: rear of houses on Houtmankade.
File:Smallepadsgracht2014.jpg , Smallepadsgracht and the Sloterdijkerbrug on Prinseneilandsgracht
The Prinseneilandsgracht is a canal in the Centrum district of Amsterdam. It runs between Prinseneiland, an artificial island, to the east and the mainland to the west. Until after World War II (1939–45) the canal was bordered almost exclusively ...
in the rear (June 2014)
See also
*
Canals of Amsterdam
Amsterdam, capital of the Netherlands, has more than of '' grachten'' (canals), about 90 islands and 1,500 bridges. The three main canals (Herengracht, Prinsengracht and Keizersgracht), dug in the 17th century during the Dutch Golden Age, form c ...
Notes
Sources
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smallepadsgracht
Canals in Amsterdam