Amsterdam-Centrum

The following is a timeline of the history of the municipality of Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Amsterdam Ordnance Datum or Normaal Amsterdams Peil (NAP) is a vertical datum in use in large parts of Western Europe. Originally created for use in the Netherlands, its height was used by Prussia in 1879 for defining Normalnull, and in 1955 by other European countries. In the 1990s, it was used as the reference level for the United European leveling Network (UELN) which in turn led to the European Vertical Reference System (EVRS).Mayor Johannes Hudde of Amsterdam in a way came up with the idea after he expanded the sea dike after a flood in Amsterdam in 1675. Of course a dike should be storm-resistant to protect a city against flooding, and in this case a margin of "9 feet and 5 inches" (2.67 m - margin is defined in Amsterdam feet) was deemed enough to cope with rising water. So he measured the water level of the adjacent sea arm, Het IJ and compared it with the water level in the canals within the city itself. He found that the water level at an average summer flood in the sea arm (when the water level reaches its maximum, not counting storms) was about the same as the level on the other side of the sea-dike, plus the margin of 9 feet and 5 inches. The relatively constant water level in the canals of Amsterdam, called Amsterdams Peil ("Amsterdam level", AP), equalled the level at summer flood at sea in the sea-inlet, which changes throughout the year. AP was carried over to other areas in the Netherlands in 1860, to replace locally used levels. In this operation, an error was introduced which was corrected (normalised) between 1885 and 1894, resulting in the Normaal Amsterdams Peil. Originally the zero level of NAP was the average summer flood water level in the IJ just north of the centre of Amsterdam (which was at the time, in 1684, the main shipping area, then still connected with the open sea). Currently it is physically realised by a brass benchmark on a 22-meter pile below the Dam square in Amsterdam. The brass benchmark in the Amsterdam Stopera (combined city hall and opera house), which is a tourist attraction, is no longer used as a reference point.

Madame Tussauds Amsterdam is a wax museum situated in Amsterdam, the capital city of the Netherlands. It is located in the centre of the city on Dam Square, near the Royal Palace of Amsterdam. Founded in 1970, it was the first Madame Tussauds that was opened in mainland Europe as well as being the first foreign branch of the British institution. The collection of Madame Tussauds Amsterdam consists of a collection of wax figures of famous celebrities in different categories such as the Golden Age of Dutch history, music, sport and film.

Dam Square or the Dam (Dutch pronunciation: [dɑm]) 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.

A Garden of Glass refers to a stained glass window in the Nieuwe Kerk, Amsterdam, designed and installed for the silver jubilee of Queen Beatrix in 2005, by the artist Marc Mulders. In 2004 the National Committee for the Silver Jubilee of Queen Beatrix was formed. The committee settled on a stained glass window in the Nieuwe Kerk as a fitting memorial as that is the location where the Queen was inaugurated. The window is made up of 40 individual panels that include various mushrooms, flowers and butterflies. It hangs opposite the commemorative window from 1995 celebrating 50 years of freedom. A book was published the same year by Lien Heyting about the window, explaining the symbolism of the various figures.The next year Marc Mulders made a stained-glass window commemorating the re-opening of Museum Catharijneconvent with the theme Apocalypse and on 2 September 2016 he made a stained-glass window commemorating Erasmus which was installed in the Janskerk, Gouda.

Hendrick van Streeck (baptized 11 April 1659 - buried 19 November 1720), was a Dutch Golden Age painter of church interiors.

The inauguration of Beatrix as Queen of the Netherlands took place on 30 April 1980 at the Nieuwe Kerk in Amsterdam. Beatrix ascended the throne immediately following the abdication of her mother Juliana earlier that day. Celebrations were largely marred by riots, known as the Amsterdam coronation riots.

The inauguration of Willem-Alexander took place on 30 April 2013 at the Nieuwe Kerk in Amsterdam. Willem-Alexander ascended the throne immediately following the abdication of his mother Queen Beatrix earlier that day. Willem-Alexander is the first King of the Netherlands since the death of his great-great-grandfather William III in 1890.

The Rokin Plaza is a large retail complex south of the Dam in Amsterdam which used to be an office building. The name refers to the Rokin canal on which the building sits.

The Hotel Polen fire occurred on 9 May 1977 in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. The conflagration destroyed the Hotel Polen (Hotel Poland), a five-story hotel in the centre of the city which had been built in 1891, as well as the furniture store on the ground level and a nearby bookstore. Many of the tourists staying at the hotel (of whom the majority were Swedes) jumped to their deaths trying to escape the flames. Upon their arrival, the fire department used a life net to help people escape, but not everyone could be saved. The incident resulted in 33 deaths and 21 severe injuries. The cause of the fire is unknown. In 1986 the Polish-born artist Ania Bien created a photographic installation based on the fire which compared it to the Holocaust. The hotel was located between the Kalverstraat (no. 15–17) and the Rokin (no. 14), near the present day Madame Tussauds. Its place is now occupied by the Rokin Plaza, originally an office building, which today houses several fashion shops.

The Royal Palace of Amsterdam in Amsterdam (Dutch: Koninklijk Paleis van Amsterdam or Paleis op de Dam) is one of three palaces in the Netherlands which are at the disposal of the monarch by Act of Parliament. It is situated on the west side of Dam Square in the centre of Amsterdam, opposite the War Memorial and next to the Nieuwe Kerk. The palace was built as a city hall during the Dutch Golden Age in the 17th century. The building became the royal palace of King Louis Napoleon and later of the Dutch Royal House.

Swissôtel Amsterdam is a four-star luxury hotel in Amsterdam, the capital city of the Netherlands, and is managed by the Switzerland-based hotel chain Swissôtel Hotels & Resorts. Swissotel Amsterdam is located near Dam Square, in the heart of Amsterdam's historic city centre.