History of Amsterdam
The origins of Amsterdam lie in the 13th century. It is thought that fisherman living along the banks of the river Amstel built a bridge across the waterway just before it entered the IJ, then a large saltwater inlet. Wooden doors on the bridge served as a dam which at times held back the IJ. The mouth of the Amstel, where the Damrak now is, thus formed a natural harbor. The oldest document that refers to the settelment of Aemstelledamme, as it was then known, mentions that in 1204 the inhabitants of Kennemer penetrated the aggrem Aemestel, the Amstel dike, resulting in the destruction of the house of Gijsbrecht van Aemstel.
An important year in the history of Amsterdam was 1275. While Amstelland fell under the administration jurisdiction of the Sticht Utrecht, Count Floris V of Holland granted the fishmen exemption from tolls. This meant the inhabitants in the vicinity of Aemstelledamme had right to travel through the county Holland without having to pay toll. After the murder of Floris in 1296, Amstelland belonged again to the Sticht.
Around 1300, the bishop of Utrecht Gwijde van Henegouwen gave Amsterdam city rights. After his death, Count Willem III inherited Amstelland, upon which Amsterdam thenceforth fell under Holland.
In 1323, Willem III established a toll on the trade of beer from Hamburg. The contacts laid through the beer trade formed the basis for the subsequent trade with cities of the Hanseatic league in the Baltic Sea, from where during the 14th and 15th centuries the Amsterdammers increasingly acquired grain and timber. In 1342, Count Willem IV awarded the city "Groot Privilege", which greatly strengthened the position of the city. During the 15th century, Amsterdam became the granary of the northern low countries and the most important trading city in Holland.

Conflict with Spain
The 16th century brought a rebellion by the Dutch against Philip II of Spain. The uprising was mainly caused by the lack of political power for the local nobility and by the religious intolerance of the Spanish. Although Amsterdam began the war on the Spanish side, it changed sides in 1578 and gave its support to William I of Orange. The rebellion led to the Eighty Years' War and Dutch independence.
One of the results of the war was that Spanish religious intolerance gave way to Dutch tolerance. In Amsterdam people were free to believe what they wanted (within certain limits). In the city remained a large Roman Catholic minority (and Roman Catholicism is still one of the major religions in Amsterdam), but the majority of the people belonged to the Reformed Church and other Protestant denominations.
In these years religious wars raged throughout Europe and many people fled to the Dutch Republic and Amsterdam, where they sought refuge. Wealthy Jews from Spain and Portugal, prosperous merchants from Antwerp and the Huguenots from France all sought safety in Amsterdam.

The "Golden Age"
The 17th century was Amsterdam's Golden Age. Ships from the city sailed to North America, Indonesia, Brazil and Africa and formed the basis of a worldwide trading network. Amsterdam's merchants financed expeditions to the four corners of the world and they acquired the overseas possessions which formed the seeds of the later Dutch colonies. Rembrandt painted in this century and the city expanded mightily around its canals during this time. Amsterdam was the most important point for the transshipment of goods in Europe and it was the leading financial centre of the world (A position later taken over by London).
The 18th and early 19th centuries saw a decline in Amsterdam's prosperity. The wars of the Dutch Republic with the United Kingdom and France took their toll on Amsterdam. During the Napoleonic wars Amsterdam's fortunes reached their lowest point; however, with the establishment of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in 1815, things slowly began to improve. In Amsterdam new developments were started by people like Sarphati who found their inspiration in Paris.
At the end of the 19th century the Industrial Revolution reached Amsterdam. The Amsterdam-Rijn kanaal was dug to give Amsterdam a direct connection to the Rhine and the Noordzee kanaal to give the port a connection with the North Sea. Both projects improved communication with the rest of Europe and the world dramatically. They gave the economy a big boost.
The end of the 19th century is sometimes called Amsterdam's second Golden Age. New museums, the Centraal Station and the Concertgebouw were built. Also built was the Stelling van Amsterdam, a unique ring of 42 forts and land that could be inundated to defend the city against an attack. Amsterdam's population grew significantly during this period.

20th century
During World War I, the Netherlands remained neutral, but Amsterdam suffered the effects of the war when food became scarce. When working class women started to plunder a ship with army supplies, the military was brought in. Workers joined their wives in the plundering and the soldiers opened fire on them. Six people were killed and almost 100 were wounded.
In 1932 a dike separating the Zuider Zee from the North Sea, the Afsluitdijk, was completed. The Zuider Zee was no more. The new lake behind the dyke was called IJsselmeer. For the first time in its history Amsterdam had no open communication with the sea.
During World War II, German troops occupied the city. More than 100,000 Jews were deported, famously including Anne Frank, and almost completely wiping out the Jewish community. Before the war, Amsterdam was the world's center for the diamond trade. Since this trade was mostly in the hands of Jewish businessmen and craftsmen, the diamond trade essentially disappeared.
The cultural revolution of the 1960s and 1970s made Amsterdam the magisch centrum (magical centre) of Europe. The use of soft drugs was tolerated and this policy made the city a popular destination for hippies. Squatting became widespread. Riots and clashes with the police were frequent.
Amsterdam started the 1980s in an explosive manner. In 1980, while Queen Beatrix's coronation was being held in the New Church on Dam square, protesters outside the church fought with the police in protest against government policies. Their slogan was 'Geen woning, geen kroning' (No house, no coronation). The mayor and city council eventually had to bring in the military to get the situation under control. During this decade the number of foreign immigrants, primarily from Suriname, Turkey and Morocco grew strongly. This led to an exodus of people to the 'growth cities' of Purmerend, Almere and other cities near Amsterdam. However, neighbourhoods like the Pijp and the Jordaan, which had previously been working class, became sought out places of residence for the newly wealthy yuppies and students.
In 1992, an El Al cargo plane crashed in the Bijlmermeer in Amsterdam Zuidoost. This disaster, called the 'Bijlmerramp, caused the death of at least 43 people.
The beginning of the new millennium brought economic hardships to Amsterdam. Unemployment grew strongly. The foreign immigrants who had come to the city two decades before brought their own problems, culminating in the killing of Dutch film-maker Theo van Gogh.

Cultural life
In the 15th and 16th century cultural life in Amsterdam consisted mainly of festivals. During the later part of the 16th century Amsterdams Rederijkerskamer (Chamber of Rhetoric) organized contests between different Chambers in the reading of poetry and drama. In 1638 Amsterdam got its first theatre. Ballet performances were given in this theatre as early as 1642. In the 18th century French theatre became popular. Opera could be seen in Amsterdam from 1677, first only Italian and French operas, but in the 18th century German operas. In the 19th century popular culture was centered around the Nes area in Amsterdam (mainly vaudeville and musichall). The metronome, one of the most important advances in European classical music was invented here in 1812 by Dietrich Nikolaus Winkel. At the end of this century the Rijksmuseum and Gemeentelijk Museum were built. In 1888 the Concertgebouworkest was established. With the 20th century came cinema, radio and television. Though the studios are in Hilversum and Aalsmeer, Amsterdams influence on programming is very strong. After WWII popular culture became the dominant cultural phenomenon in Amsterdam.


 

From: www.wikipedia.org