Netherlands, Rotterdam

Rotterdam is the second largest municipality in the Netherlands after the capital, Amsterdam by population size, and the largest city in the province of Zuid-Holland (South Holland). The port of Rotterdam is the largest in Europe and was the world's busiest port from 1962 to 2004, until it was overtaken by Shanghai.

History

Settlement at the lower end of the fen stream Rotte (or Rotta, as it was then known, from rot, 'muddy' and a, 'water', thus 'muddy water') dates from at least 900.

On June 7, 1340, Count Willem IV of Holland granted city rights to Rotterdam, which then had approximately 2000 inhabitants.

The port of Rotterdam slowly but steadily grew into a port of importance, becoming the seat of one of the six 'chambers' of the Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie (VOC), or the Dutch East India Company.

The greatest spurt of growth, both in port activity and population, followed the completion of the Nieuwe Waterweg in 1872.The city and harbor started to expand on the south bank of the river.

The German army invaded the Netherlands on May 10, 1940. Germany had planned to conquer the country in one day, but after meeting unexpectedly fierce resistance, it finally forced the Dutch army to capitulate on May 14, 1940 by bombing Rotterdam and threatening to bomb other cities.

The City Hall survived the bombing. The statue is now located near the Leuvehaven, not far from the Erasmusbrug in the north of the city. From the 1950s through the 1970s, the city was rebuilt.

Demographics

With 55% of the inhabitants earning a low income, Rotterdam has its fair share of typical urban problems, such as dilapidated inner city areas.

In the Netherlands, Rotterdam has the highest percentage of foreigners from non-industrialised nations. Nearly 50% of the population are not native to the Netherlands or have at least one parent born outside the country.

Geography

Rotterdam is divided into a northern and a southern part by the river Nieuwe Maas, connected by (from west to east): the Beneluxtunnel; the Maastunnel; the Erasmusbrug ('Erasmus Bridge'); a subway tunnel; the Willemsspoortunnel ('Willems railway tunnel'); the Willemsbrug ('Willems Bridge'); the Koninginnebrug ('Queen's Bridge'); and the Van Brienenoordbrug ('Van Brienenoord Bridge').

Built mostly behind dikes, large parts of the Rotterdam are below sea level. For instance, the Prins Alexander Polder in the northeast of Rotterdam extends 6 meters below sea level, or rather below Normaal Amsterdams Peil (NAP) or 'Amsterdam Ordnance Datum'.

Culture

Alongside Porto, Rotterdam was European Capital of Culture in 2001. The city has its own orchestra, the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra with its world famous musical director Valery Gergiev, a large congress and concert building called De Doelen, plus many theatres (including the new Luxor theatre) and movie theatres.

The city is home to the Rotterdam Academy of Fine Arts ('Willem de Kooning Akademie').

The self-image of the city is that of a no-nonsense workers' city. In that sense, there is a healthy competition with Amsterdam, which is often viewed as the cultural capital of the Netherlands.

The main cultural organisations in Amsterdam, such as the Concertgebouw and Holland Festival, have joint forces with similar organisations in Rotterdam, via A'R'dam. In 2007 these organisations published a manifesto with plans for co-operation.

Sports

Rotterdam is the home of three Eredivisie ('Honorary Division', or Dutch Premier League) football clubs: Feyenoord, Sparta and Excelsior. Rotterdam also has two Hoofdklasse (main class) club, PVV DOTO and TOGR.

Feyenoord, founded in 1908 and the dominant of the three, has won fourteen national titles since the introduction of professional football in the Netherlands, the last in 1999.

In field hockey, Rotterdam has the largest hockey club in the Netherlands, HC Rotterdam, with its own stadium in the north of the city and nearly 2,400 members.

Rotterdam is home to the most succesful European baseball team, Neptunus Rotterdam, winning the most European Cups.

Transportation

Rotterdam is well connected in international, national, regional and local public transport systems.
Airport
Although much smaller than the international hub Schiphol airport, Rotterdam Airport (formerly known as Zestienhoven) is the third largest airport in the country, just behind Eindhoven Airport.
Train
Rotterdam is well connected to the Dutch railroad system, and has several international connections.
Light Rail
To bridge the gap between national train services and local public transportation the Dutch Randstad has developed a regional lightrail system called Randstad Rail. First trains were scheduled for September 2006, but some derailings ceased traffic over the largest part of this track.
Bus
Rotterdam offers 38 buslines with a total length of 432.7 kilometers.