Royal Palace

The Royal Palace, known in Dutch as the 'Paleis op de Dam' is one of the three palaces in the Netherlands that's at the disposal of the Queen, and is located in the heart of Amsterdam, right next to the Nieuwe Kerk.

Originally constructed for use as City Hall in 1648, it was at the time the largest secular building in Europe, and remained the largest administrative building in Europe for a long time. The interior is of dazzling richness. The central hall is huge: 120 feet long, 60 feet wide and 90 feet high. On the marble floor one sees two maps of the world with a celestial hemisphere. The Western and Eastern hemisphere are shown and in, it the colonial sphere of influence of Amsterdam. The terrestrial hemispheres were made in the mid-18th century, replacing an earlier pair made in the late 1650s, showing the regions explored by VOC-ships in the first half of the 17th century.

After the patriot revolution which swept the House of Orange from power a decade earlier, the new Batavian Republic was forced to accept Louis Napoleon Bonaparte, brother of Napoleon Bonaparte, as King of Holland in 1806. After holding his court at The Hague and Utrecht, Louis Napoleon moved to Amsterdam, and converted the Town Hall into a royal palace for himself.

Today, ot is used by the Queen for entertaining and hosting official functions, such as state visits, the New Year reception, and the presentations of the Erasmus, Royal Grant to Painting and Prince Claus prizes, and though not all of the building is open to visitors, it is a major tourist attraction.