Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
HISTORY
TWENTy cENTuRIES IN SIx pAGES
a
.
d
. 1-1300—Romans and Invasions
When Rome falls (c. 400), the Low Countries shatter into a patch-
work of local dukedoms that are ravaged by Viking raids. Out of
this poor, agricultural, and feudal landscape emerge three self-gov-
erning urban centers—Amsterdam, Bruges, and Brussels—each
in a prime location for trade. Amsterdam and Bruges sit where
rivers flow into the North Sea, while Brussels hugs a main trading
highway.
Sights
• Amsterdam's Dam Square
• Exhibits in Amsterdam History
Museum
• Haarlem's Market Square
• Bruges' original fort and church
ruins
• Bruges' Basilica of the Holy Blood
(1150)
• Brussels' St. Michael's Cathedral,
model in the City Museum, and
Tour d'Angle (tower) from city
wall
1300-1500—Booming Trade Towns
Bruges, the midway port between North Sea and Mediterranean
trade routes, becomes one of Europe's busiest and richest cities.
Amsterdam augments its beer and herring trade with budding
capitalism: banking, loans, and speculation in stock and futures.
