To protect their cities from the sea and
their building sites from flooding by rivers, the
Netherlands developed dike cities, dam cities,
and canal cities. These three types marked
three stages in the development of the
Netherlands’ most successful cities.
For Amsterdam, the land was secured against
flooding, by means of dikes just before the
Amstel flows into the Ij (an inlet of the Ijselmeer).
As early as 1200, the first groups of houses
were erected on top of these dikes. In a second
stage of development, the Amstel was contained
by a dam (attested to in 1275) in the middle of
the settlement, and here the town hall and the
Nieuwe Kerk were built.