History

A Quick Look At Rotterdam’s History

The Origins of Rotterdam (Until the 15th Century)

A brief overview of the history of Rotterdam.
In the estuary area of the Rotte River, there were settlements around the year 900. This area was part of the region of Holland, which in turn belonged to the Holy Roman Empire of Charlemagne and later to the German Empire.

The lands around the Rotte River were governed by fiefs. The Lords of Bokel, the Voorschoten Family, Cralinghen, Spangen, and Mathenesse divided the area among themselves.

All these nobles built protective dikes around their territories to guard against frequent floods. Count Floris V (1256–1296) ordered the feudal lords to connect their walls into a single dike to protect themselves from sea flooding; around this dike, Rotterdam developed.

In 1325, Oude Haven was built. Rotterdam began to benefit from the transport of goods along the Rotte and Schie rivers. In 1340, a canal was constructed to connect the Schie River with Rotterdam.

Initially, Delft and Dordrecht were more important in trade and industry, but Dordrecht suffered severe damage during the great St. Elizabeth’s flood in 1421, while Delft failed to expand its port.

Rotterdam did not have these problems. Its position closer to deep waters gave it an advantage, and its port was more accessible.

After William’s death, several battles and confrontations took place among the feudal lords, mainly between the Hoeks and Kabbeljauws families. New fortifications were built, and the city was made smaller to be easier to defend. In 1490, Burgundy defeated Frans, and the conflicts ceased. Then, Rotterdam broke Dordrecht’s monopoly on trade.

Rotterdam Between the 16th and 18th Centuries

Again in 1563, a large part of the city was destroyed by fire. Despite this, trade continued to grow.

In 1572, Rotterdam became involved in battles once more, this time during the Eighty Years’ War between the Netherlands and Spain. During this war, Rotterdam’s position as a trade center was reinforced, being one of the few ports open to the sea; growth was immense during this period.

After the war, the city walls were demolished and new port docks were excavated. This was a time of great prosperity: maritime trade increased, and the Admiralty of Rotterdam (1586), the Chamber of the Dutch East India Company (1602), the West India Company (1621), and the Merchant Adventurers were established.

By the 18th century, Rotterdam’s population was about 50,000 people. In the city center, houses, factories, and warehouses were built. The tobacco, coffee, gin, and sugar industries emerged.

The population density was very high. Wealthy citizens built their homes in nearby villages.

The French occupation (1795–1813) brought another period of economic stagnation.

Industrialization and Expansion (19th and Early 20th Centuries)

After the industrialization of Germany’s Ruhr region, Rotterdam benefited due to its position as a transit point between Germany, Great Britain, and America.

The exploration of Africa also brought new markets. The port attracted many migrants seeking work in a city that was growing faster than any other in the Netherlands.

Between 1850 and 1940, the population rose from 90,000 to 600,000 inhabitants. In the city center there was not enough space, so drastic changes were often made to the urban structure.

Delfshaven was annexed in 1886, followed by Kralingen in 1895. Growth continued south of the river.

Steam power and mechanization increased the port’s capacity.

The Nieuwe Waterweg (New Waterway) was completed in 1872, giving Rotterdam a direct connection to the North Sea.

Rotterdam overtook Amsterdam as the leading port of the Netherlands.

During the Industrial Revolution, Rotterdam was known as the “City of Work.” In this period of expansion, many old buildings were demolished to make way for new ones, a process that continued well into the 20th century.

World War II and Reconstruction

World War I brought another period of economic stagnation, from which Rotterdam did not recover until 1926. Then, the 1929 Depression hit the city hard, causing poverty and unemployment.

By the late 1930s, the port began to recover, but the living standards of the working class remained low.

May 14, 1940, was the darkest day in Rotterdam’s history. During the German invasion, the Luftwaffe bombed the city center for ten minutes, destroying 2,400 houses, 1,200 businesses, 500 cafés, and 70 schools. Negotiations for surrender began the same day, and the Netherlands signed the documents the following day.

The city burned for three days, with fires lasting more than two months. Later, Allied bombings caused further destruction.

In 1941, Witteveen designed a reconstruction plan that was widely criticized. In 1946, Van Traa adapted the project, creating the Basic Plan, approved by the City Council. This plan reorganized the center with wide avenues, commercial, residential, and leisure zones.

New docks and harbors were built: Botlek (1953) and Europoort (1957) for refineries, and in 1973, the Maasvlakte port was added.

Contemporary and Multicultural Rotterdam

Reconstruction offered architects the opportunity to redesign a city from scratch. During the 1950s and 60s, modern buildings were erected among the few that survived the bombing, creating a mixture of styles.

Over time, many of these buildings were replaced by larger and more avant-garde structures. This reconstruction gave Rotterdam its unique architectural character, and in the 1960s it became the largest port in the world.

Economic growth between 1965 and 1973 attracted foreign labor, especially from the Mediterranean, and in 1975 thousands of immigrants from Suriname arrived.

Today, Rotterdam has more than 600,000 inhabitants, about 40% of whom are of foreign origin. Its density is about 4,000 people per km².

Rotterdam is a vital part of the Dutch economy. Its port handles about 300 million metric tons per year, serving as the industrial engine of the city and its surroundings.

The contemporary history of Rotterdam is complex: for some, a city without a soul destroyed by war; for others, a modern, multicultural, and vertical metropolis.

The city’s motto, “Sterker Door Strijd” (Stronger Through Struggle), recalls the strength and determination of the people of Rotterdam during the war and their subsequent resurgence.