"Amsterdam - A Colorful History"

Historical Excerpts contributed gratefully and taken from the essay "Amsterdam - A Colorful History"  ® 2001 ~ Claudius ©

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Amsterdam started to flourish late 14th and 15th century. The fast growth formed the foundation for the "Golden Age". In the Middle Ages, Amsterdam was a city of stone monasteries and wooden houses. Only a few of these buildings still exist. The main ones are the "Old Church" (around which the red light district developed) and the "New Church". The "New Church" is located at Dam Square and the "Old Church" in the middle of what is now the Red Light District.

In the Golden Age (17th century) Amsterdam was the main trading market in the world. In this age Amsterdam develops its half crescent shape of concentric half circles of canals.
Nowadays the total length of the canals is around 100 km with about 200 bridges. The main monuments of Amsterdam where build during the Golden Age. For example the Town Hall at Dam Square which later became (and still is) a royal palace. And many of the historical houses along the canals where build in that time period.

At the end of the 17th century Amsterdam was widely known in Europe for it's many "houses of pleasure". In these luxury brothels (tolerated in the red light district) one could enjoy music, dancing and the company of common prostitutes.

Through the ages, authorities tried to control prostitution to limit nuisance and prevent exploitation. Depending on the morality of the time, different solutions were used.
In the middle ages prostitution was not so much considered to be a moral issue. Although is was considered as dishonesty (literally: without honor) it was also seen as an indispensable phenomenon. So it was tolerated.

Prostitutes had a dress code and were not allowed to be married. It was prohibited for married men to visit prostitutes and prostitution was confined to certain spots in the city (this later became The Red Light District).
In the 16th and 17th century the influence of the Church on governmental policies increased. Sins became crimes and repression was on the rise. In spite of prohibition and sometimes hard punishments prostitution thrived in the prosperous trade city Amsterdam

Prostitution remained small-scale and prostitutes worked for madams, frequently former prostitutes, for board and logging and to pay off working clothes and make-up If they stayed out of trouble, madams would not be bothered by the town governing authorities.
In the 18th century regulations became less strict. Owners of dancing rooms were allowed to expand their businesses and prostitutes started working in these places. This way the whole business was out of the public eye.

During the time Napoleon ruled Holland, health concerns were more important than morality. To prevent loosing soldiers to syphilis, prostitutes were forced to have health checks twice a week. Paid sex was seen as a necessary evil. Sexual abstention would lead to depression and little zest for life.
The testing remained after the French period. However the pragmatic approach towards prostitution changed. It was seen as "legalized sexual abuse" and this stricter morality led to a law in 1911, banning brothels.

Although prostitution diminished, an article of law was not enough to ban it. Behind the facades of decent companies such as massage salons, art trades and tobacco shops, clandestine brothels thrived.
The authorities quickly realized that it was impossible to enforce the law in the area around the Old Church, the old prostitution district. So an unofficial policy of tolerating this business was adopted. As long as the women worked inside and were not standing in the door openings they could do their business. Women made potential customers aware of their presence thru a small opening between the curtains and a soft knock on the window.

As the years went by the curtains opened more and more. And with the less strict sexual morality of the sixties and seventies the tolerance towards prostitution increased even more.

In October, 1999 the Dutch Parliament overturned the 1912 law against brothels. A news report from the "© Associated Press ®" explained the rationale behind Parliament's move to legalize what already existed in The Netherlands:

"Dutch law is aimed at guaranteeing cleaner and safer working conditions for the country's estimated 30,000 prostitutes and allowing police to focus their crackdowns on the employment of illegal immigrants and underage girls and boys."

Historical Excerpts contributed gratefully and taken from the essay "Amsterdam - A Colorful History"  ® 2001 ~ Claudius ©