Holland America Line N.V. (HAL) is an American-owned cruise line , a subsidiary of Carnival Corporation & plc headquartered in Seattle , Washington , United States.
141-534: Holland America Line was founded in Rotterdam , Netherlands, and from 1873 to 1989, it operated as a Dutch shipping line, a passenger line, a cargo line and a cruise line operating primarily between the Netherlands and North America. As part of the company's legacy, it was directly involved in the transport of many hundreds of thousands of emigrants from the Netherlands to North America. Holland America has been
282-689: A US –owned cruise line headquartered in Seattle , Washington , United States. In the summer of 2011, Rotterdam did two transatlantic crossings, the first traditional transatlantic runs made by the line in more than 40 years. Beginning in September 2012, Rotterdam was based year-round out of Rotterdam , sailing to Europe, the Caribbean, as well as Asia, before returning to more varied itineraries and home ports by 2016. Amsterdam makes annual "Grand Voyages" lasting more than 60 days, including
423-595: A blast upon tipping. Several mine-laying ships were destroyed when their cargo exploded. Beginning around the start of the 20th century, submarine mines played a major role in the defense of U.S. harbours against enemy attacks as part of the Endicott and Taft Programs . The mines employed were controlled mines, anchored to the bottoms of the harbours, and detonated under control from large mine casemates onshore. During World War I , mines were used extensively to defend coasts, coastal shipping, ports and naval bases around
564-423: A few stages for pop music , like Rotown , Poortgebouw and Annabel. Additionally, the venue WORM focuses on experimental music , as well as various other cultural activities. WORM also screens films and hosts a film lab, Filmwerkplaats . In fact, Rotterdam has an extensive film history, ranging from avant-garde classics, such as The Bridge ( Ivens , 1928), to internationally acclaimed documentaries from
705-576: A grand circle of the Pacific Ocean each fall and a World Voyage sailing around the world, usually ranging from January to April/May. The line currently operates four different classes of ship: the R class, the Vista class , the Signature class , and the newest and largest Pinnacle class. All HAL ships have a dark blue hull with white superstructure, with the company's logo featured prominently on
846-401: A harbour by hand. They can be inexpensive: some variants can cost as little as US $ 2,000, though more sophisticated mines can cost millions of dollars, be equipped with several kinds of sensors, and deliver a warhead by rocket or torpedo . Their flexibility and cost-effectiveness make mines attractive to the less powerful belligerent in asymmetric warfare . The cost of producing and laying
987-451: A large part of Rotterdam's multi-ethnic and multicultural diversity. 52.9% of the population have at least one parent born outside the country. There are 80,000 Muslims, constituting 13% of the population in 2010. The former mayor of Rotterdam, Ahmed Aboutaleb (2009-2024), is of Moroccan descent and is a practicing Muslim. The city is home to the largest Dutch Antillean community in the Netherlands. The city also has its own China Town at
1128-521: A mine in the Baltic, and a week later was badly damaged in an air raid. After the war, HAL took part in transporting a great wave of immigrants from the Netherlands to Canada and elsewhere. Its Rotterdam – Hoboken route continued to serve Southampton, but by 1948 the port of Boulogne was still not in a condition to resume handling large ocean liners. Instead, from February 1948 Nieuw Amsterdam started calling at Le Havre as well as Southampton. At first she
1269-915: A mine is usually between 0.5% and 10% of the cost of removing it, and it can take up to 200 times as long to clear a minefield as to lay it. Parts of some World War II naval minefields still exist because they are too extensive and expensive to clear. Some 1940s-era mines may remain dangerous for many years. Mines have been employed as offensive or defensive weapons in rivers, lakes, estuaries, seas, and oceans, but they can also be used as tools of psychological warfare . Offensive mines are placed in enemy waters, outside harbours, and across important shipping routes to sink both merchant and military vessels. Defensive minefields safeguard key stretches of coast from enemy ships and submarines, forcing them into more easily defended areas, or keeping them away from sensitive ones. Shipowners are reluctant to send their ships through known minefields. Port authorities may attempt to clear
1410-524: A mined area, but those without effective minesweeping equipment may cease using the area. Transit of a mined area will be attempted only when strategic interests outweigh potential losses. The decision-makers' perception of the minefield is a critical factor. Minefields designed for psychological effect are usually placed on trade routes to stop ships from reaching an enemy nation. They are often spread thinly, to create an impression of minefields existing across large areas. A single mine inserted strategically on
1551-574: A population of only a few thousand. Around the year 1350, a shipping canal (the Rotterdamse Schie ) was completed, which provided Rotterdam access to the larger towns in the north, allowing it to become a local trans-shipment centre between the Netherlands, England and Germany , and to urbanize . Beginning in the 1600's, Rotterdam was involved in the Atlantic slave trade . According to historian Gerhard de Kok, "Rotterdam merchants were
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#17327730438381692-801: A port of importance, becoming the seat of one of the six "chambers" of the Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie (VOC), the Dutch East India Company and one of the five "chambers" of the West-Indische Compagnie (WIC), the Dutch West India Company . The greatest spurt of growth, both in port activity and population, followed the completion of the Nieuwe Waterweg in 1872. The city and harbour started to expand on
1833-593: A range of festivals and other events, and a buzzing nightlife. The city has its own orchestra, the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra , with its well-regarded young music director Lahav Shani , which plays at the congress and concert building De Doelen . The Ahoy complex in the south of the city is used for pop concerts, exhibitions, tennis tournaments and other activities. There are also several theatres and cinemas, including LantarenVenster and Cinerama. Alongside Porto , Rotterdam
1974-505: A reminder also for posterity of the courage and strength with which the people of Rotterdam bore all the trials of the war and the important part they took in the liberation of the fatherland.... —Wilhelmina of the Netherlands Rotterdam was gradually rebuilt from the 1950s through to the 1970s. Because the city centre was largely destroyed, new spatial infrastructure could be built, making it an open and modern city. In 1953
2115-463: A resource-intensive and time-consuming minesweeping effort, accept the casualties of challenging the minefield, or use the unmined waters where the greatest concentration of enemy firepower will be encountered. Although international law requires signatory nations to declare mined areas, precise locations remain secret, and non-complying parties might not disclose minelaying. While mines threaten only those who choose to traverse waters that may be mined,
2256-498: A route between Rotterdam and Tampico in Mexico. On westbound voyages, their ports of call were Antwerp , Boulogne , Bilbao , Santander , Gijón , A Coruña , Vigo , Havana and Vera Cruz . On eastbound voyages, they called at Vera Cruz, New Orleans , Havana, A Coruña and Santander. In 1922 H&W launched two larger passenger liners for HAL's Rotterdam – Hoboken route: the 15,000 GRT Volendam and Veendam . By 1925
2397-695: A safe distance. The submarine H. L. Hunley used one to sink USS Housatonic on 17 February 1864. A Harvey torpedo was a type of floating mine towed alongside a ship and was briefly in service in the Royal Navy in the 1870s. Other "torpedoes" were attached to ships or propelled themselves. One such weapon called the Whitehead torpedo after its inventor, caused the word "torpedo" to apply to self-propelled underwater missiles as well as to static devices. These mobile devices were also known as "fish torpedoes". The American Civil War of 1861–1865 also saw
2538-667: A selective roster of emerging international artists. The Hoboken campus of EUR houses the Dijkzigt (general) hospital, the Sophia Hospital (for children), Daniel den Hoed clinic (cancer institute) and the medical department of the university. They are known collectively as the Erasmus Medical Center . This center is ranked third in Europe by CSIC as a hospital, and is also ranked within top 50 universities of
2679-577: A shipping route can stop maritime movements for days while the entire area is swept. A mine's capability to sink ships makes it a credible threat, but minefields work more on the mind than on ships. International law , specifically the Eighth Hague Convention of 1907 , requires nations to declare when they mine an area, to make it easier for civil shipping to avoid the mines. The warnings do not have to be specific; for example, during World War II, Britain declared simply that it had mined
2820-596: A single conurbation. They share the Rotterdam The Hague Airport and a light rail system called RandstadRail . Consideration is being given to creating an official Metropolitan region Rotterdam The Hague ( Metropoolregio Rotterdam Den Haag ), which would have a combined population approaching 2.5 million. In its turn, the Rijnmond conurbation is part of the southern wing (the Zuidvleugel ) of
2961-722: A sloop mined by the Peruvians. A similar fate occurred with the gunboat schooner Covadonga in front of the port of Chancay , on 13 September 1880, which having captured and checked a beautiful boat, it exploded when hoisting it on its side. During the Battle of Tamsui (1884), in the Keelung Campaign of the Sino-French War , Chinese forces in Taiwan under Liu Mingchuan took measures to reinforce Tamsui against
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#17327730438383102-700: A subsidiary of Carnival Corporation since 1989. Holland America Line was founded in 1873, as the Nederlandsch-Amerikaansche Stoomvaart Maatschappij (Dutch-American Steamship Company), in short Holland-Amerika Lijn , a shipping and passenger line. It was headquartered in Rotterdam, in the building which is now the Hotel New York . The company was formed as a result of the reorganization of an earlier company, Plate, Reuchlin & Co. The company's first ship
3243-565: A temperate oceanic climate ( Köppen climate classification Cfb ) similar to all of the coastal areas in the Netherlands. Located near to the coast, its climate is slightly milder than locations further inland. Winters are cool with frequent cold days, while the summers are mild to warm, with occasional hot temperatures. Temperature rises above 30 °C on average 4 days each summer, while (night) temperatures can drop below −5 °C during winter for short periods of time, mostly during periods of sustained easterly (continental) winds. Precipitation
3384-625: A time when the Chilean squadron was blockading the Peruvian ports, formed a brigade of torpedo boats under the command of the frigate captain Leopoldo Sánchez Calderón and the Peruvian engineer Manuel Cuadros , who perfected the naval torpedo or mine system to be electrically activated when the cargo weight was lifted. This is how, on 3 July 1880, in front of the port of Callao , the gunned transport Loa flies when capturing
3525-586: A troop ship. The Dutch government-in-exile requisitioned Westernland , berthed at Falmouth, Cornwall . She became an accommodation ship for the Royal Netherlands Navy , and was later sold to the UK Admiralty . By October 1940 Nieuw Amsterdam had also become an Allied troop ship. She sailed half a million miles and carried 400,000 military personnel. Nearly 200 people were killed in wartime sinkings of HAL ships. The biggest loss of life
3666-509: A variable number of ships to pass unharmed before detonating. This made them a great deal harder to sweep. Mining campaigns could have devastating consequences. The U.S. effort against Japan, for instance, closed major ports, such as Hiroshima , for days, and by the end of the Pacific War had cut the amount of freight passing through Kobe – Yokohama by 90%. When the war ended, more than 25,000 U.S.-laid mines were still in place, and
3807-552: A vocational university that teaches music, dance and circus. Unique to the city is the Shipping & Transport College which offers masters, bachelors and vocational diplomas on all levels. Once primarily a city of labour, for its harbour and related industries, Rotterdam has now developed into a city of culture too, with various museums, cultural centres and activities, offering a stage for architecture , music, visuals arts, poetry, cinema, theatre, and culture more generally, with
3948-617: Is a more upscale shopping street, with retailers like Michael Kors , 7 For All Mankind , Calvin Klein , Hugo Boss , Tommy Hilfiger and the Dutch well-known men's clothier Oger . Another upscale shopping venue is a flagship store of department store De Bijenkorf . Located a little more to the east is the Markthal , with lots of small retailers inside. This hall is also one of Rotterdam's famous architectural landmarks. The main shopping venue in
4089-442: Is also home to the regional headquarters of chemical company LyondellBasell , commodities trading company Glencore , pharmaceutical company Pfizer , logistics companies Stolt-Nielsen , electrical equipment company ABB and consumer goods company Procter & Gamble . Furthermore, Rotterdam has the Dutch headquarters of Allianz , Maersk , Petrobras , Samskip , Louis Dreyfus Group , and Aon . The City of Rotterdam makes use of
4230-449: Is generally moderate throughout the year, although spring and summer (particularly before August) are relatively drier and sunnier, while autumn and winter are cloudier with more frequent rain (or snow). The following climate data is from the airport, which is slightly cooler than the city, being surrounded by water canals which make the climate milder and with a higher relative humidity . The city has an urban heat island , especially inside
4371-558: Is home to over 180 different nationalities. Rotterdam is known for its university , riverside setting, lively cultural life, maritime heritage and modern architecture . The near-complete destruction of the city centre during the World War II German bombing has resulted in a varied architectural landscape, including skyscrapers designed by architects such as Rem Koolhaas , Piet Blom and Ben van Berkel . The Rhine , Meuse and Scheldt give waterway access into
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4512-688: Is just one example of a ship that was struck by a magnetic mine during this time. On 21 November 1939, a mine broke her keel, which damaged her engine and boiler rooms, as well as injuring 46 men, one later died from his injuries. She was towed to Rosyth for repairs. Incidents like this resulted in many of the boats that sailed to Dunkirk being degaussed in a marathon four-day effort by degaussing stations. The Allies and Germany deployed acoustic mines in World War II, against which even wooden- hulled ships (in particular minesweepers ) remained vulnerable. Japan developed sonic generators to sweep these;
4653-550: Is part of the Rotterdam–The Hague metropolitan area which, as of 2015, covers an area of 1,130 km , of which 990 km km is land, and has a population of approximately 2,563,197. As of 2019, the municipality itself occupies an area of 325.79 km , 208.80 km of which is land, and is home to 638,751 inhabitants. Its population peaked at 731,564 in 1965, but the dual processes of suburbanization and counterurbanization saw this number steadily decline over
4794-460: Is the practice of the removal of explosive naval mines, usually by a specially designed ship called a minesweeper using various measures to either capture or detonate the mines, but sometimes also with an aircraft made for that purpose. There are also mines that release a homing torpedo rather than explode themselves. Mines can be laid in many ways: by purpose-built minelayers , refitted ships, submarines, or aircraft —and even by dropping them into
4935-540: The Petropavlovsk struck them near Port Arthur , sending the holed vessel to the bottom and killing the fleet commander, Admiral Stepan Makarov , and most of his crew in the process. The toll inflicted by mines was not confined to the Russians, however. The Japanese Navy lost two battleships, four cruisers, two destroyers and a torpedo-boat to offensively laid mines during the war. Most famously, on 15 May 1904,
5076-491: The Architecture Film Festival Rotterdam (AFFR). Naval mine A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to damage or destroy surface ships or submarines . Similar to anti-personnel and other land mines , and unlike purpose launched naval depth charges , they are deposited and left to wait until, depending on their fuzing , they are triggered by
5217-801: The Baltic , where the Luftwaffe used her for target practice until she sank in April 1942. German forces scuttled Dinteldijk as a blockship in 1944. By 27 May, Germany had occupied the whole of the Netherlands. By 7 June, the Dutch government-in-exile and the UK government had formed a British-Netherlands shipping committee in London, and NASM announced that it would charter to the UK government all of its transatlantic ships except Nieuw Amsterdam . Pennland became
5358-569: The Caribbean . In 1920 van der Giessen & Zonen in Krimpen aan den IJssel launched Burgerdijk , which was HAL's first steam turbine cargo ship. She was the first of eight 6,850 GRT sister ships, all with a name beginning with "B", built between 1920 and 1922. In 1922 and 1923 Scheepsbouw-Maatschappij 'Nieuwe Waterweg' in Scheidam launched a pair of larger turbine cargo ships for HAL,
5499-535: The Gulf of Finland during the Crimean War of 1853–1856. The mining of Vulcan led to the world's first minesweeping operation. During the next 72 hours, 33 mines were swept. The Jacobi mine was designed by German-born, Russian engineer Jacobi, in 1853. The mine was tied to the sea bottom by an anchor. A cable connected it to a galvanic cell which powered it from the shore, the power of its explosive charge
5640-596: The Korean War , mines laid by North Korean forces caused 70% of the casualties suffered by U.S. naval vessels and caused 4 sinkings. During the Iran–Iraq War from 1980 to 1988, the belligerents mined several areas of the Persian Gulf and nearby waters. On 24 July 1987, the supertanker SS Bridgeton was mined by Iran near Farsi Island. On 14 April 1988, USS Samuel B. Roberts struck an Iranian mine in
5781-673: The Lijnbaan was opened, the first car-free shopping street in Europe. The progressive design attracted a lot of international attention, in which film and television played an important role. The new Central Station was completed in 1957, with the Groothandelsgebouw from 1953 next to it. The Euromast was erected in 1960 on the occasion of the Floriade . From the 1980s onwards the city councils began developing an active architectural policy. The harbours were moving westwards and
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5922-727: The Maasdam and Veendam transferring to one company in August 2020, while the Amsterdam and Rotterdam moved to another company in fall 2020. One pair went to a new cruise brand and the other to an existing brand. Most cruise lines suspended their sailings because of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. As of January 6, 2021, all Holland America sailings were cancelled to at least April 30, 2021, according to an industry news item. That report listed no specific sailings for Holland America prior to
6063-631: The Randstad , which is one of the most important economic and densely populated areas in the north-west of Europe. Having a population of 7.1 million, the Randstad is the sixth-largest urban area in Europe (after Moscow, London, Paris, Istanbul, and the Rhein-Ruhr Area). The Zuidvleugel, situated in the province of South Holland , has a population of around 3 million. Rotterdam experiences
6204-517: The Rotte . In 1340, Rotterdam was granted city rights by William IV, Count of Holland . The Rotterdam–The Hague metropolitan area , with a population of approximately 2.7 million, is the 10th-largest in the European Union and the most populous in the country. A major logistic and economic centre, Rotterdam is Europe's largest seaport . In 2022, Rotterdam had a population of 655,468 and
6345-710: The Willemsbrug ('Willems Bridge') together with the Koninginnebrug ('Queen's Bridge'); and the Van Brienenoordbrug ('Van Brienenoord Bridge'). The former railway lift bridge De Hef ('the Lift') is preserved as a Rijksmonument (national heritage site) in lifted position between the Noordereiland ('North Island') and the south of Rotterdam. The city centre is located on the northern bank of
6486-628: The 10,200 GRT Delftdijk and Damsterdijk . These were cargo liners , with berths for 50 first class passengers. By 1930 HAL was operating routes between Rotterdam and the British Columbia Coast via London , Panama Canal and West Coast of the United States . By 1937 HAL worked these routes jointly with Royal Mail Lines . This was mainly a refrigerated cargo service, but the ships carried some passengers. Damsterdijk , Delftdijk , Dinteldijk and Drechtdijk shared
6627-441: The 1960s until the 2000s, Rotterdam had a thriving squatters movement , which not only accommodated thousands of people, but also created social centres and cultural venues. From this movement came clubs like Boogjes, Eksit, Nighttown, Vlerk and Waterfront. A major reference is Poortgebouw , which was squatted in 1980 and quickly legalised. Rotterdam also became the home of Gabber , a type of hardcore electronic music popular in
6768-517: The 2009 rankings of Masters of Management, the school reached first place with the CEMS Master in Management and the tenth place with its RSM Master in Management. The university is also home to Europe's largest student association, STAR Study Association Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University and the world's largest student association, AIESEC , has its international office in
6909-565: The 36,287 GRT Nieuw Amsterdam , was launched in 1937 and entered service in 1938. In 1939 HAL bought the former Red Star liners Westernland and Pennland , a pair of 16,000 GRT sister ships that Nazi Germany had forced the Jewish shipping magnate Arnold Bernstein to forfeit. In the Second World War , HAL lost five passenger ships and eight cargo ships: a total of more than 140,000 GRT . Three were while
7050-465: The 8,350 GRT Gaasterdijk and Grootendijk . However, HAL sold both ships in 1931. In 1921 and 1922 H&W launched the 9,350 GRT Dinteldijk and Drechtdijk , which were HAL's first motor ships . They were refrigerated cargo ships, and they also had berths for 18 or 19 first class passengers. In 1929 and 1930 Wilton's in Schiedam launched two more motor ships for refrigerated cargo,
7191-599: The British coordinated espionage in Germany and occupied Belgium. During World War I, an average of 25,000 Belgian refugees lived in the city, as well as hundreds of German deserters and escaped Allied prisoners of war. During World War II , the German army invaded the Netherlands on 10 May 1940. Adolf Hitler had hoped to conquer the country in just one day, but his forces met unexpectedly fierce resistance. The Dutch army
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#17327730438387332-420: The British. In 1855, 301 more Jacobi mines were laid around Krostadt and Lisy Nos . British ships did not dare to approach them. In the 19th century, mines were called torpedoes , a name probably conferred by Robert Fulton after the torpedo fish , which gives powerful electric shocks . A spar torpedo was a mine attached to a long pole and detonated when the ship carrying it rammed another one and withdrew
7473-554: The English Channel, North Sea and French coast. Naval mines were first invented by Chinese innovators of Imperial China and were described in thorough detail by the early Ming dynasty artillery officer Jiao Yu , in his 14th-century military treatise known as the Huolongjing . Chinese records tell of naval explosives in the 16th century, used to fight against Japanese pirates ( wokou ). This kind of naval mine
7614-734: The European continent and overseas. From Rotterdam, goods are transported by ship, river barge, train or road. In 2007, the Betuweroute , a new fast freight railway from Rotterdam to Germany , was completed. Well-known streets in Rotterdam are the Lijnbaan (the first set of pedestrian streets of the country, opened in 1953), the Hoogstraat, the Coolsingel with the city hall, which was renovated between 2018 and 2021 giving cyclists and pedestrians more space, meaning that car traffic
7755-482: The First World War the Netherlands were neutral , but numerous Dutch merchant ships were sunk. HAL lost five cargo ships, totalling more than 30,000 GRT . In 1915 two German mines sank Eemdijk , and in 1916 U-53 stopped and sank Blommersdijk . On 22 February 1917 U-21 sank an entire Dutch convoy, including the HAL ships Noorderdijk and Zaandijk . After the First World War began, Dutch capitalists bought HAPAG and NDL's shares in HAL. In December 1917,
7896-438: The French shipping line Compagnie Générale Maritime . HAL ceased operating as a Dutch line in 1989, when Carnival bought it for 1.2 billion guilders (€530 million). The proceeds were put into an investment company (HAL Investments), the majority of which is owned by the van der Vorm family. HAL ships sold, scrapped or lost before Carnival took over. In 1989, the Holland America Line was bought by Carnival Corp , thus becoming
8037-410: The French; they planted nine torpedo mines in the river and blocked the entrance. During the Boxer Rebellion , Imperial Chinese forces deployed a command-detonated mine field at the mouth of the Hai River before the Dagu forts , to prevent the western Allied forces from sending ships to attack. The next major use of mines was during the Russo-Japanese War of 1904–1905. Two mines blew up when
8178-418: The Jews who were deported via Loods 24 were murdered in Sobibór and Auschwitz-Birkenau . Research in 2000 showed that 144 people survived the deportations. In 2013 the Jewish Children's Monument [ nl ] was unveiled. In January 1948, Queen Wilhelmina presented the motto 'Sterker door strijd' (Stronger through effort) as part of the coat of arms of Rotterdam to the city government: ...as
8319-515: The Navy proved unable to sweep them all, limiting efforts to critical areas. After sweeping for almost a year, in May 1946, the Navy abandoned the effort with 13,000 mines still unswept. Over the next thirty years, more than 500 minesweepers (of a variety of types) were damaged or sunk clearing them. The U.S. began adding delay counters to their magnetic mines in June 1945. Since World War II , mines have damaged 14 United States Navy ships, whereas air and missile attacks have damaged four. During
8460-425: The Netherlands were still neutral. Mines sank Binnendijk and Spaarndam in October and November 1939, and U-48 sank Burgerdijk in February 1940. On 10 May Germany invaded the Netherlands . A number of HAL ships were burnt out in the battle for Rotterdam, including the liner Statendam and cargo ships Boschdijk and Dinteldijk . Statendam was scrapped three months later. German forces towed Boschdijk to
8601-416: The Nieuwe Maas, although recent urban development has extended the centre to parts of southern Rotterdam known as Kop van Zuid ('the Head of South', i.e. the northern part of southern Rotterdam). From its inland core, Rotterdam reaches the North Sea by a swathe of predominantly harbour area. Built mostly behind dikes, large parts of Rotterdam are below sea level. For instance, the Prins Alexander Polder in
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#17327730438388742-423: The North Sea, the British East Coast, Straits of Dover, and Heligoland Bight is estimated at 190,000 and the total number during the whole of WWI was 235,000 sea mines. Clearing the barrage after the war took 82 ships and five months, working around the clock. It was also during World War I, that the British hospital ship , HMHS Britannic , became the largest vessel ever sunk by a naval mine . The Britannic
8883-410: The River Rotte ' ) is the second-largest city in the Netherlands after the national capital of Amsterdam . It is in the province of South Holland , part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta , via the "New Meuse" inland shipping channel, dug to connect to the Meuse at first and now to the Rhine . Rotterdam's history goes back to 1270, when a dam was constructed in
9024-440: The Rotterdam – Hoboken route included calls at Southampton and Halifax , Nova Scotia on westbound crossings only, and Plymouth , Devon on eastbound crossings only, as well as serving Boulogne in both directions. The third Statendam , built to replace Justicia , was also a turbine steamship, but building her took eight years. H&W laid her down in 1921 and launched her in 1924, but then stopped work because HAL lacked
9165-467: The Russian minelayer Amur planted a 50-mine minefield off Port Arthur and succeeded in sinking the Japanese battleships Hatsuse and Yashima . Following the end of the Russo-Japanese War, several nations attempted to have mines banned as weapons of war at the Hague Peace Conference (1907) . Many early mines were fragile and dangerous to handle, as they contained glass containers filled with nitroglycerin or mechanical devices that activated
9306-467: The U.S. coast. Initially, contact mines (requiring a ship to physically strike a mine to detonate it) were employed, usually tethered at the end of a cable just below the surface of the water. Contact mines usually blew a hole in ships' hulls. By the beginning of World War II, most nations had developed mines that could be dropped from aircraft, some of which floated on the surface, making it possible to lay them in enemy harbours. The use of dredging and nets
9447-464: The West-Kruiskade, close to Rotterdam Centraal. Religions in Rotterdam (2013) Christianity is the largest religion in Rotterdam, with 36.3% of the population identifying. The second and third largest religions are Islam (13.1%) and Hinduism (3.3%), while about half of the population has no religious affiliation . Since 1795 Rotterdam has hosted the chief congregation of the liberal Protestant brotherhood of Remonstrants . From 1955 it has been
9588-402: The approach of or contact with any vessel. Naval mines can be used offensively, to hamper enemy shipping movements or lock vessels into a harbour ; or defensively, to create "safe" zones protecting friendly sea lanes, harbours, and naval assets. Mines allow the minelaying force commander to concentrate warships or defensive assets in mine-free areas giving the adversary three choices: undertake
9729-400: The central Persian Gulf shipping lane , wounding 10 sailors. In the summer of 1984, magnetic sea mines damaged at least 19 ships in the Red Sea . The U.S. concluded Libya was probably responsible for the minelaying. In response the U.S., Britain, France, and three other nations launched Operation Intense Look , a minesweeping operation in the Red Sea involving more than 46 ships. On
9870-670: The cheap labour segment. The city's unemployment rate is 12%, almost twice the national average. Rotterdam is the largest port in Europe , with the rivers Maas and Rhine providing excellent access to the hinterland upstream reaching to Basel, Switzerland and into France. In 2004 Shanghai took over as the world's busiest container port . In 2006, Rotterdam was the world's seventh largest container port in terms of twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) handled. The port's main activities are petrochemical industries and general cargo handling and transshipment . The harbour functions as an important transit point for bulk materials between
10011-426: The city centre. Rotterdam is diverse, with the demographics differing by neighbourhood. The city centre has a disproportionately high number of single people when compared to other cities, with 70% of the population between the ages of 20 and 40 identifying as single. Those with higher education and higher income live disproportionately in the city centre, as do foreign-born citizens. The municipality of Rotterdam
10152-403: The city's music history is the legendary Kralingen Pop Festival , which took place in Rotterdam in 1970 (featuring, among other, Pink Floyd , Jefferson Airplane , The Byrds , Canned Heat , It's a Beautiful Day , and Santana ). The festival was also made into a film, Stamping Ground (dir. George Sluizer). Alternative (music) culture became prominently present in the city in these days. From
10293-680: The city's past. Other museums include the Tax & Customs Museum , the Netherlands Marine Corps Museum , Rotterdam Public Transport Museum and the Natural History Museum . In 2025 'Fenix, Museum for Migration' will be opened. The first municipal library of Rotterdam was founded in 1604. The current Bibliotheek Rotterdam (Public library), was established in 1869, and is currently the largest cultural organization in Rotterdam, with fifteen branches across
10434-443: The city. The Rotterdam City Archives ( Stadsarchief Rotterdam ) was established in 1857. Here one can find administrative records and sources about the city's historical development. The archival holdings include, among other, general archives, notarial deeds, an audiovisual collection, and a library. Rotterdam has a long tradition of popular music, including the city's Jazz scene before and after WWII. A major historical moment in
10575-740: The city. The Willem de Kooning Academy is Rotterdam's main art school, which is part of the Hogeschool Rotterdam. It is regarded as one of the most prestigious art schools in the Netherlands and the number 1 in Advertising and Copywriting. Part of the Willem de Kooning Academy is the Piet Zwart Institute for postgraduate studies and research in Fine Art, Media Design and Retail Design. The Piet Zwart Institute boasts
10716-684: The coasts of these countries. London P&I Club issued a warning to freight ships in the area, advising them to "maintain lookouts for mines and pay careful attention to local navigation warnings". Ukrainian forces have mined "from the Sea of Azov to the Black Sea which banks the critical city of Odesa." Naval mines may be classified into three major groups; contact, remote and influence mines. The earliest mines were usually of this type. They are still used today, as they are extremely low cost compared to any other anti-ship weapon and are effective, both as
10857-618: The company carried 400,000 people from Europe to the Americas. Other North American ports were added during the early 20th century. Harland & Wolff in Belfast launched the third Rotterdam (1897) . She was the first HAL ship built by H&W. H&W next launched Statendam (1898) : the first HAL ship of that name, and the first HAL ship of more than 10,000 GRT . In 1899 Blohm+Voss in Hamburg launched Potsdam , which
10998-757: The construction of Rotterdam's second underground line interfered with the Rotte's course, its waters have been pumped through a pipe into the Nieuwe Maas via the Boerengat. Between the summers of 2003 and 2008, an artificial beach was created at the Boompjeskade along the Nieuwe Maas, between the Erasmus Bridge and the Willems Bridge. Swimming was not possible, digging pits was limited to
11139-584: The decade following 1868, Major Henry Larcom Abbot carried out a lengthy set of experiments to design and test moored mines that could be exploded on contact or be detonated at will as enemy shipping passed near them. This initial development of mines in the United States took place under the purview of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers , which trained officers and men in their use at the Engineer School of Application at Willets Point, New York (later named Fort Totten ). In 1901 underwater minefields became
11280-589: The disadvantage of "sweeping" only a small strip. A better solution was found in the "Double-L Sweep" using electrical cables dragged behind ships that passed large pulses of current through the seawater. This created a large magnetic field and swept the entire area between the two ships. The older methods continued to be used in smaller areas. The Suez Canal continued to be swept by aircraft, for instance. While these methods were useful for clearing mines from local ports, they were of little or no use for enemy-controlled areas. These were typically visited by warships, and
11421-531: The explosion. Ships that had successfully run the gantlet of the Atlantic crossing were sometimes destroyed entering freshly cleared British harbours. More shipping was being lost than could be replaced, and Churchill ordered the intact recovery of one of these new mines to be of the highest priority. The British experienced a stroke of luck in November 1939, when a German mine was dropped from an aircraft onto
11562-601: The fact that IMM had formed a cartel with Albert Ballin 's Hamburg America Line (HAPAG) and Norddeutscher Lloyd (NDL), and wanted to buy HAL to control passenger and cargo rates across the North Atlantic. HAL continued to order ever larger ships from H&W. Nieuw Amsterdam (1905) was 600 feet (180 m) long and 16,967 GRT . The fourth Rotterdam (1908) was 650 feet (200 m) long and 24,149 GRT . In 1895 HAL offered its first cruise . Its second cruise, from New York to Palestine ,
11703-572: The failed "floating petard". Weapons of this type were apparently tried by the English at the Siege of La Rochelle in 1627. American David Bushnell developed the first American naval mine, for use against the British in the American War of Independence . It was a watertight keg filled with gunpowder that was floated toward the enemy, detonated by a sparking mechanism if it struck a ship. It
11844-507: The first to be so fitted were the carrier HMS Ark Royal and the liners RMS Queen Mary and RMS Queen Elizabeth . It was a photo of one of these liners in New York harbour, showing the degaussing coil, which revealed to German Naval Intelligence the fact that the British were using degaussing methods to combat their magnetic mines. This was felt to be impractical for smaller warships and merchant vessels, mainly because
11985-731: The first week of June 2021. In October 2023, Holland America announced that it was about halfway through converting its fleet Wi-Fi to Starlink . The cruise line also announced that it expected to have Starlink fully operational across its entire fleet by mid-December 2023. With the move, Holland America joined its sister-brands in Carnival Corporation & plc , including Princess Cruises and Cunard Line . Rotterdam Rotterdam ( / ˈ r ɒ t ər d æ m / ROT -ər-dam , UK also / ˌ r ɒ t ər ˈ d æ m / ROT -ər- DAM ; Dutch: [ˌrɔtərˈdɑm] ; lit. ' The Dam on
12126-545: The force were several fireships , carrying 40 barrels of gunpowder and rigged to explode by a clockwork mechanism. In 1812, Russian engineer Pavel Shilling exploded an underwater mine using an electrical circuit . In 1842 Samuel Colt used an electric detonator to destroy a moving vessel to demonstrate an underwater mine of his own design to the United States Navy and President John Tyler . However, opposition from former president John Quincy Adams , scuttled
12267-484: The functional smoke stacks. Holland America also owns the following: On October 26, 2012, it was announced that a memorandum of agreement had been signed with Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri for the construction of a 2,660-passenger ship for Holland America Line scheduled for delivery in spring 2016. Koningsdam , which became a new class of ship for the line (The Pinnacle Class), and the first new Holland America ship since Nieuw Amsterdam , delivered in 2010. Also noted
12408-555: The funds to pay for her to be completed. In 1927 the Dutch government gave HAL a loan to get the ship towed to the Netherlands and completed at Wilton's Dok- en Werf Maatschappij in Schiedam . She was completed in 1929, on the eve of the Great Depression , but proved economical to run. She was HAL's flagship on the transatlantic run for most of the 1930s. Statendam also gave annual winter cruises from New York, usually to
12549-543: The fuze of the naval mine. Although this is the rotating steel wheel's first use in naval mines, Jiao Yu described their use for land mines in the 14th century. The first plan for a sea mine in the West was by Ralph Rabbards, who presented his design to Queen Elizabeth I of England in 1574. The Dutch inventor Cornelius Drebbel was employed in the Office of Ordnance by King Charles I of England to make weapons, including
12690-475: The gear was not ready by war's end. The primary method Japan used was small air-delivered bombs. This was profligate and ineffectual; used against acoustic mines at Penang , 200 bombs were needed to detonate just 13 mines. The Germans developed a pressure-activated mine and planned to deploy it as well, but they saved it for later use when it became clear the British had defeated the magnetic system. The U.S. also deployed these, adding "counters" which would allow
12831-805: The globe. The Germans laid mines in shipping lanes to sink merchant and naval vessels serving Britain. The Allies targeted the German U-boats in the Strait of Dover and the Hebrides. In an attempt to seal up the northern exits of the North Sea, the Allies developed the North Sea Mine Barrage . During a period of five months from June 1918, almost 70,000 mines were laid spanning the North Sea's northern exits. The total number of mines laid in
12972-459: The heart of Western Europe, including the highly industrialized Ruhr . The extensive distribution system including rail, roads, and waterways have earned Rotterdam the nicknames "Gateway to Europe" and "Gateway to the World". The settlement at the lower end of the fen stream Rotte (or Rotta , as it was then known, from rot , "muddy" and a , "water", thus "muddy water") dates from at least
13113-629: The height of the layer of sand , about 50 cm (20 in). Alternatively, people go to the beach of Hook of Holland (which is a Rotterdam district) or one of the beaches in Zeeland : Renesse or the Zuid Hollandse Eilanden: Ouddorp , Oostvoorne . Rotterdam forms the centre of the Rijnmond conurbation, bordering the conurbation surrounding The Hague to the north-west. The two conurbations are close enough to be
13254-559: The insistence of Admiral Fyodor Litke . The Nobel mines were bought from Swedish industrialist Immanuel Nobel who had entered into collusion with the Russian head of navy Alexander Sergeyevich Menshikov . Despite their high cost (100 Russian rubles ) the Nobel mines proved to be faulty, exploding while being laid, failing to explode or detaching from their wires, and drifting uncontrollably, at least 70 of them were subsequently disarmed by
13395-643: The invasion three days earlier. The City Hall survived the bombing. Ossip Zadkine later attempted to capture the event with his statue De Verwoeste Stad ('The Destroyed City'). The statue stands near the Leuvehaven, not far from the Erasmusbrug in the centre of the city, on the north shore of the river Nieuwe Maas. In 1941, 11,000 Jews still lived in Rotterdam. Before the war there were 13,000. Between 30 July 1942, and 22 April 1943, 6,790 people were deported in 8 transports via Loods 24. The vast majority of
13536-618: The last 50 years of architecture in a blender, and spat it out in building-sized chunks across the skyline, you would probably end up with something that looked a bit like Rotterdam". Rotterdam is divided into a northern and a southern part by the river Nieuwe Maas, connected by (from west to east): the Beneluxtunnel; the Maastunnel ; the Erasmusbrug ; a subway tunnel; the Willemsspoortunnel ('Willems railway tunnel');
13677-516: The late 1960s, the golden era of transatlantic passenger ships had been ended by the introduction of transatlantic jet air travel. HAL ended transatlantic service in the early 1970s. In 1973, it sold its cargo shipping division, which continued to operate freight liner services with cargo ships, a Lighter aboard ship ('LASH' ship, MV Bilderdyk ) and then container ships under the trade name Incotrans, with headquarters in Rotterdam, with some of its North American services operated in partnership with
13818-518: The main centres of the shipping industry in the Netherlands. From the Rotterdam Chamber of the VOC , the world's first multinational, established in 1602, to the merchant shipping leader Royal Nedlloyd established in 1970, with its corporate headquarters located in the landmark building the 'Willemswerf' in 1988. In 1997, Nedlloyd merged with the British shipping industry leader P&O forming
13959-404: The majority of the fleet then underwent a massive degaussing process, where their hulls had a slight "south" bias induced into them which offset the concentration-effect almost to zero. Initially, major warships and large troopships had a copper degaussing coil fitted around the perimeter of the hull, energized by the ship's electrical system whenever in suspected magnetic-mined waters. Some of
14100-443: The mid-1990s, with hard beats and samples. Groups like Neophyte and Rotterdam Terror Corps (RTC) started in Rotterdam, playing at clubs like Parkzicht. In the years 2005–2011, the city struggled with keeping venues for pop music; many of them suffered severe financial problems. This resulted in the disappearance of the major music venues Nighttown and WATT and smaller stages such as Waterfront, Exit, and Heidegger. The city today has
14241-458: The mine and rushed it to the labs at HMS Vernon, where scientists discovered that the mine had a magnetic arming mechanism. A large ferrous object passing through the Earth's magnetic field will concentrate the field through it, due to its magnetic permeability; the mine's detector was designed to trigger as a ship passed over when the Earth's magnetic field was concentrated in the ship and away from
14382-502: The mine. The mine detected this loss of the magnetic field which caused it to detonate. The mechanism had an adjustable sensitivity, calibrated in milligauss . From this data, known methods were used to clear these mines. Early methods included the use of large electromagnets dragged behind ships or below low-flying aircraft (a number of older bombers like the Vickers Wellington were used for this). Both of these methods had
14523-496: The mudflats off Shoeburyness during low tide. Additionally, the land belonged to the army and a base with men and workshops was at hand. Experts were dispatched from HMS Vernon to investigate the mine. The Royal Navy knew that mines could use magnetic sensors, Britain having developed magnetic mines in World War I, so everyone removed all metal, including their buttons, and made tools of non-magnetic brass . They disarmed
14664-667: The next 2 decades, reaching 560,000 by 1985. Although Rotterdam has experienced population growth since then, it has done so at a slower pace than comparable cities in the Netherlands, like Amsterdam, The Hague and Utrecht. Rotterdam consists of 14 submunicipalities: Centrum , Charlois (including Heijplaat), Delfshaven , Feijenoord , Hillegersberg-Schiebroek , Hook of Holland , Hoogvliet , IJsselmonde , Kralingen-Crooswijk , Noord , Overschie , Pernis , and Prins Alexander (the most populous submunicipality with around 85,000 inhabitants). One other area, Rozenburg , does have an official submunicipality status since 18 March 2010. Since
14805-414: The northeast of Rotterdam extends 6 m (20 ft) below sea level, or rather below Normaal Amsterdams Peil (NAP) or 'Amsterdam Ordnance Datum'. The lowest point in the Netherlands (6.76 m (22.2 ft) below NAP) is situated just to the east of Rotterdam, in the municipality of Nieuwerkerk aan den IJssel . The Rotte river no longer joins the Nieuwe Maas directly. Since the early 1980s, when
14946-642: The old environment had to be reshaped. Daring and new styles of apartments , office buildings and recreation facilities resulted in a more ' livable ' city centre with a new skyline. In the 1990s, the Kop van Zuid was built on the south bank of the river as a new business centre. Rotterdam was voted 2015 European City of the Year by the Academy of Urbanism. A profile of Rem Koolhaas in The Guardian begins "If you put
15087-736: The orders of the Reagan administration , the CIA mined Nicaragua 's Sandino port in 1984 in support of the Contras . A Soviet tanker was among the ships damaged by these mines. In 1986, in the case of Nicaragua v. United States , the International Court of Justice ruled that this mining was a violation of international law. During the Gulf War , Iraqi naval mines severely damaged USS Princeton and USS Tripoli . When
15228-706: The pioneers of the Dutch slave trade ". From the 17th century until 1814, when the United Netherlands abolished the Netherland's involvement in the slave trade at the request of the British government , Dutch slave ships from Rotterdam sailed to Africa and the Americas as part of the triangular trade . Rotterdam merchants also sold significant quantities of gunpowder to Zeeland -based slave ships. The port of Rotterdam grew slowly but steadily into
15369-711: The possibility of activating a mine is a powerful disincentive to shipping. In the absence of effective measures to limit each mine's lifespan, the hazard to shipping can remain long after the war in which the mines were laid is over. Unless detonated by a parallel time fuze at the end of their useful life, naval mines need to be found and dismantled after the end of hostilities; an often prolonged, costly, and hazardous task. Modern mines containing high explosives detonated by complex electronic fuze mechanisms are much more effective than early gunpowder mines requiring physical ignition. Mines may be placed by aircraft, ships, submarines, or individual swimmers and boatmen. Minesweeping
15510-551: The post-war era, such as Steady! (Van der Horst, 1952), and all kinds of fiction films. Of major importance within this context has also been the International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR), an annual event that lasts more than ten days (end of January, beginning of February), which has been organized since 1972. Besides the IFFR, several smaller film festivals take place in Rotterdam too, such as
15651-693: The project as "not fair and honest warfare". In 1854, during the unsuccessful attempt of the Anglo-French (101 warships) fleet to seize the Kronstadt fortress, British steamships HMS Merlin (9 June 1855, the first successful mining in Western history), HMS Vulture and HMS Firefly suffered damage due to the underwater explosions of Russian naval mines. Russian naval specialists set more than 1,500 naval mines, or infernal machines , designed by Moritz von Jacobi and by Immanuel Nobel , in
15792-910: The responsibility of the US Army's Artillery Corps, and in 1907 this was a founding responsibility of the United States Army Coast Artillery Corps . The Imperial Russian Navy , a pioneer in mine warfare, successfully deployed mines against the Ottoman Navy during both the Crimean War and the Russo-Turkish War (1877-1878) . During the War of the Pacific (1879-1883), the Peruvian Navy , at
15933-586: The route with RML's refrigerated cargo ships Lochmonar , Lochkatrine and Lochgoil . As well as London, they were scheduled to call at various other ports in Britain, the Caribbean, California, Oregon , Washington and British Columbia, terminating at Vancouver . On westbound voyages Damsterdijk , Delftdijk and Lochmonar also served Guayaquil in Ecuador , whereas Dinteldijk , Drechtdijk , Lochkatrine and Lochgoil served Bermuda . A new HAL flagship,
16074-512: The same Dutch interests paid $ 3.5 million for half of IMM's shares in HAL. This amounted to about $ 800 per share, which was far more than IMM had paid for them in 1902. In 1916, IMM had received a dividend of 50 percent on its HAL shareholding. In March 1918 President Woodrow Wilson issued a proclamation seizing under angary 89 Dutch merchant ships in US ports. They included the HAL liner Rijndam , which
16215-647: The seat of the Catholic bishop of Rotterdam when the Rotterdam diocese was split from the Haarlem diocese . Since 2010 the city is home to the largest mosque in the Netherlands, the Essalam Mosque [ nl ] (capacity 1,500). The municipal council consists of 45 members, the largest party is Livable Rotterdam . The municipal executive consists of mayor Carola Schouten and nine elderman, belonging to four parties. Rotterdam has always been one of
16356-530: The services of semi-government companies Roteb (to take care of sanitation , waste management and assorted services) and the Port of Rotterdam Authority (to maintain the Port of Rotterdam ). Both these companies were once municipal bodies; now they are autonomous entities, owned by the city. Being the largest port and one of the largest cities of the country, Rotterdam attracts many people seeking jobs, especially in
16497-440: The ships lacked the generating capacity to energise such a coil. It was found that "wiping" a current-carrying cable up and down a ship's hull temporarily canceled the ships' magnetic signature sufficiently to nullify the threat. This started in late 1939, and by 1940 merchant vessels and the smaller British warships were largely immune for a few months at a time until they once again built up a field. The cruiser HMS Belfast
16638-748: The south bank of the river. The Witte Huis or White House skyscraper, inspired by American office buildings and built in 1898 in the French Art Nouveau style , is evidence of Rotterdam's rapid growth and success. When completed, it was the tallest office building in Europe, with a height of 45 m (147.64 ft). During World War I , the city was the world's largest spy centre because of Dutch neutrality and its strategic location between Britain, Germany and German-occupied Belgium. Many spies who were arrested and executed in Britain were led by German secret agents operating from Rotterdam. MI6 had its main European office on de Boompjes. From there
16779-719: The south of Rotterdam is Zuidplein, which lies close to Rotterdam Ahoy , an accommodation centre for shows, exhibitions, sporting events, concerts and congresses. Another prominent shopping centre called Alexandrium lies in the east of Rotterdam. It includes a large kitchen and furniture centre. Rotterdam has one major university, the Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR), named after one of the city's famous former inhabitants, Desiderius Erasmus . The Woudestein campus houses (among others) Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University . In Financial Times ' 2005 rankings it placed 29th globally and 7th in Europe. In
16920-455: The status of a submunicipality was lifted on 19 March 2014, it became an integral part of the municipality of Rotterdam. The size of the municipality of Rotterdam is the result of the amalgamation of the following former municipalities, some of which were a submunicipality prior to 19 March 2014: In the Netherlands, Rotterdam has the highest percentage of residents with a recent migration background from non-industrialised nations. They form
17061-468: The successful use of mines. The first ship sunk by a mine, USS Cairo , foundered in 1862 in the Yazoo River . Rear Admiral David Farragut 's famous/apocryphal command during the Battle of Mobile Bay in 1864, " Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead! " refers to a minefield laid at Mobile , Alabama. After 1865 the United States adopted the mine as its primary weapon for coastal defense . In
17202-677: The third largest merchant shipping company in the world. The Anglo-Dutch P&O Nedlloyd was bought by the Danish giant corporation 'AP Moller Maersk ' in 2005 and its Dutch operations are still headquartered in the 'Willemswerf'. Nowadays, well-known companies with headquarters in Rotterdam are consumer goods company Unilever (since 2020 London), asset management firm Robeco , energy company Eneco , dredging company Van Oord , oil company Royal Dutch Shell (since 2021 London ), terminal operator Vopak , commodity trading company Vitol and architecture firm Office for Metropolitan Architecture . It
17343-615: The war concluded, eight countries conducted clearance operations. Houthi forces in the Yemeni Civil War have made frequent use of naval mines, laying over 150 in the Red Sea throughout the conflict. In the first month of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine , Ukraine accused Russia of deliberately employing drifting mines in the Black Sea area. Around the same time, Turkish and Romanian military diving teams were involved in defusing operations, when stray mines were spotted near
17484-470: The world in the field of medicine (clinical, pre-clinical & health, 2017). Three Hogescholen (Universities of applied sciences) exist in Rotterdam. These schools award their students a professional Bachelor's degree and postgraduate or Master's degree . The three Hogescholen are Hogeschool Rotterdam , Hogeschool Inholland and Codarts University for the Arts (Codarts hogeschool voor de kunsten),
17625-469: The year 950. Around 1150, large floods in the area ended development, leading to the construction of protective dikes and dams, including Schielands Hoge Zeedijk ("Schieland's High Sea Dike") along the northern banks of the present-day Nieuwe Maas river. A dam on the Rotte was built in the 1260s and was located at the present-day Hoogstraat ("High Street"). On 7 July 1340, Count Willem IV of Holland granted city rights to Rotterdam, which then had
17766-722: Was European Capital of Culture in 2001. Rotterdam has various cultural institutions. Well-known museums are the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen , Het Nieuwe Instituut , the Wereldmuseum , the Kunsthal , Kunstinstituut Melly and the Maritime Museum Rotterdam . The Historical Museum Rotterdam has changed into Museum Rotterdam , which aims to exhibit the development of Rotterdam as a contemporary transnational city, and not merely
17907-409: Was the sister ship of the RMS Titanic , and the RMS Olympic . During World War II , the U-boat fleet, which dominated much of the battle of the Atlantic, was small at the beginning of the war and much of the early action by German forces involved mining convoy routes and ports around Britain. German submarines also operated in the Mediterranean Sea , in the Caribbean Sea , and along
18048-432: Was 550 feet (170 m) long and 12,606 GRT . H&W built two sister ships for Potsdam : Rijndam (1901) and Noordam (1902) . In 1902 William Pirrie , Chairman of H&W, negotiated to buy 51 percent of HAL's share capital. Pirrie was acting on behalf of J. P. Morgan 's International Mercantile Marine Company (IMM), which already owned HAL's Belgian competitor Red Star Line . Pirrie did not disclose
18189-428: Was converted into a US troopship, and eight HAL cargo ships. One of these, Oosterdijk , was sunk in a collision while being used by the United States Navy . The United States Shipping Board returned Rijndam and the surviving cargo ships to HAL in the course of 1919. In 1921–22 HAL introduced its first steam turbine passenger liners: the 8,800 GRT Maasdam , Edam , Leerdam and Spaarndam . They served
18330-402: Was effective against this type of mine, but this consumed valuable time and resources and required harbours to be closed. Later, some ships survived mine blasts, limping into port with buckled plates and broken backs. This appeared to be due to a new type of mine, detecting ships by their proximity to the mine (an influence mine) and detonating at a distance, causing damage with the shock wave of
18471-415: Was equal to 14 kg (31 lb) of black powder . In the summer of 1853, the production of the mine was approved by the Committee for Mines of the Ministry of War of the Russian Empire . In 1854, 60 Jacobi mines were laid in the vicinity of the Forts Pavel and Alexander ( Kronstadt ), to deter the British Baltic Fleet from attacking them. It gradually phased out its direct competitor the Nobel mine on
18612-403: Was forced to capitulate on 15 May 1940, following the bombing of Rotterdam on 14 May and the threat of bombing other Dutch cities. The heart of Rotterdam was almost completely destroyed by the Luftwaffe . Some 80,000 civilians were made homeless and 900 were killed; a relatively low number since many had fled the city because of the warfare and bombing going on in Rotterdam since the start of
18753-459: Was further disguised by wearing dark clothes and a black cap. His task was to approach the French ship, hook the torpedo to the anchor cable and, having activated the device by removing a pin, remove the paddles and escape before the torpedo detonated. Also to be deployed were large numbers of casks filled with gunpowder, ballast and combustible balls. They would float in on the tide and on washing up against an enemy's hull, explode. Also included in
18894-509: Was in November 1942, when U-174 sank the cargo-passenger ship Zaandam . 135 of her passengers and crew were killed. 39 people were killed in January 1941, when a mine sank the cargo ship Beemsterdijk . In October 1940 U-38 sank Bilderdijk . In 1941 U-564 sank the cargo-passenger liner Maasdam , and an air attack in German invasion of Greece sank the troopship Pennland . In September 1942, U-34 sank Breedijk . In 1940 German forces requisitioned Drechtdijk . In 1945 she hit
19035-420: Was loaded in a wooden box, sealed with putty . General Qi Jiguang made several timed, drifting explosives, to harass Japanese pirate ships. The Tiangong Kaiwu ( The Exploitation of the Works of Nature ) treatise, written by Song Yingxing in 1637, describes naval mines with a ripcord pulled by hidden ambushers located on the nearby shore who rotated a steel wheel flint mechanism to produce sparks and ignite
19176-429: Was offered in 1910. In July 1914 H&W launched a new Statendam that was 740 feet (230 m) and 32,120 GRT . However, a month later, the First World War started, and in 1915 the UK government requisitioned the new ship in H&W's shipyard and had her completed as the troopship Justicia . A U-boat sank her in 1918, and HAL accepted the UK government's offer of 60,000 tons of steel as compensation. In
19317-424: Was reduced from 4 lanes (2 in each direction) to 2 lanes (1 in each direction). Another mainstreet is the Weena , which runs from the Central Station to the Hofplein (square). A modern shopping venue is the Beurstraverse ("Stock Exchange Traverse"), better known by its informal name ' Koopgoot ' ('Buying/Shopping Gutter', after its subterranean position), which crosses the Coolsingel below street level. The Kruiskade
19458-530: Was that the addition of new ships would maintain passenger capacity if some of the older Carnival Corporation ships are sold. The Holland America Group of HAL and Princess Cruises have a letter of understanding to buy the White Pass and Yukon Route between Skagway, Alaska and the US-Canadian border. The purchase closed July 31, 2018. On July 15, 2020, it was announced by Holland America that Maasdam , Veendam , Rotterdam , and Amsterdam were sold to two undisclosed buyers. The ships were sold in pairs, with
19599-507: Was the only HAL ship to do so. Veendam made intermediate calls at Southampton only, and Noordam and Westerdam ran direct between Rotterdam and Hoboken. By 1959 HAL ships were calling also at Cobh , and running a service to Quebec and Montreal . By 1963 they also served Bremerhaven . A notable ship in the post-war era was the fifth Rotterdam , launched in 1959. She was one of the first North Atlantic ships equipped for two-class transatlantic crossing and one-class luxury cruising. By
19740-506: Was the original Rotterdam (1872) , which sailed its 15-day maiden voyage from the Netherlands to New York City on October 15, 1872. Cargo service to New York started in 1909. HAL's main route was between Rotterdam and New York . Its "New York" terminal was in fact in Hoboken, New Jersey , on the opposite side of the Hudson River from New York City. By 1892, HAL ships sailing between Rotterdam and Hoboken were scheduled to call en route at Boulogne in France . In its first 25 years,
19881-406: Was used on the Delaware River as a drift mine, destroying a small boat near its intended target, a British warship. The 1804 Raid on Boulogne made extensive use of explosive devices designed by inventor Robert Fulton . The 'torpedo-catamaran' was a coffer-like device balanced on two wooden floats and steered by a man with a paddle. Weighted with lead so as to ride low in the water, the operator
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