Waterlooplein is a square in the centre of
Amsterdam, The Netherlands, near the Amstel river. The daily flea market on
the square is popular with tourists. The Stopera city hall and opera
building and the Mozes en Aäronkerk church stand on Waterlooplein square.
date
Waterlooplein was created in 1882 when the Leprozengracht
and Houtgracht canals were filled in.
The square is named after the Battle of Waterloo in 1815.
The square became a marketplace when the city government decided
that the Jewish merchants in the nearby Jodenbreestraat and Sint
Antoniebreestraat had to move their stalls to the square. The
Waterlooplein became a daily market (except on Saturdays, the Jewish
sabbath) in 1893.
During World War II the Jewish quarter was emptied of its
residents as the Nazis rounded them up and sent them to concentration
camps. The Waterlooplein market had disppeared by 1941. After the war,
the Jewish quarter was left deserted, and the Waterlooplein market
became a flea market. The market currently has some 300 stalls and is
open every day except Sunday.
In 2005, the Jewish Historical Museum presented an exhibition of
paintings and photographs picturing the Waterlooplein. The exhibition
included works by Wolfgang Suschitzky, Max Liebermann and Oskar
Kokoschka.
Waterlooplein is a stop on the Amsterdam metro line. Tram lines 9
and 14 and the Museumboot water taxi also stop on Waterlooplein. There
is a taxi stand and parking garage.