This Jewish Heritage Walk will give you a full overview of Jewish history in Amsterdam from 1600 up until the Jewish history today. The tour begins with a quick geographical explanation of Amsterdam Jews in Spain and Portugal around 1600 and then moves into the center of the former Jewish quarter, where the Jewish population was once thriving.
From there, you will get a view from the St Antonie’s sluis where you can see the Motelbeans tower, a place that according to the legend, the first rabbi in Amsterdam landed. On the tour you will see the Rembrandt house, the first diamond factory in Europe, the Waterlooplein, the first official synagogue, The Plantage war and Holocaust memories, a sculpture of the philosopher Spinoza, and finally, the monument for the Jewish resistance during World War II.
You will hear stories of Portuguese Jews who are related to the Dutch royal family and learn about the horror the Jews experienced under Nazi occupation and the effect this had on the population of Amsterdam. When you complete the tour, you will understand the importance of the Jewish community and culture in Amsterdam and the richness they added to Amsterdam society since their arrival in 1600.
