Schreierstoren

The Schreierstoren is a former defensive tower in Amsterdam, which was formerly part of the city wall. The tower was built around 1487 on the corner of IJ and the east side of the city. It is the only remaining defensive tower of Amsterdam.

The tower was formerly Schrayershoucktoren, as the city wall here, a sharp corner took (of Schray "sharp" ). The present name to the tower got, because at this point the women at the time of the Dutch East India Company took on their husbands goodbye, if this is too long and dangerous expeditions departed. Can cry here " cry " about to be translated. Today we know that this story is pure fiction.

The city wall ran along the harbor and the Prins Hendrikkade over the place, on which now stands the Amsterdam Centraal railway station. On Schreierstoren the wall turned sharply to the southwest, where she continued along the former Stadsgracht ( today Geldersekade ) to the city scale on the Nieuwmarkt. In the seawall along the Geldersekade are still remains of the city walls can be seen as large blocks of sandstone.

When the tower lost its defensive function, he served for some time as harbor master. From about 1960, the harbor master lived in the tower.

1966, the tower was restored. The pinnacles that were to be seen on old drawings were not restored because the building itself no evidence could be found that the tower they ever possessed. Since the restoration is in building a café. Upstairs is a boat tickets and boat book trading is conducted.

On the northeast side of the tower a plaque in memory was attached to the journey of Henry Hudson in September 1927, which stood out from here on April 4, 1609 on behalf of the Dutch East India Company in the lake to find a western passage to India. It was mounted on the initiative of the Greenwich Village Historical Society, based in New York.