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It's hard to miss the Royal Palace on Dam Square. When the building was first opened to the public as the Town Hall in 1655, its lavish interior decorated with paintings by Ferdinand Bol and Rembrandt was considered to be the eighth wonder of the world. Louis Napoleon made it his personal residence in 1808 when he briefly served as the King of Holland, but it later became the possession of the House of Orange.
Opposite the Royal Palace is the National Monument that's often occupied by people of all ages and nationalities sunning themselves, reading books or just relaxing. The brainchild of renowned Dutch architect J.J.P. Oud (1890 - 1963), the National Monument made of white travertine was unveiled in 1956 as both a memorial to all Dutch men and women who suffered under the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands and to the nation's liberation. A number of statues and reliefs symbolise the resistance expressed by all members of society from labourers to the intelligentsia and the lions on either side represent the Dutch nation. The giant pillar rises to a height of 22m.
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