| Description |
357 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (some color), color maps ; 25 cm |
| Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references and index. |
| Contents |
A bicycle trip -- The water problem -- The alteration -- The company -- The liberal city -- "The rare happiness of living in a republic" -- Seeds of influence -- The two liberalisms -- "We inform you of the action of a powerful German force" -- The magic center. |
| Summary |
Tourists know Amsterdam as a picturesque city of low-slung brick houses lining tidy canals; student travelers know it for its legal brothels and hash bars; art lovers know it for Rembrandt's glorious portraits. But the deeper history of Amsterdam, what makes it one of the most fascinating places on earth, is bound up in its unique geography--the constant battle of its citizens to keep the sea at bay--and the democratic philosophy that this enduring struggle fostered. Amsterdam is the font of liberalism, in both its senses. Tolerance for free thinking and free love make it a place where, in the words of one of its mayors, "craziness is a value." But the city also fostered the deeper meaning of liberalism, one that profoundly influenced America: political and economic freedom. |
| Subject |
Liberalism -- Netherlands -- Amsterdam -- History.
|
|
Amsterdam (Netherlands) -- History.
|
| ISBN |
9780385534574 |
|
0385534574 |
|
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