Built in 1617 as a meat market and militia barracks, this historic building was rented by the Dutch West India Company (Geoctroyeerde Westindische Compagnie; GWC) as its headquarters in 1623. It was here that the GWC's governors signed off on the construction of a fort on the island of Manhattan in 1625, establishing New Amsterdam (now New York City).
The booty of Admiral Piet Heyn, the great naval hero, was stored here in 1628 after his men captured the Spanish silver fleet off the coast of Cuba.
Today this landmark on the Herenmarkt is used as a conference venue and houses offices including the John Adams Institute, which fosters cultural ties between the USA and the Netherlands. You can enter the courtyard to see the statue of Peter Stuyvesant (c 1612–1672), the colony of New Netherland's final Dutch Director-General until its British acquisition.
The Oost-Indisch Huis , the headquarters of the Dutch East India Company (Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie; VOC) is in Nieuwmarkt.
