Rijkswerf (Amsterdam)

's Lands Zeemagazijn (arsenal) in 2012

The yard viewed from the north, late 18th century, by Mortier Covens en Zoon

In the time of the Dutch republic naval affairs were handled by 5 local admiralties. The Admiralty of Amsterdam was the most important of these. The First Anglo-Dutch War proved the need for a professional navy. On 12 August 1655, the admiralty therefore got the entire western strip of Kattenburg island for the construction of an arsenal and ship yard. The arsenal was quickly constructed on the southern extremity of Kattenburg island in 1656. It was called 's Lands Zeemagazijn and now houses the National Maritime Museum.

The rest of Kattenburg island stretches north along the Kattenburgerstraat. On the west side of this street the former yard is still enclosed by a very long seventeenth century building and a long old wall that reaches almost to the north end of Kattenburg Island. The slipways of the yard were immediately on the other (west) side of this enclosure.

From the arsenal and the north end of Kattenburg, dams reached to the west, and enclosed an almost square stretch of water called 's lands Dok. In this dock the ships of the admiralty could lay In ordinary. This was the usual condition for warships in the time of the Dutch republic. Upper parts of the mast, most of the rigging, sails, guns etc. were removed, and stored in the adjacent arsenal. Almost the whole the dock has now been filled up, and is occupied by modern buildings.

The slipways are left (north) of the arsenal, behind these the enclosure, c. 1710

The events of 1795 created the Batavian Republic, the start of the French period in the Netherlands. The admiralties were replaced by a national committee for naval affairs. It meant that all assets of the admiralties were nationalized, leading to 5 state ship yards. In 1806 the Kingdom of Holland became the owner of the shipyard. In 1811 this kingdom was annexed by Napoleon's empire, making the yard an imperial French ship yard. This came to an end in late 1813, when the Netherlands became independent again. The French period was a disaster for Dutch shipping. It could have become a disaster for the yard, because of the construction of Willemsoord, a naval base near Den Helder, and a possible competitor.

The founding of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands in 1815 meant a new start for 's Rijks Werf (national yard) Amsterdam. However, the context of 1815 was very different from that of 1795. The French time had been utterly ruinous for the Dutch economy. It caused that the nation could no longer afford a naval budget comparable to that of major European powers. Apart from that, the United Kingdom of the Netherlands was a state focusing on its place in a coalition that should keep France in check, and was therefore focused on its army.

General circumstances were not conducive for much activity on the yard, but on a national scale the Rijkswerf Amsterdam was lucky. While Willemsoord remained as a naval base and was greatly expanded, the proponents of moving shipbuilding over there did not get their way. Most of the few new ships of the line and frigates that were built, were laid down in Amsterdam again, with Vlissingen and Rotterdam also having a share. In 1816 the remnants of the 'competing' navy yard in Harlingen were sold.[1] In 1828 the Rijkswerf Medemblik was shut down.

The united kingdom broke up in 1830. The final acts were the Ten Days' Campaign, the Siege of Antwerp (1832) and an English fleet blockading the Dutch coast, all ruinous for the state's finances. The secession of Belgium also stripped the coal and iron deposits from the Dutch state, a further disaster during the Industrial Revolution. It all led to rigorous economizing on the navy. The Rijkswerf Rotterdam would close in 1850. Meanwhile, the Rijkswerf Amsterdam built a lot of small paddle steamers.

By the early 1850s the only Dutch state yards left were those in Vlissingen and Amsterdam. Meanwhile, the Dutch state had found a new source of wealth in the Cultivation System implemented in the East Indies. It meant that more money became available for the navy, and investments went to these two establishments. This was just as well, because the invention of screw propulsion had just obsoleted the entire fleet of sail and paddle-steam ships that the Dutch had. The biggest screw ships that the Dutch needed, the steam frigates, were built in Vlissingen because of their draught. The Rijkswerf would build a large number of steam corvettes.