Amsterdamse Poort (Haarlem)

The Amsterdamse Poort is an old city gate of Haarlem, the Netherlands.

It was created in 1355 and is the only remaining city gate from the defenses of Haarlem.

In 1865 the city government wanted to demolish the gate. A speedy procedure to put down the gate was requested, as the gate was in pretty bad shape and was blocking the construction of a new bridge on the location just in front of the gate. However, there was not enough money at the moment to construct a new bridge, so the city council agreed to provide funds for a short-term renovation of the gate to make sure it would stay up for two or three more years.

In 1867 the Papentoren, a tower, was demolished, and the munition that had been stored there needed a storage space. A room in the Amsterdamse Poort was suited for that and the munition was stored. In 1869 the bridge in front of the gate was finally reconstructed. In 1874 most of the (explosive) munition was taken outside the city.

In 1889 a small renovation was planned, with a budget of 1,490 guilders. The city architect, J. Leijh, started the project, which later required an extra 775 guilders.

In the 1960s the gate was declared a national monument. In 1985 a complete renovation of the gate took place.