The Plan Zuid ("South Plan") is an urban development plan of Amsterdam South in the city of

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

, designed by architect

Hendrik Petrus Berlage Hendrik Petrus Berlage (; 21 February 185612 August 1934) was a Dutch architect and designer. He is considered one of the fathers of the architecture of the Amsterdam School. Life and work Hendrik Petrus Berlage, son of Nicolaas Willem Ber ...

. Berlage was responsible for the urban concept (1915) and the architects of the

Amsterdam School The Amsterdam School (Dutch: ''Amsterdamse School'') is a style of architecture that arose from 1910 through about 1930 in the Netherlands. The Amsterdam School movement is part of international Expressionist architecture, sometimes linked ...

(partly expressionist architects) designed the implementation of the plan. Some years later Berlage was one of the leading architects of a new urban plan in Amsterdam, called Plan West (1922-1927). Here Berlage designed the center of Plan West, the architecture of the Mercatorplein (main square).

First project

At the beginning of the 20th century, Berlage was asked by the

city council to design a plan for developing the undeveloped area south of the city between the rivers

Amstel The Amstel () is a river in the province of North Holland in the Netherlands. It flows from the Aarkanaal and Drecht in Nieuwveen northwards, passing Uithoorn, Amstelveen, and Ouderkerk aan de Amstel, to the IJ in Amsterdam, to which the rive ...

and Schinkel. In 1904, Berlage presented an ambitious plan of winding streets, which was closely joined to the existing city. After research showed that this plan would be very costly and inefficient, Berlage was asked to go back to the drawing board.

Final project

Plattegrond van Amsterdam-Zuid met daarin alle uitgevoerde gebouwen in 1922

Berlage presented a new plan in 1915, with straight narrow streets and long blocks, intersected by several broad axes. This plan proved much more feasible and efficient. In 1917 the City Council granted approval to the plan. The New South district was built in the style of the

between 1917 and 1925, consisting of the Stadionbuurt,

Apollobuurt Apollobuurt is a neighborhood of Amsterdam, Netherlands. It is part of the borough of Amsterdam-Zuid. The neighborhood is characterized by a spacious and luxurious design. The streets are named after Greek legends, painters and composers. Th ...

and

Rivierenbuurt Rivierenbuurt is a neighbourhood of Amsterdam, Netherlands. The neighbourhood is situated in the eastern part of the Amsterdam borough of Amsterdam-Zuid, bordered by the river Amstel to the east, the ''Boerenwetering'' canal in the west, the '' ...

neighbourhoods. A large part of the

Nieuwe Pijp Nieuwe Pijp ( English: New Pipe) is a neighbourhood in Amsterdam, Netherlands. It is part of the borough of Amsterdam-Zuid. The Nieuwe Pijp is bordered by Ceintuurbaan and Sarphatipark in the north, Van Woustraat in the east, Amstel Canal in the so ...

neighbourhood derives from the Plan Zuid. Berlage's design was only roughly implemented. On the spot where he had planned a teaching hospital, a large housing association designed by

Michel de Klerk Michel de Klerk (24 November 1884, Amsterdam – 24 November 1923, Amsterdam) was a Dutch architect. Born to a Jewish family, he was one of the founding architects of the movement Amsterdam School (Expressionist architecture) Early in his ca ...

and

Piet Kramer Pieter Lodewijk (Piet) Kramer (Amsterdam, 1 July 1881 – Santpoort, 4 February 1961) was a Dutch architect, one of the most important architects of the Amsterdam School ( Expressionist architecture). From 1903 to 1911 Piet Kramer worked in th ...

called "De Dageraad" (The Dawn) housing complex was built. It was opened in July 1922 by the alderman festive Housing, SR de Miranda. File:Berlage1.jpg, Plan Zuid 1904, urban plan for the south of

, ( H.P.Berlage) File:PlanZuidAmsterdam.jpg, Plan Zuid 1915, authorization by the City Council 1917, ( H.P.Berlage) File:Vogelvlucht Zuiderstation en Plan Zuid.jpg, Plan Zuid 1915, air view,

Zuid Station File:Vogelvlucht Plan Zuid vanaf de Amstel.jpg, Plan Zuid 1915, air view, Street-Y and river

File:Wendingen1927-6-7-p5-PlanWestAmsterdam-Berlage.jpg, Plan West 1922-1927, architecture of the Mercatorplein, ( H.P.Berlage) File:PlanWestAmsterdam1922-1927Architects.jpg, Plan West 1922-1927, Mercatorplein, main square

Bibliography

* Sergio Polano, ''Hendrik Petrus Berlage'', (with essays by Giovanni Fanelli, Jan de Heer, Vincent van Rossum), Phaidon Press London 2002. * Sigfried Giedion, ''Space, Time and Architecture'', (part Amsterdam Urban Planning 1900-1930), Harvard University Press Cambridge Mass. 2009. * Vladimir Stissi, ''Amsterdam, het mekka van de volkshuisvesting 1909-1942 (Amsterdam, the Mecca of Social Housing 1909-1942)'', Dutch edition, 500 ill., NAi Rotterdam 2007.

External links

Plan Zuid
in Wendingen magazine, website IADDB, (publication date, not date in magazine): * Wendingen 1923-4, (May 1923), "Plan Zuid" * Wendingen 1924-9/10, (Feb. 1925), "

, buildings" * Wendingen 1929-11/12, (Oct. 1930), "Plan Zuid" * Plan West 1922-1927, Amsterdam (Wikipedia Nederlands)

Museum De Dageraad with permanent exhibition about Plan Zuid

References

{{reflist Geography of Amsterdam 20th century in Amsterdam Urban planning City plans