7 July: Rotterdam

On this date in 1340 Rotterdam, Netherlands, was founded. Here are 10 fascinating facts about Rotterdam.

1. The name Rotterdam comes from a dam which was built on the river Rotte (which itself is derived from the words for "muddy water") in the 1260s. Where the dam was is today the Hoogstraat ("High Street").
2. It is the second largest city in the Netherlands and its port is the second largest in the world. The distribution systems leading to and from the port have earned Rotterdam the nicknames "Gateway to Europe" and "Gateway to the World".
3. The city has more architectural bureaus than any other Dutch city and is also known as the "City of Architecture". It has some of the tallest buildings in The Netherlands including the tallest residential building in the Netherlands: the New Orleans Tower at 158.35 metres/519.5 ft, the tallest office building: 'Maastoren' (164.75m/540.5 ft) and the Euromast observation tower at 186 metres/610 ft. Another tourist attraction is cube shaped houses. Most of these are privately owned, but one is open to the public.
4. A significant part of Rotterdam is below sea level. The lowest point in the Netherlands (6.76 metres (22.2 ft) below NAP) is to the east of Rotterdam, in the municipality of Nieuwerkerk aan den IJssel.
5. During the first world war, The Netherlands was neutral, and so Rotterdam, in a strategic location in between Great-Britain, Germany and German-occupied Belgium became the world's largest spy centre with both Britain and Germany operating spy networks from there. It was also a haven for refugees from Belgium, German deserters and escaped prisoners of war.
6. During the second world war the city centre was completely destroyed by bombing, earning it the sad nickname of the "city without a heart." However, the city owes its modern look and feel to the bombings, for the city was completely rebuilt after the war.
7. Rotterdam's motto is Sterker door strijd (Stronger through struggle).
8. People who live in Rotterdam often give nicknames to the architectural features. A shopping centre built on a lower part of the street but without a roof became known as "The Gutter." A statue by artist Paul McCarthy, depicting a Santa Claus with a tree, is nicknamed "The Buttplug Gnome", and a bridge with a bendy pylon is dubbed "The Swan".
9. The city has more than one mayor. At time of writing, the overall mayor is Ahmed Aboutaleb, who is the first Dutch mayor of Moroccan descent. There is also a mayor responsible for the city's night life and one who advises the city on what young people want.
10. Rotterdam has 13 twin cities: Baltimore (US), Burgas (Bulgaria), Cologne and Dresden (Germany), Constanța (Romania), Esch-sur-Alzette (Luxembourg), Gdańsk (Poland), Havana (Cuba), Lille (France), Liège (Belgium), Shanghai (China), Saint Petersburg (Russia) and Turin (Italy).