The parchment does not contain a description of a future world capital, but a practical solution for a small settlement by a river. On October 27, 1275, Count Floris V of Holland issued a charter by which the inhabitants of the place on the Amstel dam were exempted from paying taxes on transported goods. It was this document that later became the "birth certificate" of Amsterdam.
The text records the name Amestelledamme - – “the Amstel dam“. This is the first known written form of the name from which today's Amsterdam is derived. The charter was issued in Leiden and is the oldest surviving document in which the settlement and its inhabitants are mentioned.
The settlement is older than the date
October 27, 1275 is not the exact date on which people first settled near the Amstel. Archaeological and historical evidence indicates that the settlement existed earlier - as early as the 12th century. Therefore, the date is accepted not so much as the beginning of life in the place, but as the first official evidence of its name.
In 1275, Amsterdam was not yet a city in the sense we know it today. It was a small community around a dam built to control the waters of the Amstel. However, the location on the waterway created conditions for fishing, shipping and trade.
The commercial advantage changed its future
The exemption from taxes meant that the inhabitants of the settlement could transport goods through the possessions of the Count of Holland under more favorable conditions. Later, this privilege helped the development of trade and the transformation of Amsterdam into an important economic center.
The city rights came later, around the beginning of the 14th century. However, the toleration exemption remained part of the city's history for centuries and was preserved until 1795. The document is kept in the Amsterdam City Archives and is rarely shown publicly due to the fragility of the parchment.
“This is a joyful day - Amsterdam is one year older again“, says Frank Driessen from the Amsterdam City Archives in a comment for AT5. Thus, a medieval tax privilege turned October 27, 1275, into the date on which Amsterdam today celebrates the beginning of its written history.
Sources: at5.nl, amp.dw.com, elpais.com