1808: From city hall to royal palace
The building served as the city hall for some 150 years.
It was first used as a palace for a few days in 1768, when Prince William V, stadholder of the Netherlands, and his wife, Wilhelmina of Prussia, were given a ceremonial welcome in Amsterdam.
In 1806 Louis Bonaparte, Emperor Napoleon’s brother, became King of Holland. He first lived in The Hague, but in 1807 he moved to Amsterdam, which was of greater economic importance. In 1808, he took the city hall on Dam Square as his Royal Palace.
Empire style
The architect J.T. Thibault supervised its redecoration in the Empire style. A Royal Museum, the predecessor of the city’s Rijksmuseum, was also established in the palace.
After Louis abdicated and the Netherlands was annexed by France, on 2 July 1810, the French governor, Charles François Lebrun, received permission from the Emperor to live in the palace.