Amsterdam was founded in the beginning of the 14th century and grew out to be the capital of the Netherlands. In the 21st century it was a large independent city in the Netherlands much like the other cities in the Randstad, but around 2250 it began to expand and usurp the other cities in the Randstad.

The city has a populace of 75.400.000 people, making it a megacity of medium size. The city has some political importance in the world as the Permanent Court of Arbitration is still located where it was founded in 1899 (although it is managed by a division of Freedom these days).