The urban landscape of Medieval Leiden

Abstract

This chapter deals with the origins and urban development of Leiden until about 1500, based on existing insights and new data from recent archaeological and building archaeological research. Topics covered are the landscape in which Leiden was situated, land reclamations, the origins of the city and the shape of its urban expansions. Next, aspects of building construction in Leiden are discussed, covering building density, sources of building materials and the verstening or ‘petrification’ of the town (the transition from mud-and-wood to brick-and-tile architecture). Finally, we zoom out to discuss the urban development of Leiden in relation to urbanisation elsewhere in the Netherlands and look at how the development of the medieval city of Leiden relates to that of later periods.