ABSTRACT
The Netherlands, it is sometimes said, is an urbanised nation without cities. That is to say that although population density for the nation as awhole is very high, big cities are conspicuously absent (Steigenga, 1968: 45–65; Steigenga, 1970). Rather in Holland one finds a situation, both socially and ecologically, of more or less complementary cities and towns around a rural core (the 'green core'), viz., the 'Randstad' — literally 'rim' or 'ring', i.e. an urban conglomeration. Composed of three metropolitan centers of nearly the same size, this ring includes the cities of Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and The Hague. It is true that well into the 20th century the number of manufacturing jobs was impressive in these areas, but they lacked the heavy capital investments of the Randstad. Finally there was an ever increasing gap between the Randstad population and that of the periphery in terms of wealth, skill and education.
