The Rijksmuseum

The Rijksmuseum was especially built for the Night Watch of Rembrandt. The Gallery of Honour leads to the master piece as the nave of a church to the altar. In the chapels on the side you only find Dutch masters like Vermeer, Hals, Steen, Heeda and Ruysdael.

Rembrandt delivered his most ambitious project to date with the group portrait. You look at the nursery of the political elite of Amsterdam: the militia, in this case the Kloveniers.
The work hung on the wall in their clubhouse at the Kloveniersburgwal, an establishment where Maria de’ Medici stayed during her visit to Amsterdam in 1638. It was considered the best hotel-restaurant at the time.

Both the captain Banninck Cocq and his lieutenant Ruitenburg became mayor to Amsterdam later in their careers.

Whether Rembrandt ended up in the Jordaan because he was a big spender or just unfortunate with a loan from Jan Six, his best friend, stays uncertain. No doubt he was a complicated person, but a real genius.