Hometown of Rembrandt, city of the Pilgrim Fathers, and seat of
the country's oldest university, Leiden (Leyde in French ; pop.
118,000, with suburbs 254,000 ) is a typical Dutch city, with an
architecture that has little to envy to its neighbours Amsterdam
or Delft. The city host a population of 20,000 students, giving
it a particularly lively atmosphere. In Roman times, Leiden's
suburb of Katwijk was the town of Lugdunum Batavorum, built
during the reign of Emperor Claudius (41-54). Leiden was then
the site of a smaller settlement called Matilo, which developed
into a fortress in the 4th century. Both places were built on
the Old Rhine (most of the river was diverted to the south in
medieval times), the river forming the northern border of the
Roman Empire. The first medieval mention of Leiden was under the
name of Leithon in 860. Originally under the control of the
Bishopric of Utrecht, Leiden was annexed to the County of
Holland in 1100. Leiden was sacked in 1047 by Holy Roman Emperor
Henry III. In the ea