New York City York metropolitan area produced a gross metropolitan product (GMP) of US$1.73 trillion. If greater New York City were a sovereign state, it would have the 12th highest GDP in the world. New York City traces its origins to a trading post founded by colonists from the Dutch Republic in 1624 on Lower Manhattan; the post was named New Amsterdam in 1626. The city and its surroundings came under English control in 1664 and were renamed "New York" after King Charles II of England granted the lands to his brother, the Duke of York. New York served as the capital of
Seal of New York City the English documents on September 8, 1664, whereupon it was renamed New York. The 300th Anniversary of New York was celebrated with the World's Fair in New York in 1964 in Flushing Meadows, within the borough of Queens, where religious freedom was first recognized with the Flushing Remonstrance in 1657. A laurel wreath encircles the seal. The city clerk is the custodian of the City Seal. Prior to 1915, New York City's contemporary seal lacked an official standard, and was often subject to variations featuring a number of different arrangements of the eagle, and the two figures at either side