The changing role of capital cities

Abstract

The first point to make is the elementary one: that not all capital cities are alike. Some owe that role solely to the fact of being the seat of government; at least one (Amsterdam) is a capital even though it is not the seat of government. Capitals in federal systems may have less well-developed governmental functions than those in centralized systems. Though most seats of government attract other national functions (commerce, finance, media, higher education), not all do so in equal degree.