The Noorderkerk ("northern church") is a 17th-century

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

church in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

The Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. A number of other towns in the Netherlands also have a Noorderkerk church, including

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital of ...

Hoorn Hoorn () is a city and municipality in the northwest of the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It is the largest town and the traditional capital of the region of West Friesland. Hoorn is located on the Markermeer, 20 kilometers ( ...

and Kampen.

History

The church was built in the years 1620–1623 to serve the rapidly growing population of the new

Jordaan The Jordaan is a neighbourhood of the city of Amsterdam, Netherlands. It is part of the borough of Amsterdam-Centrum. The area is bordered by the Singelgracht canal and the neighbourhood of Frederik Hendrikbuurt to the west; the Prinsengracht to ...

neighbourhood.Rijksmonument report The Jordaan already had a church, the

Westerkerk The Westerkerk (; en, Western Church) is a Reformed church within Dutch Protestant Calvinism in central Amsterdam, Netherlands. It lies in the most western part of the Grachtengordel neighborhood (Centrum borough), next to the Jordaan, between ...

, but the city government decided that a second church should be built to serve the northern part of the neighbourhood. The Noorderkerk became the church for the common people, while the Westerkerk was used mainly by the middle and upper classes. The architect was

Hendrick de Keyser Hendrick de Keyser (15 May 1565 – 15 May 1621) was a Dutch sculptor, merchant in Belgium bluestone, and architect who was instrumental in establishing a late Renaissance form of Mannerism changing into Baroque. Most of his works appeared in Amst ...

, who also designed the

Zuiderkerk The Zuiderkerk (, "southern church") is a 17th-century Protestant church in the Nieuwmarkt area of Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands. The church played an important part in the life of Rembrandt and was the subject of a painting by Cla ...

and Westerkerk, among others. After de Keyser's death in 1621, his son

Pieter de Keyser Pieter de Keyser (c.1595 – 15 September 1676 (buried)) was a Dutch Golden Age architect (''bouwmeester'') and sculptor. He followed in the footsteps of his father Hendrick de Keyser and completed a number of Hendrick de Keyser's buildings a ...

took over and oversaw the completion. While the Zuiderkerk and Westerkerk have a more traditional

basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica is a large public building with multiple functions, typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East. The building gave its name ...

design, the Noorderkerk has a symmetrical, cross-shaped layout, reflecting the ideals of the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...

and

protestantism Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...

. De Keyser's unique design combines an

octagon In geometry, an octagon (from the Greek ὀκτάγωνον ''oktágōnon'', "eight angles") is an eight-sided polygon or 8-gon. A '' regular octagon'' has Schläfli symbol and can also be constructed as a quasiregular truncated square, t, whi ...

al floor plan with a structure shaped like a Greek cross, with four arms of equal length. Annex buildings occupy each corner of the cross, and a small tower sits in the centre of the cross. Large Tuscan pillars dominate the church interior. The church was restored in the period 1993–1998. The small tower was restored in 2003–2004 and the organ, built in 1849 by H. Knipscheer, was restored in 2005. The bell tower was built in 1621 by J. Meurs. The church is still used for

Dutch Reformed Church The Dutch Reformed Church (, abbreviated NHK) was the largest Christian denomination in the Netherlands from the onset of the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century until 1930. It was the original denomination of the Dutch Royal Family and ...

services and is also used regularly for classical music concerts. The Noorderkerk is located along

Prinsengracht The Prinsengracht is a -long canal that runs parallel to the Keizersgracht in the center of Amsterdam. The canal, named after the Prince of Orange, is the fourth of the four main canals belonging to the canal belt. History Construction started ...

canal, on the

Noordermarkt The Noordermarkt (; en, Northern Market) is a square in the Jordaan neighborhood of Amsterdam in the Netherlands. The square is dominated by the 17th-Century Noorderkerk church, and is lined by cafés and restaurants. Markets are held on the squ ...

square, where regular markets are held, including an organic farmer's market on Saturdays. In 1941, illicit public meetings were held on the square by organisers of the

February Strike The February strike ( nl, Februaristaking) was a general strike in the German-occupied Netherlands in 1941, during World War II, organised by the then-outlawed Communist Party of the Netherlands in defence of persecuted Dutch Jews and against t ...

. This is commemorated by a plaque on the south face of the church.

Burials

Caspar Stoll Caspar Stoll (Hesse-Kassel, probably between 1725 and 1730 – Amsterdam, December 1791) was a naturalist and entomologist, best known for the completion of ''De Uitlandsche Kapellen'', a work on butterflies begun by Pieter Cramer. He also publis ...

References

External links

Amsterdam HeritageNoorderkerk
(Dutch) {{coord, 52, 22, 46, N, 4, 53, 11, E, display=title, region:NL_type:landmark_source:nlwiki Bell towers in the Netherlands Churches in Amsterdam Buildings of the Dutch Golden Age Rijksmonuments in Amsterdam Religious buildings and structures completed in 1623 Protestant churches in the Netherlands 1623 establishments in the Dutch Republic Towers in Amsterdam