The Nieuwe Kerk (, ''New Church''
) is a 15th-century
church in
Amsterdam located on
Dam Square, next to the
Royal Palace
This is a list of royal palaces, sorted by continent.
Africa
* Abdin Palace, Cairo
* Al-Gawhara Palace, Cairo
* Koubbeh Palace, Cairo
* Tahra Palace, Cairo
* Menelik Palace
* Jubilee Palace
* Guenete Leul Palace
* Imperial Palace- Mas ...
. Formerly a
Dutch Reformed Church parish, it now belongs to the
Protestant Church in the Netherlands
The Protestant Church in the Netherlands ( nl, de Protestantse Kerk in Nederland, abbreviated PKN) is the largest Protestant denomination in the Netherlands, being both Calvinist and Lutheran.
It was founded on 1 May 2004 as the merger of the v ...
.
Current uses
The Nieuwe Kerk is no longer used for church services but is used as an exhibition space.
It is also used for organ recitals. There is a café in one of the buildings attached to the church that has an entrance to the church (during opening hours). There is a museum store inside the entrance that sells postcards, books, and gifts having to do with the church and its exhibitions.
The church is used for Dutch royal
investiture ceremonies (as per Article 32 of the
Dutch Constitution
The Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands ( nl, Grondwet voor het Koninkrijk der Nederlanden) is one of two fundamental documents governing the Kingdom of the Netherlands as well as the fundamental law of the European territory of the ...
) most recently that of King
Willem-Alexander in 2013, as well as royal weddings, most recently
the wedding of Willem-Alexander to
Máxima in 2002. The
investitures of Queens
Wilhelmina,
Juliana
Juliana (variants Julianna, Giuliana, Iuliana, Yuliana, etc) is a feminine given name which is the feminine version of the Roman name Julianus.
Juliana or Giuliana was the name of a number of early saints, notably Saint Julian the Hospitaller, wh ...
and
Beatrix
Beatrix is a Latin feminine given name, most likely derived from ''Viatrix'', a feminine form of the Late Latin name ''Viator'' which meant "voyager, traveller" and later influenced in spelling by association with the Latin word ''beatus'' or "bles ...
also took place there.
History
After the
Oude Kerk ("Old Church") grew too small for the expanding population of the town, the
bishop of Utrecht
List of bishops and archbishops of the diocese and archdioceses of Utrecht.
Medieval diocese from 695 to 1580
Founders of the Utrecht diocese
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gave permission to build a second parish church, the Nieuwe Kerk ("New Church"). Construction on began in 1380 and finished in 1408. This new church was consecrated in 1409
to St. Mary and St. Catharine, and the first services were held in 1410.
The church was damaged by the city fires of 1421 and 1452 and burned down almost entirely in 1645, after which it was rebuilt in
Gothic
Gothic or Gothics may refer to:
People and languages
*Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes
**Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths
**Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...
style. In 1578 the building became a
Dutch Reformed church. It underwent major renovation in 1892–1914, which added many
neo-Gothic
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...
details, and was again renovated in 1959–80. The second renovation proved expensive for the Dutch Reformed Church, forcing the church to be closed most of the time in order to save money on maintenance. To keep the church open, ownership was transferred in 1979 to a newly formed cultural foundation called the Nationale Stichting De Nieuwe Kerk.
Notable interments
The Nieuwe Kerk is a burial site for Dutch naval heroes, including Admiral
Michiel de Ruyter,
Commodore
Jan van Galen
Johan "Jan" van Galen (1604 – 23 March 1653) was a Commodore of the Republic of the Seven United Provinces of the Netherlands. he participated in the First Anglo-Dutch War.
Biography
Johan van Galen was born in Essen. He fought in the ...
, and
Jan van Speyk
Jan Carel Josephus van Speyk (31 January 1802 – 5 February 1831) was a Dutch naval lieutenant commander with the United Netherlands Navy who became a hero in the Netherlands for his opposition to the Belgian Revolution.
Life
Early ...
. Despite being
Roman Catholic, the poet and playwright
Joost van den Vondel is buried in the church.
Gallery
File:Sundial on church.jpg, Sun dial on West side
File:Nkerk2.jpg, Original entrance (the former stained-glass window was bricked up when the organ was installed)
File:huisjes.jpg, Houses built up against the church
File:P1020907Nieuwe Kerk Amsterdam.JPG, Choir gate by Johannes Lutma
Janus, or Johannes Lutma the elder (Emden, ca. 1584 – Amsterdam, January 1669) was a well-known Dutch silversmith. Biography
He was a pupil of Paulus van Vianen who was known for his auricular style in silver, so-called for its smooth, ...
File:P1020914Preekstoel.JPG, Pulpit by Albert Jansz Vinckenbrinck
Albert Jansz Vinckenbrink (1604 in Spaarndam – 1665 in Amsterdam), was a Dutch Golden Age sculptor in Amsterdam.
Biography
According to the RKD he was a sculptor who learned from his father and became the father of the sculptors Jan, Hendrik, ...
File:P1020913Detail Preekstoel.JPG, Detail of pulpit sounding board (from above)
File:Amsterdam nieuwe kerk interieur.jpg, Organ
File:P1020910 copyTranseptorgel.jpg, Transept organ (Van Hagerbeer 1645/Flentrop 1989)
File:P1020915Nieuwe Kerk Amsterdam.JPG, Stained-glass window of William IV, Count of Holland awarding the coat of arms to Amsterdam in 1342
File:P1020916Nieuwe Kerk Amsterdam.JPG, Stained-glass window
File:Amsterdam - Een tuin van glas (2005) van Marc Mulders.jpg, ''A Garden of Glass
''A Garden of Glass'' refers to a stained glass window in the Nieuwe Kerk, Amsterdam, designed and installed for the silver jubilee of Queen Beatrix in 2005, by the artist Marc Mulders.
In 2004 the National Committee for the Silver Jubilee of Que ...
''
File:Michielderuytercoffin.jpg, Michiel de Ruyter coffin under the monument
File:DirkvdM eenlandeensamenleving 1.jpg, Panel presentation and discussion in front of Michiel de Ruyter memorial monument.
File:Praalgraf De Ruyter.JPG, Michiel de Ruyter memorial (detail) by Rombout Verhulst
Rombout Verhulst (15 January 1624 – buried 27 November 1698) was a Flemish sculptor and draughtsman who spent most of his career in the Dutch Republic. An independent assistant of the Flemish sculptor Artus Quellinus the Elder in the sculptu ...
File:Amsterdam wapenbord.JPG, Coats of arms with the titles of the Dutch head of state
References
External links
Nieuwe Kerk Amsterdam{{Authority control
Dam Square
Churches in Amsterdam
Former churches in the Netherlands
Rijksmonuments in Amsterdam