The Dutch Church, Austin Friars ( nl, Nederlandse Kerk Londen), is a

reformed church Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Cal ...

in the Broad Street Ward, in the

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London f ...

. Located on the site of the 13th-century Augustinian friary, the original building granted to Protestant refugees for their church services in 1550 was destroyed during the

London Blitz The Blitz was a German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom in 1940 and 1941, during the Second World War. The term was first used by the British press and originated from the term , the German word meaning 'lightning war'. The Germa ...

. The present church was built between 1950 and 1954 and is a familiar landmark in the Broad Street Ward. With the founding of the church dating to 1550, it is the oldest

Dutch-language Dutch ( ) is a West Germanic language spoken by about 25 million people as a first language and 5 million as a second language. It is the third most widely spoken Germanic language, after its close relatives German and English. ''Afrikaans'' ...

Protestant church in the world, and as such is known in The Netherlands as the mother church of all Dutch reformed churches.

History

Edward VI Granting Permission to John a Lasco

The original church was a monastic

priory A priory is a monastery of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. Priories may be houses of mendicant friars or nuns (such as the Dominicans, Augustinians, Franciscans, and Carmelites), or monasteries of ...

known as the

Austin Friars, London Austin Friars, London was an Augustinian friary in the City of London from its foundation, probably in the 1260s, until its dissolution in November 1538. It covered an area of about a short distance to the north-east of the modern Bank of Engl ...

, a contraction of " Augustinian Friars", founded ''circa'' 1253 by

Humphrey de Bohun, 2nd Earl of Hereford {{Infobox noble , name = Humphrey de Bohun , title = Earl of Hereford Earl of Essex , image =Arms of the House of de Bohun.svg , caption =Arms of de Bohun: ''Azure, a bend argent cotised or betw ...

(d. 1275). The pretender

Perkin Warbeck Perkin Warbeck ( 1474 – 23 November 1499) was a pretender to the English throne claiming to be Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York, who was the second son of Edward IV and one of the so-called " Princes in the Tower". Richard, were he alive ...

, executed on 23 November 1499 for claiming to be Richard of Shrewsbury, the younger of the Princes in the Tower, is buried in the church. The priory was dissolved in November 1538. The City of London attempted to buy the church of the friary from the Crown in 1539 and again in 1546 but was rebuffed. In 1550, London's community of "Germans and other strangers" was granted the use of the friary church's

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-typ ...

;Holder, Nick (2017).
The Friaries of Medieval London: From Foundation to Dissolution
'' (Woodbridge: Boydell)'','' pp. 121, 126, 130; the rest of the church was used as a storehouse, with the monuments sold for £100 and the lead stripped from the roof. The choir, tower and transepts were demolished in 1600. The nave became the first official nonconformist chapel in England under its Polish-born superintendent John a Lasco (known in Poland as Jan Łaski) who had founded a preaching house for a group of Protestant refugees mainly from the Low Countries. The mostly Dutch and French speaking "strangers" were granted a

royal charter A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, b ...

on 24 July 1550 that allowed them to establish a

Stranger Church Strangers' church was a term used by English-speaking people for independent Protestant churches established in foreign lands or by foreigners in England during the Reformation. (The spelling stranger church is also found in texts of the period ...

and this was incorporated by

letters patent Letters patent ( la, litterae patentes) ( always in the plural) are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch, president or other head of state, generally granting an office, right, monopoly, tit ...

from

King Edward VI Edward VI (12 October 1537 – 6 July 1553) was King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death in 1553. He was crowned on 20 February 1547 at the age of nine. Edward was the son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour and the first E ...

. Upon incorporation, the church was named the "Temple of the Lord Jesus" and had four pastors: two for Dutch and two for the

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

- Walloon who by the 1580s began using St Anthony's Chapel in

Threadneedle Street Threadneedle Street is a street in the City of London, England, between Bishopsgate at its northeast end and Bank junction in the southwest. It is one of nine streets that converge at Bank. It lies in the ward of Cornhill. History The stree ...

. By 1570, the Dutch community was the largest group of expatriates in London, numbering 5,000 out of the 100,000 total population of the time. About half of the Dutch in London were Protestants who fled the Flemish Low Countries due to religious persecution. Others were skilled craftsman, including brewers, tile makers, weavers, artists, printers and engravers, who came to England for economic opportunities. Engraver

Martin Droeshout Martin Droeshout (; April 1601 – c.1650) was an English engraver of Flemish descent, who is best known as illustrator of the title portrait for William Shakespeare's collected works, the First Folio of 1623, edited by John Heminges an ...

, famous for his 1623 portrait of William Shakespeare, was among the Flemish Protestant emigrants who arrived in London. A century later, the arrival of William of Orange brought a second wave of Dutch emigrants to London. This second group included noblemen, bankers, courtiers, merchants, architects and artists.

20th century

The Dutch Church, Austin Friars, London EC2 - East end - geograph

The Dutch Church, Austin Friars, London EC2N 2HA - Foundation stone - geograph

In the night of 15–16 October 1940, just a decade before the Dutch Church celebrated its 400th anniversary, the medieval building was completely destroyed by German bombs. The church's collection of rare books including Dutch Bibles, atlases and encyclopedias had been moved out of London for safe-keeping one day before the bombing raid that destroyed the building. The church's manuscript collection and original charter are kept in the

London Metropolitan Archives The London Metropolitan Archives (LMA) is the principal local government archive repository for the Greater London area, including the City of London: it is the largest county record office in the United Kingdom. It was established under its pr ...

. The church's library collection is currently being digitalised and a launch date for the online catalogue of September 2015 was announced. Nevertheless, by April 2021, the online catalogue remains unpublished. The foundation stone of the new church was laid on 23 July 1950 by the 10-year-old

Princess Irene of the Netherlands Princess Irene of the Netherlands (Irene Emma Elisabeth; born 5 August 1939) is the second child of Queen Juliana of the Netherlands and Prince Bernhard. In 1964, she converted to Catholicism and married the then- Prince Carlos Hugo of Bourbon- ...

. The new church, built to the design of Arthur Bailey, was completed in 1954. The new building is a concrete box frame, externally clad in

Portland stone Portland stone is a limestone from the Tithonian stage of the Jurassic period quarried on the Isle of Portland, Dorset. The quarries are cut in beds of white-grey limestone separated by chert beds. It has been used extensively as a building ...

. It features 1950s stained glass by the Dutch painter

Max Nauta Marten Ykes "Max" Nauta (2 April 1896 – 18 December 1957) was a Dutch painter, especially noted for his portraits, and stained glass artist. Life Nauta was born in Deventer, son of a baker, Yke Nauta (1865-1928), and his wife Mintje (n ...

Hugh Ray Easton Hugh Ray Easton (26 November 1906 – 15 August 1965) was an English stained-glass artist. His workshop was in Cambridge. Biography Hugh Easton was born in London, son of Frank (a doctor) and Alice ( Howland). He studied in France and worked fo ...

and William Wilson. The church possesses detailed archives, and is a popular tourist attraction. The church was designated a Grade-II

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern I ...

on 25 September 1998. In 2000, the church celebrated its 450th anniversary; Prof. Keetie E Sluyterman at the

University of Utrecht Utrecht University (UU; nl, Universiteit Utrecht, formerly ''Rijksuniversiteit Utrecht'') is a public research university in Utrecht, Netherlands. Established , it is one of the oldest universities in the Netherlands. In 2018, it had an enrollme ...

published a book about the church and its history, ''De Kerk in de City''.

21st century

The church remains active today, with weekly Dutch-language church services, confirmation classes, and meetings for various groups. The church also does outreach to the Dutch community in London, including ministering to the elderly. The church is home to two other UK registered charities
The Netherlands Benevolent Society
(NBS) an
The Dutch Centre
On 24 April 2015,

Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands Beatrix (Beatrix Wilhelmina Armgard, ; born 31 January 1938) is a member of the Dutch royal house who reigned as List of monarchs of the Netherlands, Queen of the Netherlands from 1980 until her abdication in 2013. Beatrix is the eldest daug ...

was honorary guest in the Dutch Church for a jubilee celebration to mark 150 years since the founding of the NBS. On the same day the Dutch Centre was officially opened by Laetitia van den Assum, Ambassador of the Netherlands to the United Kingdom, Liesbeth Knook, Chairman of the Church Council and Paul Beiboer, General Manager of London branch of Rabobank. In April 2014, the minister of the church, Rev. Joost Röselaers, confirmed that the Dutch Church was able to perform weddings for same-sex couples.

Members of the Dutch Stranger Church

* Cornelis Bol, Flemish painter *

Lucas de Heere Lucas de Heere (1534 – 29 August 1584) was a Flemish painter, poet and writer. His costume books and portraits are a valuable resource in depicting 16th-century clothing. Biography Lucas de Heere, a Protestant, was born in Ghent, the ...

, Flemish painter, elder of the church *

Cornelis Janssens van Ceulen Cornelius Johnson or Cornelis Janssens van Ceulen (; also Cornelius Jonson van Ceulen, Cornelis Jansz. van Ceulen and many other variants) (bapt. 14 October 1593 – bur. 5 August 1661) was an English painter of portraits of Dutch or Flemish ...

, painter * John a Lasco, first superintendent of the church *

Steven Mierdman Steven Mierdman (c.1510–1559) was among the most important Dutch printers of Reformation books. Mierdman, also known as Stephen Mierdman, Steven Mierdmans, Stephen Myerdmann, and Steven Mierman, was born in Hooge Mierde. He first printed i ...

, printer (pseudonym Niclaes van Oldenborch), joined the church in 1550 *

George van Parris George van Parris (died 1551) was a Dutch Arian, who was burnt at the stake in London by his fellow Dutchmen for denying that Jesus Christ was God.Andrew Pettegree, 'Parris, George van (d. 1551)', first published 2004, 615 words George van Parris ...

, surgeon, burned in London for heresy on 25 April 1551 *

Jan Utenhove Jan Utenhove (Ghent 1516 – London January 6, 1566) was a writer from the Low Countries best known for his translations into the Dutch language of the Psalms and the New Testament. Life Utenhove was born into a Flemish patrician family in Ghe ...

, writer, elder of the church * Justus Velsius, dissident, joined the church in 1563

Notes

External links

Dutch Church, Austin Friars
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dutch Church, Aldgate Friars 1550 establishments in England 1940 disestablishments in England 1954 establishments in England Churches in the City of London Grade II listed churches in London Churches bombed by the Luftwaffe in London Dutch diaspora in the United Kingdom Rebuilt churches in the United Kingdom

Austin Friars Austin Friars is a coeducational independent day school located in Carlisle, England. The Senior School provides secondary education for 350 boys and girls aged 11–18. There are 150 children aged 4–11 in the Junior School and the Nursery ha ...