The Nieuwe Kerk (, ''New Church'') is a 15th-century

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * C ...

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

located on Dam Square, next to the Royal Palace. Formerly a

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 ...

parish, it now belongs to the Protestant Church in the Netherlands.

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 Investiture (from the Latin preposition ''in'' and verb ''vestire'', "dress" from ''vestis'' "robe") is a formal installation or ceremony that a person undergoes, often related to membership in Christian religious institutes as well as Christian k ...

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 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 style. In 1578 the building became a

Dutch Reformed 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 ...

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 Michiel Adriaenszoon de Ruyter (; 24 March 1607 – 29 April 1676) was a Dutch admiral. Widely celebrated and regarded as one of the most skilled admirals in history, De Ruyter is arguably most famous for his achievements with the Dutch N ...

, Commodore Jan van Galen, 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 Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

, the poet and playwright

Joost van den Vondel Joost van den Vondel (; 17 November 1587 – 5 February 1679) was a Dutch poet, writer and playwright. He is considered the most prominent Dutch poet and playwright of the 17th century. His plays are the ones from that period that are still mos ...

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 File:P1020914Preekstoel.JPG, Pulpit by Albert Jansz Vinckenbrinck 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'' File:Michielderuytercoffin.jpg,

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 sculpt ...

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