The Co-cathedral Basilica of Saint Nicholas () is located in the Old Centre district of

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

, very close to Amsterdam's main railway station. Saint Nicholas is the patron saint of both the church and the city of Amsterdam. The basilica is the city's primary

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

church.

Background

The church is built on a previously urban site necessitating a northwest–southeast axis to be adopted, rather than the standard east–west axis. It lies between the street

Prins Hendrikkade Prins Hendrikkade (Dutch for "Prince Henry's Quay") is a major street in the centre of Amsterdam. It passes Amsterdam Central Station, intersects the Damrak at the mouth of the Amstel river, and forms the southern end of the IJtunnel across the I ...

and the canal Oudezijds Kolk. When built, the church was called St. Nicholas inside the Walls, i.e. inside the Amsterdam City wall, the oldest part of the Amsterdam defence works. The architect

Adrianus Bleijs Adrianus Cyriacus Bleijs (29 March 1842, Hoorn - 12 January 1912, Kerkdriel) also known as A.C. Bleijs or, incorrectly, as A.C. Bleys, was a Dutch architect and painter who is primarily known for designing several Catholic churches. Life Blei ...

(1842-1912) designed the church based on a combination of several revival styles: the most prominent being the

Neo-Baroque Neo-Baroque may refer to: * Neo-Baroque music * Neo-Baroque painting, a painting style used by Christo Coetzee and others *Baroque Revival architecture * Neo-Baroque film *the Organ reform movement The Organ Reform Movement or ''Orgelbewegung'' ...

and

neo-Renaissance Renaissance Revival architecture (sometimes referred to as "Neo-Renaissance") is a group of 19th-century Revivalism (architecture), architectural revival styles which were neither Greek Revival architecture, Greek Revival nor Gothic Revival ar ...

. Construction was completed in 1887. In December 2021, the basilica received a relic of St. Nicholas from

Egmond Abbey Egmond Abbey or St. Adalbert's Abbey (, ''Sint-Adelbertabdij'') is a Rule of St. Benedict, Benedictine monastery of the Congregation of the Annunciation, situated in Egmond-Binnen, in the municipality of Bergen, North Holland, Bergen, in the Neth ...

. Said to be a fragment of the saint's rib, the bone has been in the custody of the abbey since 1087.

Description

The main facade is flanked by two towers, with a

rose window Rose window is often used as a generic term applied to a circular window, but is especially used for those found in Gothic cathedrals and churches. The windows are divided into segments by stone mullions and tracery. The term ''rose window'' wa ...

in between. The centre of this window contains a bas-relief sculpture, depicting Christ and the four Evangelists, made in the Van den Bossche and Crevels workshop in 1886. A sculpture of Saint Nicholas by

Bart van Hove Bart van Hove (18 March 1850 – 10 February 1914) was a 19th-century Dutch sculptor. Biography Van Hove was born in The Hague. According to the RKD he was the grandson of the painter Bartholomeus Johannes van Hove for whom he is named, and ...

stands in a niche in the upper section of the gable top. The crossing of the main body of the church is articulated by a large octagonal tower with a baroque style dome and lantern, crowned by a cross. The basis of the floor plan is a classic three-aisled cross-basilica, with a

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-type ...

, two aisles and a single

transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform ("cross-shaped") cruciform plan, churches, in particular within the Romanesque architecture, Romanesque a ...

. The choir has a conventional location, at the end of the nave. At the south-east ends of each side aisle, two chapels are located: one devoted to

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a female given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religion * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also called the Blesse ...

and one to

Joseph Joseph is a common male name, derived from the Hebrew (). "Joseph" is used, along with " Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the modern-day Nordic count ...

. The basilica has a number of religious murals. Above the

high altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religion, religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, Church (building), churches, and other places of worship. They are use ...

is the

crown A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, parti ...

of Maximilian I, which is a symbol seen throughout Amsterdam. The central dome is highly ornate as viewed from below and contains four levels of stained glass, encircling the dome. The pulpit is located on the south end of the nave. Above the main entrance of the church, beneath the rose window, an 1889 Sauer Organ can be found. An International Organ Concert Series is held during the summer months. The Stichting Muziek in de Nicolaas (SMN - the Music Foundation of the Basilica of St. Nicholas) was established in 2000. Its purpose is to facilitate the use of the basilica for the presentation of choral and instrumental music."Basilica of St. Nicholas, Amsterdam", Choral Evensong
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Basilica status

In the 125th year of its existence, St Nicholas' Church was elevated to a "basilica minor". This formally happened on 8 December 2012. The occasion was marked during a celebration of solemn

Vespers Vespers /ˈvɛspərz/ () is a Christian liturgy, liturgy of evening prayer, one of the canonical hours in Catholic (both Latin liturgical rites, Latin and Eastern Catholic liturgy, Eastern Catholic liturgical rites), Eastern Orthodox, Oriental O ...

, and was attended by ecclesiastical and secular authorities, including Mgr. A. Dupuy, Apostolic Nuncio to the Netherlands, who officially declared the change of status to the congregation.

Co-cathedral

On February 1st, 2025, Pope Francis elevated the basilica to

Co-cathedral A co-cathedral is a cathedral church which shares the function of being a bishop's seat, or ''cathedra'', with another cathedral, often in another city (usually a former see, anchor city of the metropolitan area or the civil capital). Instances o ...

of the diocese Haarlem-Amsterdam. On March 8th, 2025, bishop Jan Hendriks solemny occupied the ceremonial seat during a pontifical Mas

The seat is known as the "seat with the griffions" and was designed in 1853 as the first official seat of the diocese after 270 years of protestant oppression and discrimination against catholics ended.

References

External links

*
Basiliek van de H. Nicolaas
official website *
Parroquia San Nicolas

choral music and organ concerts {{DEFAULTSORT:Amsterdam 19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the Netherlands

Nicholas Nicholas is a male name, the Anglophone version of an ancient Greek name in use since antiquity, and cognate with the modern Greek , . It originally derived from a combination of two Ancient Greek, Greek words meaning 'victory' and 'people'. In ...

N Churches completed in 1887 Rijksmonuments in Amsterdam Church buildings with domes Baroque Revival architecture in The Netherlands Roman Catholic cathedrals in the Netherlands