Zuiderkerk: a church like no other

Zuiderkerk is one of Amsterdam's jewels. This little church is a fairly recent construction.

Today, it has been converted into a cultural center.

Let's discover the history of this monument together.

Zuiderkerk: article summary

Zuiderkerk: one of the Netherlands' newest churches

When Calvinism swept the Netherlands in the early years of the Reformation, Amsterdam underwent a large-scale religious conversion.

The Catholic faith, overthrown by the new Dutch Reformed Church, allowed the Netherlands to break away from papal control. This schism had a profound effect on Amsterdam and led to the creation of several important religious buildings, including De Zuiderkerk.

A constant struggle between Calvinists and Catholics

To ensure that Catholicism remained politically weakened, the Dutch government banned its practice and confiscated church lands.

The authorities of the time seized most Catholic cathedrals and monasteries and converted them into Protestant buildings. The city then began to strip away the Catholic iconography and renovate to modest Calvinist standards.

In Amsterdam, De Oude Kerk and De Begijnhof were completely dismissed and eventually presented to the town's Protestant congregation.

The first church built after the Reformation

Although these buildings provided a suitable sanctuary, they still contained visible traces of Catholicism.

Realizing this, the Amsterdam municipality decided to build several new churches specifically for this purpose. designed around Protestant services.

The first building to go up was de Zuiderkerk, a huge church in Nieuwmarkt, completed in 1603.

Zuiderkerk: a jewel of Gothic architecture

The church was designed by Hendrick de Keyser as a tribute to Southern Gothic architecture.

This stylistic choice was combined with motifs typically associated with the Dutch Renaissance, resulting in a monumental building that has effectively captured the distinctive aesthetics of both movements.

In 1614, a gigantic spire was added to De Zuiderkerk and forty years later, a large carillon of bells was installed inside its tower.

A church at the heart of popular culture

De Zuiderkerk appears in many famous works of art and has long been associated with Rembrandt.

The artist built his house on a street parallel to the church, and was a regular visitor to the Zuiderkerk. Three of his children are actually buried in the church crypt, alongside several other famous figures from Dutch history.

On a visit to Amsterdam in 1874, Claude Monet decided to immortalize the church and the created an elaborate watercolor of the canal leading to the bell tower.

A building always in the spotlight

Today, the church is open to the public and acts as a cultural center, welcoming events, concerts and exhibitions.

What are the opening hours?

You can visit the Zuiderkerk church:

• Monday to Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Saturday noon to 4 p.m.s

How do I get there?

Getting to the Zuiderkerk church is easy. You can borrow :

• Visit metro via lines 51, 53 and 54 and exit at Nieuwmarkt station
• visit bus 14, 314 and 316

As the church is just a few steps from the Rembrandt house museumAlternatively, you can walk to the site in just a few minutes.

You can also reach the church on foot from the red-light districtthe béguinage or the Amsterdam Central Station.

The Zuiderkerk church is a must-see in Amsterdam. On site, you'll discover an incredible new building that has helped turn the page on a new era in Amsterdam.

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