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Churches of the Netherlands

Gallery: Churches of Gelderland

by Peter Kessler, 27 December 2009

Nijmegen Part 3: Churches of Altrade

St Mary's Nativity Church

Holy Mary's Nativity Church (Heilig Maria Geboorte in Dutch) is on Berg en Dalseweg, at the junction with Dominicanenstraat. The neo-Gothic Catholic basilica belongs to the second generation of neo-Gothic churches in Nijmegen. It was designed by father and son architectural team, Johannes Hermandus Julius Kaijser (1842-1917) and Jules Kaijser, and was built between 1900-1924 with a brown brick facade that is articulated by horizontal layers of yellow brick.

St Mary's Nativity Church

The church had a three-aisled nave at the time of the senior Kaijser's death, but his son added the transepts, a low five-sided choir, and the front, where the entrance hall is flanked on both sides by a tower with stairs that is crowned with an octagonal spire needle. The large church window above the portal is flanked by stone statues of the saints Albertus the Great (right) and Dominic (left). Inside, the church retains original elements such as flooring tiles and oak pews.

Evangelical Lutheran Church

The Evangelical Lutheran Church (Evangelisch Lutherse Gemeente) is on the north-eastern corner of the junction of Prins Hendrikstraat and Jacob Canisstraat. It was originally built in 1898, based on a design by Derk Semmelink (1855-1899). It was originally used by an evangelical society, but the current Lutheran congregation moved into the premises in 1924 from a previous church building that stood on Grotestraat in the very heart of the oldest part of the city.

Evangelical Lutheran Church

The tower was added to the neo-Gothic building in 1929, and a photo exists to show it before that, looking like nothing more than a slightly grand town house. With its completion, the Lutherans were able to install the bells from their previous church, which was demolished in 1959. The present church organ is the oldest of its kind in Nijmegen, and was made by Matthijs van Deventer in 1756. The church also houses a pulpit from 1671. Both are from the earlier Lutheran church.

Holy Anthony of Padua Church

Holy Anthony of Padua Church (Heilig Antonius van Padua) is sometimes listed as the Dutch Reformed Church Byzantine Chapel (Nederlands Gereformeerde Kerk Byzantijnse Kapel), perhaps to differentiate it from the similarly named Holy Anthony of Padua and St Anna, which is also in Nijmegen. This church is at Groesbeekseweg 92, just a short way south-west of the Lutheran church, opposite the junction with Fort Kijk in de Potstraat.

Holy Anthony of Padua Church

The church was designed by Jos Margry, the son of A A J Margry, who was one of three architect brothers in the late nineteenth century. Jos took over the firm upon his father's death in 1911. The building was constructed between 1916-1917, despite the deprivations caused by the First World War, although the planned tower was abandoned, perhaps for that very reason. The upper part of the facade above the entrance arch still makes a fairly temporary impression.

 

 

     
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