Our World Tuesday, ABC Wednesday, N for Naarden, Nederland
The Great Church (Grote Kerk). The church is situated on the Markstraat and dates from the 15th century. Prior to the Protestant Reformation it was named for St Vitus.
It is one of the oldest surviving churches in The Netherlands, having
had the good fortune to survive the Spanish invasion of 1572 and the
subsequent burning of the town. The church has numerous wooden vaults
that are painted with scenes from the Old and New Testaments.
These were hidden for many years and were only rediscovered in a recent
restoration. The church is the venue for a number of cultural
activities such as organ music nights and the bi-annual Naarden Photo
festival.
Great Church Naarden
The city of Naarden is famous for its cathedral, where the annual performance of the St Matthew Passion by J.S. Bach takes place. This musical happening is so popular that in order to get to experience this, one has to buy a ticket years in advance. Naarden and Bach are so closely connected that the whole city is dedicated to this great composer and his musical sons. This year May I was so fortunate to attend the Magnificat by J.S.Bach.My daughter treated me to this concert. It was marvellous. Naarden is also the domicily of the Dutch Bach Society and they organise many more concerts every year. My daughter and her partner are members of this society.
Naarden itself is a very old and interesting place from a historical point of view.
The history of the City of Naarden dates back to about 936 - 968.
It was then not situated on the same spot as it is now.
Due to the rising water level the city was rebuilt on a safer place.
In the Eighty Years'War Naarden had chosen the side of the Protestant Prince of Orange, which caused a massacre on the first of December in 1572. The Spanish forces killed 700 inhabitants ,men, women and children, in front of the townhall, which is still in use and is called now The Spanish House.
Townhall Naarden
The massacre by the Spaniards in 1572
To punish the population even more the town walls were demolished. New fortifications were built, consisting of ramparts, moats and townwalls. They still exist.
With
thanks to Denise Nesbitt, who created ABC, and Roger, who took over
from her. For more interesting ABC posts click on the logo in the
sidebar. This week we are looking for words beginning with N
Welcome to Our World Tuesday! This meme
continues in memory of the work of Klaus Peter, whose "that's My World"
brought people together from around the world every Monday to share the
wonders therein--big and small.Please click on our logo for "Our
World Tuesday" in the sidebar. Thank you Team of O. W. T.!
The old world is just that, lots of history that's been recorded and documented. The history here on the BC coast is oral tradition, but archeologists are helping add to the traditional myths to fill in some gaps. - Margy
OOOH those concerts along with the history and setting seem just marvelous! Lucky you (both for having such an outstanding daughter and for being able to take advantage of all the beauty around you.
What a beautiful church! A pity one has to wait so long to hear the Mattheus Passion. At the Lyceum my friend was all too happy she found someone else who loved classical music (in the time of the Beattles, lol), so we went to all of concerts together. That's when I came in a Catholic church for the first time to hear the Wiener Sanger Knaben (kept it a secret from my parents of course, where that concert was held). I favor the Johannes passion (in general), because it seems a little "lighter."
I enjoyed reading about the wonderful City of Naarden. The Grote Kerk is truly magnificent worthy of many J S Bach recitals. So sad that the wicked Spanish troops massacred all those innocent people. The Town Hall is an interesting building too. Thank you for such an informative and interesting piece. have a good weekend, best wishes, Di xx
A fascinating place and that aerial photo is beautiful, never heard of a star fort before. Thankfully the channel and bad weather kept the Spanish from landing our shores. Naarden is now on my 'places to visit' list.
Vous nous montrez de très jolies photos, surtout la cathédrale. Ecouter un concert de Bach dans cette cathédrale doit être magnifique – vous avez de la chance d’y être allée.
Goodness! The more things change, the more they stay the same. At least, it feels like that in the face of some world events right now. Such beautiful photos but a devastating history.
24 comments:
A fascinating post, Wil, and such wonderful history!! Thank you so much for sharing it!! Hope you have had a lovely weekend!!
Those ancient buildings and fortifications make one DREAM, Wil!
ALOHA from Honolulu
ComfortSpiral
=^..^= . <3
I appreciate the religious history in particular!
What a lovely church and wonderful history too.
Great shots and very informative post for OWT ~ Beautiful place!
artmusedog and carol (A Creative Harbor) ~ Happy Week to you!
The Great Church (Grote Kerk). I like the arrows jutting out in the water.
Gorgeous scenes, the church and city are just beautiful. Thanks for sharing your post.. Have a happy week!
Grand interiors!
I love the facade too.
Beautiful place with grand historic church. Thanks for sharing.
A nice town, full of history !
The old world is just that, lots of history that's been recorded and documented. The history here on the BC coast is oral tradition, but archeologists are helping add to the traditional myths to fill in some gaps. - Margy
OOOH those concerts along with the history and setting seem just marvelous! Lucky you (both for having such an outstanding daughter and for being able to take advantage of all the beauty around you.
What a beautiful church! A pity one has to wait so long to hear the Mattheus Passion. At the Lyceum my friend was all too happy she found someone else who loved classical music (in the time of the Beattles, lol), so we went to all of concerts together. That's when I came in a Catholic church for the first time to hear the Wiener Sanger Knaben (kept it a secret from my parents of course, where that concert was held). I favor the Johannes passion (in general), because it seems a little "lighter."
Wow! What a beautiful city and Cathedral. I bet listening to St Matthew Passion within those walls is amazing...
Schitterende serie weer Will!
Fijne abc-woensdag.
Your posts are always so informative and educational. One of the reason I enjoy blogging, the info shared we may not find via other means.
I enjoyed reading about the wonderful City of Naarden.
The Grote Kerk is truly magnificent worthy of many J S Bach recitals.
So sad that the wicked Spanish troops massacred all those innocent people.
The Town Hall is an interesting building too.
Thank you for such an informative and interesting piece.
have a good weekend,
best wishes,
Di xx
Wow, thanks for sharing these wonderful views♪
Hi Mlkazmierczak! Thank you for your visit and comment, I wanted to go to your blog but this is what I saw:
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A fascinating place and that aerial photo is beautiful, never heard of a star fort before. Thankfully the channel and bad weather kept the Spanish from landing our shores. Naarden is now on my 'places to visit' list.
Vous nous montrez de très jolies photos, surtout la cathédrale. Ecouter un concert de Bach dans cette cathédrale doit être magnifique – vous avez de la chance d’y être allée.
Goodness! The more things change, the more they stay the same. At least, it feels like that in the face of some world events right now. Such beautiful photos but a devastating history.
Interesting history coupled with lovely shots.
Wil, wonderful photos combined with history makes it a joy to read. I especially liked to hear about your visit to hear the Bach recitals.
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