Explore Religious Heritage Across Europe

The church of den Berndijk (on the Erasstraat) was not built in the years 1894-1895 as a parish church, but as an auxiliary church of the parish of Kaatsheuvel. That parish then had over 3300 communicants and was served by a pastor with three chaplains. The church dedicated to the beheading of St. John the Baptist in the Hoofdstraat was too small, but not worn out. Pastor JC de Bont wanted to build a new church 'against the advancing Protestant faith'. Five Protestant churches surrounded his extensive parish, while another one was under construction. He chose the Martyrs of Gorcum as the title of the church, because they had been persistent in their faith. The auxiliary church would remain under his rule, but would be served by one of his chaplains.

Nice modern church with tower, founded at the time as the second Roman Catholic Church in the western extension of Gorinchem, with the name St. Martinus Church.

In 1902, a temporary church was built on the Linnaeusparkweg in the then independent municipality of Watergraafsmeer, dedicated to the holy Martyrs of Gorcum. The architect was Paul J. de Jongh.

This was the first Roman Catholic church in De Lier in the 19th century. Demolished and replaced by new construction in two stages: 1929 (choir); 1955 (nave). Despite the fact that in 1872 there were only 7 or 8 Catholic families living in De Lier, the brothers Cornelis, Gerardus and Leonardus van Rijn wanted to establish their own church for these people. With the pastor of Naaldwijk, Cornelis van Rijn went to the bishop of Haarlem to ask permission to build a branch church in De Lier. The Van Rijn brothers would finance the construction costs and by depositing fl. 7,000 in a fund for the maintenance of a chaplain, permission was inevitable. The Van Rijn family took action. On the banks of the Leewater they bought a piece of land from Jac. vd Berg. They made it ready for construction themselves. On the other side of the water they buy two houses on the Hoofdstraat. In order to have a good connection with this Hoofdstraat, the brothers demolish these houses and build a road there. In the extension of this road, they have a bridge built to the church grounds - again at their own expense. Finally the church can be built. For twenty-five thousand guilders contractor-architect Christianus_Petrus_Wilhelmus_Dessing builds the church based on a design by Theo_Asseler . Early in the morning (half past five) in 1872, a few days before Christmas, the church is blessed. It is dedicated to the Martyr of Gorcum, who was canonized in 1867: Leonardus. Hence the name 'Leonardus Tempel'. The bell in the tower was donated by L. van Leeuwen. The steadily growing Catholic community feels the need for its own pastor, which allows it to become an independent parish. It was not until 1929, when there were 65 families (355 souls), that the new bishop of Haarlem gave permission for this. This new parish will be named "HH Martyrs of Gorcum". A rectory must now be built at the church, but the church is also in need of a major restoration. On the north-east side it has sunk 50 to 60 cm and the roof is completely rotten. Furthermore, the number of parishioners is growing strongly, so there is a need for expansion. A set up building committee concludes that new construction is the best solution in this situation.

Neoclassical church without tower. Replaced the clandestine church on the same site, in the centre of Brielle.

Roman Catholic Church dedicated to St. Martin of Tours. Design from 1932 in traditionalist style by architect H. Valk from 's-Hertogenbosch with, among other things, regional style characteristics of the Kempen Gothic style. The church, which has a floor plan of approximately 27 meters square, is not oriented. The altar faces north. On the north-east side of the church, between the church and the rectory, lies the sacristy. In the original design, the location of the sacristy was situated on the north-west side of the church. During the execution, a different location was chosen, which meant that the old giant sequoia in the rectory garden was spared.

The HH Michaël en Clemenskerk originally belonged to the Capuchin Order. Around 1916, the Capuchins made the first plans to found a monastery in Rotterdam. Initially, they focused on the Katendrecht district. In 1918, they even bought a piece of land (located between Maashaven NZ and Tolhuislaan). However, this turned out to be unfavourably located and in 1922 it was bought back by the municipality. Instead of building a new monastery, they bought a building on Rechthuislaan where a small community settled from December 1921 onwards. The ground floor served as a church. The whole was consecrated on 29 December 1921.

Built in 1882 to a design by architect MC van Wijngaarden in neo-Romanesque style. The patron saints of the parish are Saint Michael and John the Baptist. The baroque altar and other church materials date from the seventeenth century, when services were held in a clandestine church on the Markt.

The neo-Gothic church of Saints Monulphus en Gondulphus was built according to a design by architects Frits Peutz (known for his modernist work) and Willem Sprenger. The saints Gondulphus and Monulphus, to whom the church is dedicated, were two bishops of Maastricht in the 6th century. The cemetery contains a monumental mortuary, where the deceased used to be laid out.

Marlstone church. In 1139, the old church of Berg was first mentioned as the property of the chapter of Saint Servatius in Maastricht. In 1770, the nave was built as a hall church against the old marlstone tower. In 1826, the choir was built to a design by Mathias Soiron. A sacristy was also built. In 1848, the western nave bay and the tower were built. The choir was also raised and provided with a new apse. Furthermore, the sacristy was expanded to the east. The old church was situated near the Oude Kerkstraat and in 1955, when the building was demolished, it consisted of a single-nave nave, a largely built-in church tower with an octagonal spire and a slimmer choir. In 1933, a new church building was built elsewhere in the village to a design by Frits Peutz and Willem Sprenger, the current Monulphus and Gondulphus Church.