Nieuwe Kerk Katwijk

The Andreaskerk (remnant of the medieval parish church dedicated to Andreas) was becoming too small, so a new church had to be built larger than the Andreaskerk. Plans to build a new church were considered as early as 1850. A search for a suitable site for the church began in 1883. The churchwarden issued a design competition. A total of 53 designs were submitted. They chose the design by H.J. Jesse. Construction began in 1885. The foundation stone was laid by Baroness Van Wassenaer van Catwijck. Construction of the church took two years. In 1887, the Nieuwe Kerk was inaugurated. It is a national monument. The tower is one of the highest structures in Katwijk.Architect Jesse designed a wide cruciform church with 1500 seats. Later the capacity was expanded to 2,000 seats, but numbers of 2,200 seats have also fallen[1]. The building consists of two wide, short naves and a long transept. The church has almost no supports; for example, there are no pillars in the church. The tower is about 51 metres high from the cock.