The Oude Kerk (Old Church) is the oldest surviving building in the Dutch capital, Amsterdam. It is located in Amsterdam's red-light district (De Wallen). The church was dedicated to the patronage of Saint Nicholas in 1306. In addition to church services, exhibitions and concerts are held in the church.
In the 13th century, a small wooden chapel with a cemetery stood on the site of the Oude Kerk. The mother church was the church of Ouderkerk, but the church in Amsterdam grew rapidly and became an independent parish church dedicated to Saint Nicholas in 1334. At the beginning of the 15th century, the Nieuwe Kerk (New Church), located on the city's main square, Dam Square, was split off from this parish, from which the respective names derive.
The original wooden structure of the church was replaced by a stone hall building in the second half of the 13th century. After 1300, a three-aisled hall church was built, presumably the first hall church in the Netherlands. Around 1330, the church received a new choir, and between 1330 and 1350, wider side aisles were added. Later, the church was enlarged to the east, and a five-sided ambulatory was built. Between 1380 and 1412, St. George's Chapel was added to the north, and between 1450 and 1460, St. Sebastian's Chapel was added to the south. In the 16th century, the nave was raised and the tower enlarged.
In the Middle Ages, the church was equipped, at times only partially, with stained-glass windows that illuminated the church in various colors. The three stained-glass windows on the left in the women's choir are the only windows from the pre-Reformation period. The two eastern windows have been restored. The left-hand window depicts Mary on her deathbed with the apostles standing around her. In 1566, the medieval furnishings fell victim to the iconoclasm of the Reformation. After 1578, it was redesigned for Protestant worship. From 1584 to 1611, the church also served as a stock exchange.
In 1951, the church had to be closed due to danger of collapse and underwent 24 years of restoration. Another renovation took place from 1994 to 1998.
(Source: Wikipedia)