St. John’s Cathedral, its history and architectural style

I hope you enjoyed the inside of the church. Here on the south side I’m going to tell you something about its history and architectural styles. Listen to this information while standing still and enjoying the exterior of the church.

In 1185, Duke Hendrik of Brabant founded a new city called ‘s-Hertogenbosch. He wanted to strengthen his influence in this river area and thought that a city full of trade privileges should have a church. The construction of this church started around 1220. It was a simple brick church dedicated to St. John the Evangelist. Of this church, which was built in the Romanesque style, only the lower part of the western church tower can now be seen. Over the other parts of this original church, the Gothic church, as you see it now, was built in several phases.

The last parts of that original church were demolished in 1505, but by then the new Gothic church had already been considerably expanded. The construction of St. John’s Church ended prematurely with the completion of the wooden crossing tower, between 1521 and 1529. After a devastating fire in 1584, the crossing tower was rebuilt around 1600 in the shape of the dome, as you can still see today.

From 1629 on, the church was not properly maintained, because the Protestant congregation, which then used the church, did not have enough financial resources for this. The St. John’s is completely unique in Dutch architecture in terms of construction and has been under constant restoration since 1858. With its double flying buttresses with the 96 flying buttress figures and the reliefs above the windows, the exterior provides a striking picture of the decorative instinct of late Gothic.

The church board is also trying to keep up with the times. The angel with the mobile phone is a good example of this. Can you see her in her jeans with a laptop bag? She is positioned as the last angel statue in the corner of the nave and the transept. You can also call her if you like.

Now walk calmly further along the fence of the church.