Pieterskerk (St Peter's Church), Leiden
The Pieterskerk (St. Peter's Church) in Leiden is a Gothic church built between 1390 and 1565 and now deconsecrated to serve various non-religious functions.
Several Leiden notables are buried in Pieterskerk, including the Pilgrim pastor John Robinson, the theologian Jacobus Arminius and the painter Jan Steen. The memorial to John Robinson is in the octagonal baptistry in the far corner opposite the transept entrance.
The tall Pieterskerk tower at the west front of the church collapsed in 1512, but the bell was unbroken and was hung in a stubby free-standing tower at the corner of the church yard, giving the name Bell Alley or Kloksteeg to the street.
The Pieterskerkhof (Churchyard) also contains several sites of interest. Jacobus Arminius lived in a house facing the church, and the white house on the corner of the Kloksteeg was where the family of Pilgrim Thomas Rogers lived briefly while he went to America in 1620.
The house of Thomas Brewer, who provided financial support for William Brewster's printing activities, is the to the right of the almshouse on the opposite side of the Kloksteeg. The minister of the English Reformed Church, Hugh Goodyear, lived here for a while.
Quick Facts
| Names: | Pieterskerk; St. Peter's Church |
| Type of site: | Christian church (Catholic then Reformed) |
| Status: | Deconsecrated |
| Dates: | 1390-1565 |
| Architecture: | Gothic |
| Address: | Kloksteeg 16 2311 SL Leiden |
| Phone: | +31 (0) 71 512 43 19 |
| Website: | www.pieterskerk.com |
| E-mail: | post@pieterskerk.com |
| Hours: | Currently closed for renovations (2007) |
| Cost: | Free |
Sources
- Personal visit (November 2006; exterior only)
- Pieterskerk - Leiden - official website
