Jaap van 't Veen's photos with the keyword: Stefanuskerk

The Stefanuskerk (Church of St. Stephen) is a Gothic church, which was built at the beginning of the 15th century as a Catholic church. The church was dedicated to the martyr Stephen, just like the mother church in Beilen. After the transfer of the church to the Protestant community around 1600, the name was somewhat forgotten. Since 2007, the church has officially been called Stefanuskerk again. The tower of the Stefanuslerk was built earlier. The lower part of the tower is dating back to the 13th century. Later, in 1778, the upper part of the tower was built. The tower has three bells, one of an anonymus bellfounder from early 14th century. The village church of Westerbork has existed for over 800 years. In an old document from 1206, the "capella te Burcht" was already mentioned. It was probably a small wooden chapel, covered with straw. This historical fact was the reason for the Westerbork community to celebrate the 800th anniversary of the village in 2006. Around 1360 the wooden chapel was replaced by a stone church, which was then somewhat smaller than the current church.

The Stefanuskerk (St. Stephen's Church) is originally a catholic Romano-Gothic cruciform church, probably dating back to the end of the 13th century. The church belonged to the diocese of Münster (Germany). The church was originally dedicated to St. Stephen, but has been a reformed church since 1594. The current form of the NH church dates from 1586/1587. The crucifix was demolished, the building was lowered 5½ meters and a choir was added. During the World War II, the church suffered a lot of damage as a result of shootings. The church has been restored many times, the latest was in 2002. The tower stands separated from church. It was built in 1820/1822 after San Giorgio’s bell tower in Venice. The present tower replaces an old lower wooden one from 1663. The brick tower is built on 96 piles with a length between 5½ and 8½ meters. The height of the tower is more than 50 meters, nowadays serving as a lookout for visitors. Unlike almost all churches in the Netherlands it has a horse instead of a rooster on its spire. In the past the local fire brigade used the tower for drying the fire hoses.