Maartenskerk
Construction & naming
The construction of this late-Gothic church started in the fourteenth century. The forty-two metre high tower (built between 1310-1350) and the chancels (first half of the fifteenth century) are the oldest parts of the church. The Maartenskerk (St. Martin’s Church) was completed around 1470.
The Maartenskerk is dedicated to Saint Martin (316-397AD), Bishop of Tours. Saint Martin of Tours was known for his simple lifestyle and care for the poor. Saint Martin is the patron saint and namesake of the village of Sint-Maartensdijk.
Detail in the ridge of the main chancel, referring to the history of Saint Martin of Tours.
Historic buildings and monuments
On the north side of the main chancel is a burial chapel, built in 1420 by Frank van Borssele, lord of Sint-Maartensdijk, for his parents Floris van Borssele and Oede van Bergen. Their tomb was badly damaged in the aftermath of the French Revolution. Besides this tomb, there are more than 50 gravestones in the church, including for canons (lay priests), mayors and stewards of the castle of Sint-Maartensdijk. There is, for example, a funerary monument for Cornelis Liens, who managed the castle and the associated land on behalf of the Princes of Orange. The north chancel was probably also the place where the marriage between Frank van Borssele and Jacoba van Beieren, Countess of Holland and Zeeland, was solemnized.
- Sculpted head in the ridge of one side aisle. The 14 heads in total probably depict persons from the royal household.
- The remains of the tomb of Floris van Borselle and Oede van Bergen from 1425.
The Reformation and thereafter
The church was built as a Roman Catholic church. The altar stones, reused as gravestones, the holy water niches and the layout of the church are reminders of that period. When the Reformation gained a foothold on the island of Tholen, the church building was taken into use by the Reformed Church around 1580. The interior was subsequently adapted for Protestant worship. Inside the church is a marbled wood panel with the Ten Commandments dating from 1612, and a pulpit from the same period. The organ was built in 1882 by P. Flaes of Amsterdam.
View of the nave of the church with the Flaes organ from 1882.
Bells
The tower of the church has two swinging bells from 1477, Marthijn and Maria, and two carillons from 1616 and 1977. The bells and the oldest carillon were removed from the tower by the German occupier in 1943 and transported to Germany to be melted down. However, the ship with the name ‘Op Hoop van Zegen’ (‘In the Hope of Plain Sailing’) sank on the Ijsselmeer. The bells were returned after the war.
- Carillon in the tower.
- Despite the Dutch government urging against this, the bells were requisitioned by the German occupier in 1943.
Current use
The Maartenskerk is being used by the Dutch Restored Reformed Church. There are two worship services every Sunday, at 9.30 am and 2.30 pm. You are most welcome to visit these services. The church is regularly open for visits. More information about the parish, worship services and current opening times can be found at maartenskerkgemeente.nl.