Minderbroederskerk

The pictures for this highlight do not show the Minderbroederskerk, but the Minster church, which is also located at this point.

The former Franciscan church Minderbroederskerk (translated: Church of the Friars Minor) is one of the oldest monuments in Roermond.The Order of Friars Minor in Roermond founded a monastery in 1307, and a church was built nearby in the 15th century. The tower behind the chancel called Minderbroederstoren or Heiligdomstoren was dilapidated around 1600 and was demolished in 1695.At the time of William I of Orange in 1572, the church was plundered and partially destroyed. In 1576 the damage was repaired. In 1710 the building suffered extensive damage again. The church was owned by the Friars Minor until 1796, when it was closed in 1797 and used as a horse stable, straw and hay store. All of the church's furnishings, including the altars, pulpit, and organ, were publicly sold on July 29, 1798. The pulpit and confessionals ended up in Roermond Cathedral, where they can still be seen today, the main altar in St. Bavo in Haarlem, a Stations of the Cross in the Diocesan Museum in Liège and a Marian altar in the Roman Catholic Church of Heteren. The organ, built around 1710, was also removed from the church in 1798. A new organ was later installed thanks to a donation from a parishioner. To this day, the restored and listed old organ is one of the few surviving organs from this period in the Tuindorpkerk in Utrecht.In the years that followed, the Minderbroederskerk gradually fell into disrepair. Since no monasteries were allowed to be built under King Wilhelm I, the church remained closed. In 1820 the Reformed garrison parish of Roermond, founded in 1817, received part of the Minderbroederskerk, mainly the choir. The other part continued to serve as a storeroom for hay and straw until 1864 when the Reformed Congregation bought the rest of the church, subsidized by the State and the Synod.With the help of government subsidies, the church was extensively restored from 1906 to 1908 under the direction of the architect Pierre Cuypers and inaugurated in 1908. In the course of another restoration in 1947, the choir was transformed into a liturgical center. In 1975 the entire roof structure was renovated and in 1986 the church received new pews.An earthquake measuring 5.6 on the Richter scale on April 13, 1992 in central Limburg severely damaged the Minderbroederskerk, requiring extensive repairs to be carried out. The damage amounted to an estimated 1.5 million guilders. Only on May 7, 1994 could the church be reopened.