St Martin's Church

History

In the Middle Ages, the predecessor of St Martin's church already belonged to Maastricht's four parish churches. This Gothic church was probably not the first church on this site, as a 13th-century charter mentions that the church was donated to the chapter of the Church of Our Lady as early as the 9th century. Also, during the demolition of the Gothic church, a fragment of a Roman statue of Mercury was found, which could indicate a very old sacred function of this place.

Some drawings of the old St Martin's Church have survived. The rather simple, three-nave church was probably built at the end of the 15th century. The church tower was located on the Meuse side and made a richer impression due to its various sections and profiling. The south aisle contained a beautifully carved Renaissance-style entrance portal. The church was demolished in 1855, despite fierce protests by Victor de Stuers and others.

After the demolition of the medieval church, the present red-brick church was built during the years 1857-58 to a design by architect Pierre Cuypers. The Wycker Cross tower located next to the church was demolished in 1868, reportedly because the parish priest felt the dilapidated building did not match the new church. Several restorations took place over the years. In 1923, a sacristy and presbytery were added to the choir side, both designed by Alphons Boosten.

Description church and interior.

The church, a three-aisled neo-Gothic cross basilica, has forms borrowed from French Gothic. The church tower (70 m) has angled buttresses and a constricted needle spire. The church has a two-part wall structure, slender pillars with colonnettes and cross-ribbed vaults. The sculpture in the main portal is by Wim Visser (1946).

The neo-Gothic painting of the interior, also designed by Cuypers, is still partly intact, although part of it disappeared under the whitewash in 1958. Parts of the inventory, such as main altar, confessionals, communion bench and choir stalls date from 1866-67 and come from the Cuypers-Stoltzenberg studio. The stained-glass windows are partly 19th-century, partly modern (Hans Truijen, among others).

The interior of the church also includes a brass font from 1482 by Johannes van Venlo with a lid from 1717, a Christ Corpus made of walnut from the early 14th century (the so-called "Black Christ") and an 18th-century chandelier. Also from the old church is a tombstone from 1509. Various tombstones and grave crosses can also be found around the church.

Organ

St Martin's Church features 3-manual organ built in 1878 by Maastricht organ builder Pereboom & Leijser. The organ is known among organists for its heavy stop