Although
Holland officially became a protestant province during the Reformation,
in some regions the catholics continued to form a large part
of the population. One of these regions was the Bollenstreek,
the area north of Leiden, famous for its flowerbulbs. Despite
these large numbers of catholics no medieval churches were returned
to them when the protestants lost their power after 1795. In
Lisse, where catholics formed a vast majority of the population,
a new church was built in 1842-1843. This church soon became
too small, but a new one wasn't built until 1902. This church
was designed by J.H. van Groenendael from Amsterdam, member of
a family of architects and builders, and was built by his own construction firm. Despite the poverty of the parishioners
a very impressive church was built, often dubbed 'the cathedral of
the bulb-region'. Work started in April 1902 and in August 1903
the church was consecrated. |
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