{"id":38057,"date":"2021-05-27T18:51:08","date_gmt":"2021-05-27T16:51:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/topa.be\/olv-kathedraal\/beschrijving\/nooit-alleen\/"},"modified":"2021-07-19T12:40:31","modified_gmt":"2021-07-19T10:40:31","slug":"nooit-alleen","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/topa.be\/en\/olv-kathedraal\/beschrijving\/nooit-alleen\/","title":{"rendered":"OLV A cathedral never stands alone"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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The Our Lady\u2019s Cathedral of Antwerp, a revelation.<\/h4>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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A cathedral never stands alone<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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Your visit to the cathedral does not start at the entrance door, but already from a great distance when you catch sight of the tall spire, from a plane, from the motorway or as a pedestrian in the narrow streets that surround it. Moreover a cathedral (A<\/strong>) never stood alone. We have a somewhat distorted view of such a church when we look at it as a monument, not connected with its environment, so that we cannot see the social and cultural influence it had and used to have. The Great Market Place with its craft and guild houses and the town hall constituted the economic and political centre, but the main church and its annexes were the heart of many socio-cultural bodies. In this way both lungs of the city have been side by side for centuries.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Antwerp cathedral - implemented in the environment<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Houses<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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The official residence of the parish priest (also dean) (B<\/strong>), now in Sint-Pietersstraat 1 nearby, used to be where now the entrance to the car park at the side of Eiermarkt is. Until the French Rule the canons preferred to have their houses (C<\/strong>) around the vast Green Graveyard, whereas most smaller houses of the church hands (D<\/strong>) could be found at the feet of the towers and against the church wall. By having houses constructed against its walls the cathedral became as it were fused with its urban environment. The urban development view of treating the church separately as a monument, inspired the complete dismantlement of the surrounding houses. Nevertheless only the houses against the Western fa\u00e7ade were pulled down in 1860 and 1887, and those in Blauwmoezelstraat in 1859 and 1876.<\/p>\n

After the foundation of the Antwerp diocese in 1559 the refuge house of the Hemiksem Saint Bernard\u2019s abbey became the bishop\u2019s house (E<\/strong>). In the 18th<\/sup>\u00a0century Engelbert Baets constructed the present Classicist palace, which still is the bishop\u2019s official residence and houses the offices of the bishopric.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Picture by Louis Dubois de Nehaut, 1861: the house at the foot of the northern tower was demolished in 1860.<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Picture by Louis Dubois de Nehaut, 1861: The house at the foot of the southern tower was demolished in 1887.<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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The graveyards<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Also the dead stayed here for a while. We must not forget that several graveyards used to belong to this church. The largest one was named after the grass, below which 80% of the parishioners were laid anonymously: the \u2018Green Graveyard\u2019 (M1<\/strong>). The street leading to it is still called Groenkerkhofstraat (Green Graveyard Street). Emperor Joseph II\u2019s decree to forbid graveyards in cities out of hygienic concern in 1784 gave rise to the present \u2018Groenplaats\u2019 (Green Square) in 1799. The \u2018Stone Graveyard\u2019 (M2<\/strong>), to the West of the church, was cleared much earlier, in 1617. On this occasion art lover Cornelis van der Geest was the zealous advocate of preserving Quinten Matsys\u2019s tombstone. It was attached vertically to the buttress of the big tower and thus it unintentionally became the first public monument for a citizen of this town.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Social works<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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In the beginning of the 13th<\/sup>\u00a0century, true to medieval tradition, a hospital was founded near the then Romanesque church \u2013 the \u2018house of God\u2019. In popular speech this was called the \u2018guest house (of God)\u2019, where, inspired by Jesus\u2019s interpretation of the \u2018Works of Mercy\u2019 the poor, destitute sick were received as\u00a0guests<\/em>\u00a0and in them Jesus Himself. In 1238 this \u2018Our Lady\u2019s Hospital\u2019 (F<\/strong>) moved to the vaster plot of Elzenveld at the present Lange Gasthuisstraat, where it developed into a real compound with an adjacent convent for the Augustinian Sisters and where it got a new patron saint: Saint Elisabeth.<\/p>\n

In the house \u2018De Tafel van de Heilige Geest\u2019 (Holy Spirit\u2019s Table) (G<\/strong>), in \u2018Heilige Geeststraat\u2019 (Holy Spirit Street), which was given its name after it, the poor could be helped mainly with food, but also footwear and peat, very often in exchange for the appropriate poor tokens they had been given in the church. In fact this 13th<\/sup>\u00a0century foundation was the predecessor of the present-day OCMW (Public Centre for Social Welfare). Today those in need for a talk can go to \u2018De Open Deur\u2019 (Open Door) (H1<\/strong>) in 1 Pelgrimsstraat, and for existential questions there is \u2018Luisterhuis Aanwezigheid\u2019 (Listening House Presence) (H2<\/strong>) above Schoenmakerskapel (Shoemakers\u2019 chapel) in 8 Schoenmarkt.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Education & Culture<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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The oldest free public school in Antwerp, which already dates back to before 1219, was the so-called \u2018papenschool\u2019 in \u2018Papenstraat\u2019. Both were named after the parochial clergy, which were called \u2018papen\u2019. This Latin school gave secondary education, between the elementary \u2018Dietsche school\u2019 (\u2018Dutch school\u2019) and university, or \u2018Hogeschool\u2019 (\u2018High School\u2019). Later this parish school was situated above the cannon\u2019s wine cellar. When among others Balthasar Moretus and Rubens went to school there in 1589-1590 it was temporarily at Melkmarkt.<\/p>\n

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18th century chorist, coloured image from a series of Clerical garb, 18th century – \u00a9 TOPA-Documentation centre \u00b7 Antwerp Church Heritage.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n

Since 1421 the Choraelhuys (Choir Singers\u2019 House) (J<\/strong>) had been at Melkmarkt, near the just finished choir. As usual there were averagely about eight choir singers, who lived there with their singing master. Until the 18th<\/sup>\u00a0century it was a daily familiar view to see them walking to the church along Groenplaats in their purple cassocks and with their birettas. The \u2018Choraelhuys\u2019 was re-established in 1973 as a house for practice for the Antwerp Cathedral Choir and today it is situated in the parish centre, 21 Heilige Geeststraat.<\/p>\n

In 1608 the chapter decided to found the first public library (K<\/strong>). At first it was in the Papenhof (p.29) and afterwards in the seminary, which was more accessible. This project was promoted by Canon Aubert le Mire (Miraeus). By the way, the books he owned formed the first core of the city library, now the Hendrik Conscience Heritage Library.<\/p>\n

The seminary (L<\/strong>) of the Antwerp diocese was in Groenkerkhofstraat, near the bishop\u2019s palace. In the 18th<\/sup>\u00a0century it moved to an ample mansion nearby.<\/p>\n

The revenues needed were provided by the renowned Our Lady\u2019s Cloisters (N<\/strong>), an art market, consisting of covered galleries surrounding an open square, just like the stock market. In this commercial spot, founded in 1460, for example the famous Antwerp retables were exhibited hoping to find buyers. In 1560, exactly one century later, the cloisters were pulled down to lay out Korte and Lange Pandstraat, because letting houses there was more profitable.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tA construction history of centuries<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tOur Lady's Spire<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Bird's eye view on Antwerp, woodcut by Virgilius Bononiensis, 1565 - detail with the cathedral<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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