Saint Vitus Church

The St. Vitus Church is a Roman Catholic church dedicated to St. Vitus in Hilversum. This Neo-Gothic church designed by P.J.H. Cuypers is intended for 1,800 people and dates back to 1892. The church is now a national monument and was restored from 2003 to 2010. The tower is 98 m high.
History

The predecessor of this church, also called St. Vitus Church and built in the same location, was found to be too small to accommodate all the parishioners in 1887. Architect Dr. P.J.H. Cuypers, who built many churches at that time, was asked to create a design for a new building. The costs were about € 100,100 for the church and rectory. Two designs were made for this church, the first for a rectory and church without a tower, but with a baptismal chapel and catechism room, the second for a rectory and church with a tower, but without a baptismal chapel and catechism room. Cuypers' son Jos Cuypers significantly contributed to the designs, although it's unclear what his specific contributions were, as both architects used a similar style at the time.

Because the tender did not turn out favorably, the church board dared not accept the design with the tower. Therefore, it was decided to build the rectory and church without the tower, but with a baptismal chapel and catechism room.

The construction of the church proceeded smoothly. The supervisor was K.P.C. de Bazel, the later famous architect. On May 12, 1891, the first stone was laid. After the High Mass in the temporary church, the parchment deeds along with the construction drawings and silver and copper coins from that time were placed in a lead box and bricked up in a hollow space behind the first stone at the foot of the brick triumphal arch.

Many were disappointed that the construction of the tower did not take place. Consequently, some influential parishioners, including Jacob Peet Jz., a well-known landholder and councilor of Hilversum, and Johannes Geradts, founder of the newspaper De Gooi- en Eemlander, held a meeting in which they decided to establish the Catholic fundraising association, which would try to enable the construction of the tower as well. The expectations were exceeded, and an amount of € 32,385.65 could be transferred to the church board, enabling the construction of the tower to become a reality. At 98 meters, this is the tallest Neo-Gothic tower in the Netherlands.

On September 5, 1892, the church was consecrated by the Archbishop of Utrecht, Mgr. P.M. Snickers. On Thursday morning, September 8, the feast day of the Nativity of Mary, the church was officially put into service.

The church marks a highlight in the later period of Cuypers' career and is one of his largest churches. The nave is mostly five-aisled. The light aisle consists of a series of gables with three-lancet windows, a type of window that Cuypers frequently applied in his later work and which he derived from English Gothic. Another typical feature of his later work is the use of two different colors of bricks for the exterior, with the lighter bricks forming decorative horizontal lines.

The church has survived the wave of modernization from the 1960s and is also known for its excellent acoustics, which are often used by broadcasters for broadcasts.

Gemeente Hilversum