HISTORY

HISTORY

A rich past
Noordwijk is steeped in history, the essence of which is openness to the outside world and an extensive exchange of people, goods, culture, faiths and beliefs.

The name 'Noordwijk ' During its 4000 years of history, Noordwijk's name has been spelled in various ways. Nowadays, you won't see any signs with Northgo, Nordwige, Nortic, Nortdijc, Northge and Northeke.

A place of pilgrimage
Noordwijk's history dates back to approximately 2000 BC. This is when the first traces of inhabitants were recorded. The first historical documentation describes the torture of a priest, Jeroen van Noordwijk in 857. Jeroen, a Scottisch Benedictine monk who came to Noordwijk in 847 to carry out his mission work and build a chapel, could have been the first priest of Noordwijk.

His life came to an abrupt end in 857 when he was beheaded by ransacking Normans. He was beheaded, after dreadful tortures. His name lived on however, as more than a hundred years later in 980 a Roman chapel was built in his honour. This chapel became a popular destination for pilgrims.

In 1303, a large stone church was built on the site; The gothic Great of
St. Jeroenskerk. St. Jeroen's skull served as an important relic. Noordwijk soon became known as a place of pilgrimage, which provided Noordwijk with a considerable income. The 80 years war put an end to this, however only by paying a substantial sum to William of Orange's army could the church be saved during the iconoclastic fury of 1566, including the most important rellic, that of St. Jeroen's skull. Tradition has it that his head lies buried somewhere in the church, but nobody knows exactly where.
Towards the end of 1800 a new Roman Catholic church was erected in honour of St. Jeroen. To this day the church's altar houses the skeletal remains of St. Jeroen.