Leiden, Holland Pilgrim Sites Threatened
Dick Eastman Online
11 Oct 2000
Leiden, Holland Pilgrim Sites Threatened
Two years ago I had the pleasure of visiting Leiden, Netherlands. I walked in the neighborhood where the Pilgrims lived prior to their trip to Plymouth, Massachusetts. I also toured the Leiden American Pilgrim Museum. Even though I do not have Pilgrim ancestry, I felt a strong sense of connection to an important piece of American history.
This week I was distressed to read the following warning from Jeremy Dupertuis Bangs, Director of the Leiden American Pilgrim Museum. Much of this historical area may soon be destroyed. I would suggest that every reader of this newsletter write a letter or e-mail to each party listed. Also, please distribute this information onto newslists, forums, chat boards and genealogy society newsletters as you see fit:
NEW DEVELOPMENTS IN PILGRIM SITES DEMOLITION PLANS: LEIDEN'S VROUWEKERK AND AALMARKT SITES
Jeremy Dupertuis Bangs, Director, Leiden American Pilgrim Museum,
19 September 2000
November 7, 2000, has been set for the Council of State's hearing on the City of Leiden's intention to demolition the remains of the Vrouwekerk, the medieval church that was used by the Walloons (Huguenots) after the Reformation. Through its association with the families of Philip Delano, Francis Cooke and his wife Hester Mayhew, Edward Bumpas and other Huguenots who became Pilgrims, this site symbolizes the confluence of two major streams in the history of persecution, refuge, religious freedom, and colonial migration—the English Separatists now called the Pilgrims and the French Calvinists known as the Huguenots. In addition to the Pilgrim connections, this is the church from which numerous families emigrated to New York and Guyana in 1622-24, led by Jesse de Forest. Thus the site is important for its historical associations with the beginnings of colonial settlement in both New York and New Netherlands.
In a new development, the Council of State has informed the parties in the case that they may submit new evidence and supporting materials up to two weeks before the date of the hearing. Thus it becomes possible for me to submit individual letters expressing support for my contention that the cultural and historical value of the Vrouwekerk ruin as an important symbol of the ties between The Netherlands and America justifies a decision to prevent demolition. I can also now include a copy of the petition which many people have signed, as evidence in this case. This new development is very encouraging and inspires hopes that the Council of State will recognize the value of preserving this ruin to commemorate an important link in the common histories of The Netherlands, Belgium, France, and America.
Please send letters of support for preserving the Vrouwekerk to me before October 15. I will then submit them to the Council of State.
My postal address is:
Mandenmakerssteeg 11,
2311 ED Leiden
The Netherlands
My (new) e-mail address is:
Thank you very much for your continued support in this effort.
[Dispute details in the following sub-article:]
AALMARKT DEVELOPMENTS
Following discussions and decisions on the town's plans to regulate prostitution (only four brothels), which the central government has decriminalized as of October 1st, Leiden's Town Council debated the Aalmarkt demolition plans in its meeting last Tuesday, September 12, 2000. Despite eloquently expressed opposition to large-scale construction and to demolition of the historic sites in the Aalmarkt area, the coalition led by the Labor Party (PvdA), circumvented attempts by the opposition parties to require preservation of historic monuments as well as to require competitive bidding and plan proposals, thus retaining complete control of the development within the cabinet of the mayor and aldermen. After several months of further work on the drawing boards, that group intends to present a choice to the council of two development alternatives, both of which presuppose large-scale demolition to accomplish the amount of new floor-space for large stores that private investors want to build where numerous sixteenth and seventeenth-century houses and other historic monuments now stand. The cabinet of the mayor and alderman have expressed their entire confidence in the ability of the single private development company they have chosen (without competitive bidding) to achieve plans which will represent the best way to accomplish a profitable future for the city's selected investors and to provide employment to local contractors who traditionally support the Labor Party. The damaging effects on existing small businesses and the traffic chaos that can be foreseen are very sensitive to the fact that one of the major investors, AHOLD, has discovered that its American shoppers are unhappy that their money is going to a company that intends to participate in the destruction of an aspect of [history] are topics that were postponed by promising future clarification.
Recent architectural surveys of the buildings prove that the hospital wing where Myles Standish recuperated from wounds is practically intact, with enough of its timber roof from 1571 still there to make complete restoration a real possibility. The cabinet, however, has explicitly retained the "right" to determine that such monuments will be demolished if it is otherwise impossible to achieve the financial goals of the property developer and the investors.
In a public debate (Sept. 5) and at an open meeting of the town council's Commission on Urban Planning (Sept. 7), numerous groups hoping to improve the city through preserving its cultural and historic fabric echoed the pleas of the (essentially powerless) National Monument Service and spoke in favor of development without demolition. These groups included the Aalmarkt Foundation, The Leiden Cultural Platform, The Leiden Antiquarian Association "Oud Leiden", The Heritage Preservation Society "Heemschut", The Arent van's-Gravezande Foundation for Architectural Heritage Preservation, and The Leiden American Pilgrim Museum. The public response is overwhelmingly in favor of preservation, and several speakers specifically pointed out the need to preserve places that serve to commemorate the city's role in the Pilgrim story, in addition to the widespread general concern that a few politicians and their friends, making decisions behind closed doors, are destroying irrevocably the city these citizens love.
Another company interested in investing in this demolition is the Fortis Financial Group. They are included among the addresses to which all reports from the developer are sent. You may want to contact their American offices, also.
Write to:
Fortis Investors Inc.
P.O.Box 64284
St. Paul, MN 55164
or contact them at e-mail: financial@us.fortis.com
It is impossible to predict the outcome of this conflict between the interests of those with hopes for a future grounded in the reminders of a proud heritage and the interests of those searching to maximize profits in the short term. Your letters will count, now.
Thank you,
Jeremy Dupertuis Bangs