The ''Martinitoren'' (; Martini or St. Martin's Tower) is the tallest church

steeple In architecture, a steeple is a tall tower on a building, topped by a spire and often incorporating a belfry and other components. Steeples are very common on Christian churches and cathedrals and the use of the term generally connotes a relig ...

in the city of

Groningen Groningen ( , ; ; or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen (province), Groningen province in the Netherlands. Dubbed the "capital of the north", Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of ...

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

, and the bell tower of the Martinikerk. The tower is located at the north-eastern corner of the ''Grote Markt'' (Main Market Square). It contains a brick spiral staircase consisting of 260 steps, and the

carillon A carillon ( , ) is a pitched percussion instrument that is played with a musical keyboard, keyboard and consists of at least 23 bells. The bells are Bellfounding, cast in Bell metal, bronze, hung in fixed suspension, and Musical tuning, tu ...

within the tower contains 62 bells. The tower is one of the main tourist attractions of Groningen and offers a view over the city and surrounding area. The front of the tower shows three pictures above the entrance: the blind poet Bernlef, Saint Martinus, and Rudolf Agricola. All three men are linked to the history of Groningen. The tower is tilting about 0.6 m. According to reports, the tower has a foundation of only three metres deep. The citizens of Groningen call their tower ''d'Olle Grieze'', meaning ''the old grey one'' in the local dialect.

History

Twice before a tower has stood on the site of the current Martinitoren. The first was built in the 13th century; this was approximately 30 metres high and built in the

Romanesque style Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of medieval Europe that was predominant in the 11th and 12th centuries. The style eventually developed into the Gothic style with the shape of the arches providing a simple distinction: the Ro ...

. This tower was destroyed by

lightning Lightning is a natural phenomenon consisting of electrostatic discharges occurring through the atmosphere between two electrically charged regions. One or both regions are within the atmosphere, with the second region sometimes occurring on ...

. In the 15th century a second tower was built, approximately 45 metres high, but it also was devastated by lightning in a storm. The third and current tower was largely built between 1469 and 1482 from blocks of Bentheimer

sandstone Sandstone is a Clastic rock#Sedimentary clastic rocks, clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of grain size, sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate mineral, silicate grains, Cementation (geology), cemented together by another mineral. Sand ...

. The steeple was not finished until the mid-16th century. This tower was initially an estimated 102 metres high.E. O. van der Werff, ''Martini. Kerk en toren''. Assen, 2003, p. 53; F. Westra, ''Martinitoren''. Groningen, 2009, p. 29. According to an improbable myth, the tower would have been 127 m high Its architecture was influenced by the

Dom Tower of Utrecht The Dom Tower ( ) of Utrecht is the tallest church tower in the Netherlands, at 112.32 metres (368,5 feet) in height. It is considered the symbol of Utrecht. The tower was part of St. Martin's Cathedral, also known as the Dom Church, and w ...

. The lighting of celebratory fires on the third gallery, after the departure of Spanish and Walloon troops in 1577, caused the tower to partially collapse. However, the remaining portion kept a height of 69 meters. In the 17th century the tower was repaired up to the current 97 metre height. Later the tower was damaged several times by natural violence and several wars. There is a bullet hole in one of the bells, a result of heavy fighting when the

Canadian Forces The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; , FAC) are the unified Military, military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air commands referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force. Under the ''National Defenc ...

liberated Groningen at the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Image:View from the Martini Tower.jpeg, The view from the Martinitoren Image:Groningen Grote Markt 1945.jpg, Martinitoren in 1945 File:20100523 Grote Markt en Martinitoren Groningen NL.jpg, Martinitoren in 2010 Image:Martini bij nacht.jpg, Martinitoren by night File:Klokkenmartinitoren.jpg, The bells in the Martinitoren

References

External links

* {{Authority control Buildings and structures completed in 1482 Buildings and structures in Groningen (city) Inclined towers Rijksmonuments in Groningen (province) Towers completed in the 15th century Towers in Groningen (province) Tourist attractions in Groningen (province)

History

See also

References

External links