Particularity and Communality. Gothic Architecture and Catholic Emancipation in the Netherlands, 1850-1890

During the nineteenth century, the neo-Gothic building style was both loved and hated in the Netherlands. It was highly contested not in the least because it was by many Protestants believed to form part of a socio-political strategy aimed at emancipating Dutch Catholics. In many other European countries, the Gothic style became an accepted part of the general architectural design repertoire. However, the Dutch Gothic revival is particularly interesting, because it exemplifies the tension between national and other uses of architectural heritage. While Catholics embraced the style, Protestants resisted its use for national monuments and public buildings. In the Netherlands, discussions about the neo-Gothic style were closely tied to discussions about Dutch identity, history and religion. Parallel to the pursuit for a shared national identity, different social groups - including the Catholics - searched the past for styles, traditions and items that could distinguish them from the rest of the nation. This article will focus particularly on the controversies raised by the work of the architect Pierre Cuypers. Helped by Joseph Alberdingk Thijm and Victor de Stuers, Cuypers managed to get the assignment of a lifetime: the design of the national museum (Rijksmuseum) in Amsterdam, which he designed in a neo-Gothic style.