Jacobi Church
Jacobskerkhof
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The Jacobskerkhof with the Jacobikerk — This 1779 painting by Isaac Ouwater shows the Jacobikerk on the Jacobskerkhof from the southeast, with the tower without the spire. The medieval spire had been blown off during the 1674 tornado and would not be restored until 1953. The tower is covered by a low pointed roof, on which a wind vane can still be seen. The part of the church that is pictured clearly shows the difference between the brick south facade of the building and the tufa tower. The chancel is out of the picture.
The other buildings reflect somewhat of the character of the area. Right next to the church are small cottages that were owned by the deaconry. This poor institution contributed to the livelihood of needy fellow believers in terms of housing, clothing and food. This Reformed diaconate had been founded for this purpose in 1578, at a time when Utrecht was undergoing a change from being an entirely Catholic city to one in which eventually 60% of the population adhered to the Calvinist Reformed faith. This change did not bypass the Jacobi Church, originally one of four medieval parish churches. After the expulsion of the Spaniards from Vredenburg Castle, during which the church suffered heavy damage, the religious freedom which was consequently proclaimed gave pastor Hubert Duyfhuys the opportunity to follow his own Reformation path. The Jacobikerk was one of Utrecht's inner-city's reformed churches for several centuries and has belonged to the Protestant Municipality of Utrecht since 2004. The building was extensively restored in the 1980s.
The deaconry had a lot of work to do in the area around the Jacobi Church, since in the Middle Ages the poorest parts of the city were located here: the district Handvoetboog (later called Wijk C), and the Bemuurde Weerd. Wijk C in the nineteenth and early twentieth century was an especially notorious part of the city where many underprivileged people lived, until a drastic redevelopment completely changed the appearance of the neighborhood. The houses on the right of the painting were also demolished.
The now-vanished buildings on the left are typical of the neighborhood's activity. There is the house Het Anker on the corner of the Rozenstraat, where a blacksmith was located. A travalje can be seen next to the house, with a horse ready to be shodded. Farm animals were traded on the nearby square Vredenburg. The well-dressed couple on the right are on their way to the Oudegracht, where the better-off merchants lived. The houses on Sint Jacobsstraat can be seen in the background.
