Friends of the Old or Pilgrimfathers’ Church

Eight niches in the Rotunda of the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. hold large, framed historical paintings, measuring 12 by 8 feet. One of these paintings of key moments in American history is the ‘Embarkation of the Pilgrims at Delfshaven’, painted by Robert Weir (1843). The painting depicts the Pilgrims on the deck of the ship ‘Speedwell’ as they depart Delfshaven for their journey to America on July 22, 1620. The Pilgrims traveled aboard the Speedwell to Southampton/Plymouth in England where they transferred to the Mayflower because the Speedwell showed severe leakage.

The original English Pilgrims were separatists who broke away from the Anglican Church, seeking freedom to live their own faith. They left England in 1608 for the tolerance of the 17^th-century Holland. After a short stay in Amsterdam they lived in Leiden for nearly 12 years. In 1620 they left from Delfshaven, the seaport of Delft, for America. Nowadays Historical Delfshaven is a part of Rotterdam, the biggest port of Europe. A hot spot in the Netherlands – USA relationship. In 2020 the Foundation Historic Delfshaven organized, together with the municipality Rotterdam, 400 years commemoration of the Pilgrim Fathers.

The Old or Pilgrimfathers’ Church in Delfshaven (1417) is a church where several objects remind us of the presence of the Pilgrims. It is a church with a story: it witnessed the Pilgrims leave for America. The churchbell that rang in 1620 when the Pilgrims took off can still be seen (and touched) in the Pilgrimfathers’ Church. Currently the church is still in use by a congregation of the Protestant Church in The Netherlands.

There is a permanent exhibition in the church, renewed in 2020, where the story of the Pilgrim Fathers is told: how they came to embrace the basic principles of religious freedom, the right to independence and concepts of State Government according to the Dutch ‘Acte van Verlatinghe’ (Act of Abjuration) issued in 1581, bringing these ideas with them to the New World.  It is one of the sources of inspiration for the Declaration of Independence in 1776.

Friends of the Old or Pilgrimfathers’ Church Foundation

The mission of the Friends of the Old or Pilgrimfathers’ Church Foundation is to preserve the building as a monument and shared heritage of both the USA and The Netherlands by raising funds through the organization of dedicated events and – educational/social/cultural – projects to learn for the future. In 2021 one of these events concerned the commemoration of then 400 years of Thanksgiving Day (introduced by the Pilgrim Fathers): in 2021 the Friends Foundation, in cooperation with the Foundation Historic Delfshaven and Erasmus University, organized an essay competition about social, economic, technical and environmental developments in society during the last 400 years on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. Students at the University of Leiden, the Technical University Delft, Erasmus University Rotterdam and Harvard University in Boston, Massachusetts could participate in the essay competition. The award ceremony took place in the Pilgrimfathers’ Church on Thanksgiving Day.

The Old or Pilgrimfathers’ Church is owned by Foundation Volkskracht and does not receive government subsidies. For major initiatives concerning the facilities, the Pilgrim exhibition and for cultural and educational projects, the Pilgrimfathers’ Church depends on the support of charitable funds, individual donors and grant-giving bodies.

Your donation will help us carry out our mission. If you feel committed to the Old or Pilgrimfathers’ Church, want to preserve it as a (shared) meaningful historic monument and support different educational/cultural projects, we are looking forward to your donation and thank you in advance!

Website: https://www.oudeofpelgrimvaderskerk.nl/en/vrienden/  and  https://www.huurpelgrimvaderskerk.nl/