Clandestine church ‘The Red Hat’

Keizersgracht 104
We are approaching our first underground church on the tour. It is on your right, at number 104. It is also a KLM house: number 40.
In the late 16th-century, Prince William of Orange led the revolt to gain independence from the Spanish king, Philip II. It was the time of the Spanish Inquisition, known for its bloody religious violence, with trials and torture. They persecuted anyone who was not Catholic.
The independent Republic's religious freedom contributed to a stable society of optimism and innovation, but, despite popular belief, religious freedom was in reality less free. Officially, churches and religions other than the Reformed Calvinist Church were forced to go underground. Religious communities had to buy a ‘shelter church license’ to escape persecution. The license cost as much as 10,000 euros a year. But this was no guarantee of uninterrupted services.
In 1629, the forbidden Remonstrant community was looking for a suitable location for their shelter church. They purchased Keizersgracht 104 and turned it into a place of worship. A hatter ran his business next door, making customized capotains; broad-brimmed hats of woolen felt, beaver hair, silk or velvet. In the 1630s, the hat-making business was sold to Claes Harmensson Roothoet. His last name literally means ‘red hat’, so the image on the gable stone on the façade was painted in red.
In 1642, the house came into the possession of the Remonstrant church too, and was connected to the shelter church at number 102. It became the largest clandestine church in the Netherlands. Thanks to the freedom of religion laws laid down in 1848, the Remonstrant parish could now show itself publicly. In 1876, the church underwent renovation work and was given a new, typical 19th-century facade. After a period of disuse, the church is now an independent cultural debate center focused on religion, philosophy, music and poetry.
The Red Hat was not the only clandestine church along the Keizersgracht. In fact, a second one is located nearby, at number 140.