A raging fire in the tower

It was not the first time that a fire had raged in the Grote of Sint Bavokerk in Haarlem. But it had never been as dangerous as it was on the night of 22 May 1801!

lightning strike

It was warm spring weather in Haarlem in the penultimate week of May 1801, with temperatures reaching around 22 to 23 °C. But the weather was also unsettled. On Friday the^22nd, it had been cloudy all day, and in the evening a heavy thunderstorm broke out over the city. Shortly after 9.30 pm, the tower of St Bavo’s – which, incidentally, is not officially a tower but a so-called roof turret – was struck by lightning. A fierce fire broke out, which could easily have spread to the houses built close around the church.

the fire was put out

Under the leadership of tower guards Krietsman and Dreusse, a group of resolute Haarlem citizens managed to extinguish the fire. Martin Hendrik Krietsman and three others had risked their lives in the process. They had even had molten lead dripped onto their clothes. Krietsman’s colleague, Jan Coenraad Dreusse, had guided the fire hoses across the roof and ensured a continuous supply of water.

the remuneration of the city council

The following day, the Haarlem city council commissioned an inquiry. How could such a disaster be prevented in future, and who had played a part in fighting the fire? Two weeks later, the report was discussed. Twenty residents of Haarlem had shown exceptional dedication. The city decided to present these brave citizens with a silver commemorative medal. The engraved medals were supplied by the Amsterdam goldsmith Nicolaas Siedenburg Jr. They were presented on 25 July. The medals feature an eight-line verse on the obverse and, on the reverse, the city’s coat of arms and the name of the person for whom the medal was intended.

Even today, fires in the heart of the city centre remain a major problem. Due to the dense built-up area, there is little room to manoeuvre, whilst the fire can easily spread to neighbouring buildings. But two centuries ago, the danger was even greater: trained fire brigades did not yet exist, and firefighters did not have access to equipment such as high-pressure hoses, construction lamps and emergency generators.

© The medal pictured forms part of the collection of the Foundation for the Preservation of the Museum of the Chancellery of the Dutch Orders; the drawing is from the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam.