In the 16th century, the medieval Amsterdam was still surrounded by walls and ramparts. Some of the former fortifications, for instance the Schreierstoren, De Waag and the Mint Tower have been preserved, in one form or the other, to this day. From St. Antonispoort (currently De Waag), through what is now the Antoniesbreestraat and the Jodenbreestraat, then diagonally across the current Plantage to the Zeeburgerdijk, a dike ran towards Muiden.
On the outside, the IJ-side of the dike, lay marshy lands fenced off by a single quay - the Kadijk. All industry - soap works, tanneries, smith works, breweries, shipyards, etc. - was, due to high pollution and risk of fire, located outside the city walls on especially designated islands such as the Lastage and the Rapenburg. De Waal, where the current Red Light District is located, was studded with rows of wooden stakes where ships moored and unloaded.
In 16th century, the Amsterdam city fathers had officially converted the city to Protestantism (the so-called Alteration) and many Flemish and French Protestants as well as the Portuguese Jews, fearing stringent repressions by the Spanish , who were at war and occupied various parts of Belgium and the Netherlands (which were one country at the time) , fled to this unoccupied free city. This influx of skillful workers and trading capital formed the basis for the oncoming period of Amsterdam’s great prosperity. The growth of the population and flourishing economic activity in the 17th century led to the ambitious plans for urban expansion: the Canal Girdle, Jordaan, the western and eastern islands (Kadijk Island, Kattenburg, Wittenburg and Oostenburg) as well as the construction of a formidable wall around the city.
The plots on the eastern islands were purchased by, among others, the Admiralty (the Kattenburg) and the East India Company (the Oostenburg). A large number of smaller shipyards, sail and rope makers and such settled on the Kadijken and the Wittenburg. In addition to businesses, houses were also being built by the tradesmen.
The population living on the eastern islands was mainly Protestant or Reformed Low German, as the religion was called then. In the middle of the 17th century, a wooden ''sermon barn'' was erected on the Rapenburg (currently Entrepotdok). The barn proved too small and, furthermore, had to soon make way for the construction of the Rapenburger Sluice.
Thus, in 1665, the community and the city rulers gave a go to build a stone church, which would be built close to both islands, on the Wittenburg, along the Nieuwevaart. The residents of the Kadijken neighborhood across the Nieuwvaart to the west could also attend if they chose, except they would have to cross the canal by ferry.
It was probably Daniel Stalpaard who thought of the church’s Greek cross plan and Adriaan Dortsman (who’s buried in the church) who worked out the architectural details. The former constructed churches built in the same sober style, which is now referred to as the Dutch Classicism, in other smaller towns. He envisioned the layout of the Oosterkerk in the form of a Greek cross (with four equilateral wings), wherein the space between the wings has been partially filled by lower in level extensions, thus forming a square layout with four heavy pillars rising inside the church.
The churchwardens turned the leadership of the construction to the city mason Jan Dilleman Brederode and the master contractor Elias Bouman. More than 2 thousands piles were driven into the peat soil to form support. In order to prevent the piles from rotting, the walls they support extend all the way down to the groundwater level. This means on the outer, dike side of the Wittenburg, the walls extend over four meters deep below the church floor. At the corners of the church deep wells were installed so as to collect rainwater.
Two years after the start of construction, on Christmas Day, 1671, the church was inaugurated. According to the chronicles, hundreds of guilders worth of beer was delivered by the neighborhood’s De Parel (The Pearl) Brewery for the inaugural festivities.
The completion of the church stagnated in the war year of 1672 when Amsterdam was nearly sacked by the French king Louis 14. From the surviving ledger of the church it is evident that its income consisted next to general revenues, such as membership fees, fundraisers and presents - of proceeds from the sale of graves, sale of rainwater, charging for church seating and, unfortunately, an occasional sale of the décor items, such as old chandeliers, extinguisher pots and suchlike.
The brass chandeliers and the carved oak pulpit were the main decorations in the strict austere interior of the Oosterkerk. This simplicity matched the then prevalent view, which was a reaction against the resplendent and overbearing Catholic churches, that the focus must be on the preaching and should not be distracted by unnecessary decoration. The central location of the pulpit also places the focus on the spoken word. In the 18th century, most churchgoers listened to the sermon standing and a choir led by a cantor sung a cappella.
The floor of the church consists of more than 500 gravestones. Oosterker was a church frequented mainly by the working class, thus not many famous people were buried here. Only those who were well-off could afford a private tomb. Some linguists suggest that the expression we use today when we speak of the ‘stinking rich’ came from the smell of the rotting corpses under the church floor.
In the 1960s, the church was closed for worship due to poor run-down conditions. In 1974, the municipality bought the historic building for the symbolic sum of one guilder. After years of being vacant, at the insistence of local residents, the building was spared demolition and then thoroughly restored to its former historic beauty.
Since 1985 and through May 2012, the church was mainly used by cultural and social institutions. The church is administered by the Foundation Oosterkerk which, in addition to office space rental, also organizes cultural activities. The symmetrical shape of this historic church allows for a large central space which in addition to the concerts is perfectly suitable for such cultural and social activities as exhibitions, meetings, reading and presentations. The high windows all around make for astounding light, the interior is handsome if austere, and the stone floor is now heated during the winter.