Sittard: a basilica among the old streets
The protected town centre has a nineteenth-century basilica and a history that reaches far beyond today’s border.
Sittard received town rights as early as 1243. From 1400 the town belonged to the Duchy of Jülich, and only in 1815 did it become part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The town centre has been a protected townscape since 1972.
In the middle of that old town stands the Basilica of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart. Visit Sittard-Geleen names J. Kayser of Venlo as architect of the church, which dates from the late nineteenth century. In 1883 the basilica became the first Dutch church to receive that honorary title.
The place is linked to the Confraternity of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, founded in Sittard in 1867. Opposite the basilica, the Mariapark was laid out in 1891 as a cloister with an altar and fourteen Stations of the Cross.
Sittard has more church heritage. At the Petruskerk, the tourism site points to choir stalls from the early fifteenth century and a carved wooden pulpit. A walk can link the two buildings.
Current opening hours are listed on the basilica’s official visitor page. It is closed on Monday; the archconfraternity offers guided tours.
The basilica’s visiting address is Oude Markt 3; Oude Markt 20 is the office.