Introduction
The parish registers are the primary resources for genealogical research before 1811. Churches usually kept records of baptisms and marriages. Sometimes there are burial registers and member lists as well. The majority of the church books are available in the provincial archives. Bigger places sometimes have their own local archives.

Dutch Reformed Church
In the Republiek der Verenigde Nederlanden (around 1580-1795) the Dutch Reformed Church was privileged. Only marriages in this church were considered legal. Members of other churches had to marry for the local authorities, or in the Dutch Reformed Church. Public functions were in generally only open for members of this church.

Roman Catholic Church
The mother church, following the Reformation, was still the biggest church in some regions, especially in the south of the country. The registration of baptisms and marriages was obliged by the Council of Trent (1564-1563). Of course not all the old registers are preserved. Often the text is in Latin, or in a mix of Latin and Dutch.

Mennonite Church
One of the characteristics of the Mennonite religion is that they do believe that only adults should be baptized. Their baptism registers are referring to persons approximately between the 18 and the 25 years old. If you are lucky there are child birth registers preserved. In general there are not so much records kept.

Other religions
There were also Jews, Lutherans, Huguenots, Presbyterians and so on in the Netherlands.

Information in church registers
The information recorded in church registers varied. It is good practice to write down the entire text, especially if you do not understand the language. The witnesses of baptisms and marriages were often relatives.

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