When the Dutch government adopted Calvinism in 1578, the municipality of Amsterdam confiscated this small church, now known as the English Reformed Church, from a Catholic monastery living within a closed commune, called Begijnhof. In 1607, the church was given to the city's English-speaking Protestants as a place of worship. Since then, its weekly rites have continued almost uninterrupted, and today, the church continues to serve in Amsterdam. Queen Elizabeth II visited the church in 2007 to honor its 400th anniversary.