Loevestein Castle

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Loevestein Castle approx. 17th century
Loevestein Castle today

Schloss Loevestein or Burg Loevestein is a fortified moated castle in the municipality of Zaltbommel in the Netherlands .

At the beginning of the 14th century, the first castle, which consisted only of a watchtower, was built as a border and customs post for the county of Holland and Gelder at a strategically important point, the confluence of the Waal and Maas rivers. At this point, shipping duties were then levied.

The medieval core of the castle, which is still preserved today, was built in the sixties of the 14th century by knight Dirk Loef van Horne , a liege of Albrecht I of Bavaria and Count of Holland . In the Eighty Years' War , the revolt of the Dutch against Spanish rule, the castle was conquered in 1572 by the Geusen under William I of Orange , surrounded by walls and occupied by a crew, for whom houses were built inside the wall.

The medieval buildings of the castle were converted into a prison. Among other things , Hugo Grotius , who was sentenced to life imprisonment by the Orange , was held there. However, in 1621 he was able to flee from there. In the 17th century the castle was expanded into a pentagonal fortress and included in the Dutch water line , a floodable defense line. In the 18th century the castle gradually fell into disrepair, parts of it collapsed. After the First World War , the castle was restored. A national museum has been located in the building since 1925.

The castle is one of the settings of Alexandre Dumas' novella The Black Tulip ("La Tulipe Noire").

Web links

Commons : Loevestein Castle  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 51 ° 48 ′ 59 "  N , 5 ° 1 ′ 17"  E