Doorwerth Castle () is a medieval castle situated on the river

Rhine The Rhine ( ) is one of the List of rivers of Europe, major rivers in Europe. The river begins in the Swiss canton of Graubünden in the southeastern Swiss Alps. It forms part of the Swiss-Liechtenstein border, then part of the Austria–Swit ...

near the city of

Arnhem Arnhem ( ; ; Central Dutch dialects, Ernems: ''Èrnem'') is a Cities of the Netherlands, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands, near the German border. It is the capita ...

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

History

The original castle, probably wooden, is first mentioned in 1260 when it was besieged and burned to the ground, after which it was rebuilt in stone. In 1280 this second castle was again besieged and this time the bailey was burned down. This castle probably consisted of a simple hall-keep, two stories high with 1.20 meter thick walls, and featured a surrounding

moat A moat is a deep, broad ditch dug around a castle, fortification, building, or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. Moats can be dry or filled with water. In some places, moats evolved into more extensive water d ...

which was fed by the nearby river

. During the 14th century the castle was continually enlarged. Doorwerth Castle was originally the property of the Van Dorenweerd family. In 1402 Robert van Dorenweerd dedicated the castle to the Count of Gelre, Reinald IV. In return Robert was granted the castle and its land in fief. Around the middle of the 15th century the castle was enlarged again, this time by knight Reinald van Homoet, the 10th Lord of Dorenweerd, who was also the owner of Doornenburg Castle. Doorwerth Castle reached its largest form just after the middle of the 16th century under Daem Schellart van Obbendorf, the 15th Lord of Dorenweerd. He made the castle and the group of buildings on the bailey into a unity and adjusted them for more space and comfort. By 1560 Doorwerth Castle had almost reached its present appearance. Around 1637 the bailey was rebuilt to its present appearance and a dike was built around the castle to protect it from flooding of the river Rhine. Shortly after, the castle changed ownership due to financial problems and was granted in fief to a German Count, Anton I van Aldenburg. His successors did not alter the castle or bailey but did acquire more land. At the end of the 18th century, the castle was no longer inhabited, but was looked after by a steward for its owners who now lived in

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

Modern times

As a result, the castle was in a neglected state when it was bought, in 1837, by the baron JAP. van Brakell. He carried out a thorough restoration and a complete modernization of the castle. This revival of the castle only lasted for a short time; after the baron's death in 1844 the castle again fell into neglect. It remained neglected until 1910, when it was bought by retired artillery officer

Frederic Adolph Hoefer Frederic Adolph Hoefer (14 April 1850 – 7 October 1938) was a Dutch lieutenant-general, militaria collector and archivist. He trained at the Koninklijke Militaire Academie and is notable for founding the Legermuseum and restoring Doorwerth Castl ...

. Again the castle was thoroughly restored, undoing some of the 19th century alterations and additions. After 1913 it was used as a Dutch Artillery Museum. The castle suffered heavily in 1944 as a result of German destructiveness and Allied shelling during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Directly after WW II a lengthy restoration began that lasted until 1983. By then the castle was back into its 18th-century state and was owned by the "Friends of the Castles of Gelderland" foundation who now maintain the castle as a museum. In 1969–1970,

Erik Hazelhoff Roelfzema Siebren Erik Hazelhoff Roelfzema (3 April 1917 – 26 September 2007) was a Dutch writer who became a resistance fighter and RAF pilot during the Second World War. Near the end of the war he was adjudant (assistant) to Wilhelmina of the Netherl ...

wrote his book ''Soldaat van Oranje'' (Soldier of Orange) in the restaurant Beaulieu. Dutch film director

Stephan Brenninkmeijer Stephan Brenninkmeijer (born 27 June 1964 in Doorwerth) is a Dutch people, Dutch film director, screenwriter and producer. Life and career Brenninkmeijer was born and raised at Doorwerth Castle, Netherlands, where his father G.H. Brenninkmeijer w ...

was born at Doorwerth castle in 1964 and lived there until 1970.Official website Stephan Brenninkmeijer
/ref> In 2004, the Castle was investigated for the ghosts allegedly haunting it by the British paranormal television show

Most Haunted ''Most Haunted'' is a British paranormal reality television series. ''Most Haunted'' was first shown on Living TV between 2002 and 2010. However, it has since been revived on TV and online, via an official mobile app and YouTube Channel. Pres ...

. File:Soldaatvanoranjeboek.jpg, Translation: "To G.H. Brenninkmeijer - in memory of the hospitality and leisure enjoyed in "Beaulieu", during the writing of this book in Doorwerth, 1969–1970. Sincerely Erik Hazelhoff Roelfzema. May 1971") Image:Doorwerth, kasteel Doorwerth RM32429 foto7 2013-06-02 12.18.jpg, Doorwerth, castle: kasteel Doorwerth Image:Netherlands, Renkum, Castle Doorwerth (5).JPG, Main tower Image:Castle doorwerth bailey.jpg, Main gate Image:Kasteeltorentje.jpg, Castle tower Image:Vensterbank kasteel Doorwerth.jpg, Inside the castle Image:Robinia pseudoacacia at Doorwerth.jpg, 450-year-old ''

Robinia pseudoacacia ''Robinia pseudoacacia'', commonly known as black locust, is a medium-sized hardwood deciduous tree, belonging to the tribe Robinieae of the legume family Fabaceae. It is native to a few small areas of the United States, but it has been widely pl ...

References

*Kransber, D. & H. Mils, ''Kastelengids van Nederland, middeleeuwen'', Bussem 1979 () *Kalkwiek, K.A., A.I.J.M. Schellart, H.P.H. Jansen & P.W. Geudeke, ''Atlas van de Nederlandse kastelen'', Alphen aan den Rijn 1980 () *Helsdingen, H.W. van, ''Gids voor de Nederlandse kastelen en buitenplaatsen'', Amsterdam 1966 *Tromp, H.M.J., ''Kijk op kastelen'' Amsterdam 1979 () ;Specific

External links

Information page Doorwerth Castle
{{Authority control Buildings and structures completed in 1560 Historic house museums in the Netherlands Castles in Gelderland Museums in Gelderland Rijksmonuments in Gelderland Buildings and structures in Renkum History of Renkum

History

Modern times

See also

References

External links