Bronkhorst is a village in the municipality of

Bronckhorst Bronckhorst () is a municipality in Gelderland, the Netherlands. The municipality is the result of a merger of the former municipalities Hengelo, Hummelo en Keppel, Steenderen, Vorden and Zelhem, on 1 January 2005. The municipality is named aft ...

, Gelderland, the Netherlands. Technically, it is a city (see below) and with only 157 inhabitants (2010), it is one of the smallest cities in the Netherlands (after Staverden, Eembrugge and Sint Anna ter Muiden).

Early history

The early history of Bronkhorst is, as is common for Dutch towns, largely unknown. It is possible that in the 7th century farmers settled on and around the hill on which a castle would be built later. The hill formed a refuge amidst the low-lying, fertile clay in the area, which is close to the river

IJssel The IJssel (; nds-nl, Iessel(t) ) is a Dutch distributary of the river Rhine that flows northward and ultimately discharges into the IJsselmeer (before the 1932 completion of the Afsluitdijk known as the Zuiderzee), a North Sea natural harbo ...

Lords of Bronkhorst

Bronkhorst used to be a lordship. The earliest known lord of Bronkhorst was Gijsbert of Bronkhorst (1140), son of Adam of Bronkhorst, first mentioned in 1127. He and some of his descendants played an important role in the politics of the time. The last Bronkhorst, Joost, died in 1553, after which the domain fell to the widow of Georg of Limburg.

Castle

In the Middle Ages, a castle was erected on the aforementioned hill. It is first mentioned in a 14th-century document. It consisted of a

keep A keep (from the Middle English ''kype'') is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word ''keep'', but usually consider it to refer to large towers in ...

and associated buildings and was surrounded by a thick wall and a wide moat. It was sieged several times, most notably in 1582, when after nine months Dutch troops captured the castle, which was occupied by the Spanish. (See

Eighty Years War The Eighty Years' War or Dutch Revolt ( nl, Nederlandse Opstand) ( c.1566/1568–1648) was an armed conflict in the Habsburg Netherlands between disparate groups of rebels and the Spanish government. The causes of the war included the Re ...

.) The castle changed hands many times, until its last owner, a merchant, had it demolished in 1828.

Town

In a document dated 13 March 1482, Gijsbert VII granted city rights to the inhabitants of the village Bronkhorst, which was right next to the castle. Concretely this meant, among other things, that they were given limited self-government and were allowed to administer the law to some extent.

Culture

Bronkhorst is known for its picturesque buildings, and housed a museum dedicated to

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...

which also contained items purchased from the former Dickens museum at Eastgate House in

Rochester, Kent Rochester ( ) is a town in the unitary authority of Medway, in Kent, England. It is at the lowest bridging point of the River Medway, about from London. The town forms a conurbation with neighbouring towns Chatham, Rainham, Strood and Gil ...

Gallery

Image:Bronkhorst Windmill.JPG, The Bronkhorst Windmill Image:De Bronkhorster Molen.JPG, Windmill information board (in Dutch) Image:Bronkhorst 1.JPG Image:Bronkhorst 2.JPG Image:Bronkhorst 3.JPG Image:Bronkhorst 4.JPG, Onderstraat 8

References

External links

See

Sources Source may refer to: Research * Historical document * Historical source * Source (intelligence) or sub source, typically a confidential provider of non open-source intelligence * Source (journalism), a person, publication, publishing institute ...

. {{Authority control Populated places in Gelderland Bronckhorst