History Built, Torn Down and Restored...

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

Let’s look inside Ammersoyen Castle and find out more about it’s history: the first photo is fairly similar to how it all looks now, but it’s looked very differently at various times over centuries past.

Around 1386 Willem van Gulik, Duke of Gelre took the castle by force and retained occupancy for 25 years. In 1412 Duke Reinald V gifted Ammersoyen Castle to his  illegitimate son; Willem van Wachtendonk, who in 1424  sold the castle to Johan van Broekhuizen, Lord of Waardenburg.

The Van Arkel family came into ownership of the castle by marriage in 1496 and subsequent generations of this family lived in it until 1694 in spite of it being damaged by siege and occupation by Burgundian troops under Count Hendrik van Nassau.

The castle suffered invasion and occupation again by Spanish troops in 1574, but the retreating troops of Prince Willem van Oranje fled swiftly, saving the castle from serious damage.

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

Sadly the castle’s luck ran out in 1590 when it was destroyed by fire, and the political uncertainly of the 80 Years War  meant that that rebuilding of the ruin did not start until 1648,  a project that took 19 years to finish as unusually for the time, they chose to rebuild it in the former medieval style.

Although 17th Century modernizations were added during the rebuilding, many medieval elements remained hidden behind plaster and bricked up doorways.

French troops invaded the Netherlands in 1672, destroying many castles on their path.

The last Lord of the Van Arkel family saved the castle by paying a ransom of fl 7000,-  to the French. This left him financial difficulties and when he died in 1694, ownership of the house passed to several families from the Southern Netherlands (present day Belgium).

It wasn’t however permanently inhabited at this time because its owners spent most of their time at their estates in the Southern Netherlands.

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

The last Lord of Ammersoyen was  Baron Arthur de Woelmont.  who sold the castle, completely emptied, in 1873 to the Roman Catholic Church of Ammerzoden, presumably after he lost a game of dice with the local priest.

The Church then founded a convent in the castle. The moat was filled in and a large chapel was built against and incorporated into the castle.

The  religious use of Ammersoyen Castle ended when it was heavily shelled by Allied troops in World War II.

After the war the remaining structure was used by a local business man as a factory producing washing machines, and as the village hall until 1957.

In that year the “Friends of the Castles of Gelderland Foundation“  bought the castle and started an extensive restoration which succeeded in finished bringing castle back to it’s medieval splendor by 1975.

I thought these were old cannonballs but we are told by the volunteer guide that these are the “ammunition” that was fired from invaders catapults…

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

This damage not from catapults but from the Second World War…

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

Wrecked rooms show the enormity of the  renovation project… however the silver lining was that during the work, medieval staircases were discovered that had been ‘covered over” by occupants in previous centuries.

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

Items recovered during the renovations…

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

Notice there are no forks… they hadn’t been yet invented at the time that these spoons,  knives  and plates were made…

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

Before the restoration the moat had been drained and the Catholic Church had added a building to the side of the castle walls… this building has been removed to restore the castle back to it’s original state and the moat refilled.

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

The post-war washing machine factory occupied this space in the lower castle and it was decided to utilise the space as a visitor centre and cafe area … sorry the photos are dim as these rooms are on lower levels and the windows are deep set and  tiny…

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

There’s also small table with local produce and goods…naturally we had to buy one of these delicious looking round cheeses…

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

tapestry on the wall…

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)