Nederland - Kasteel Heeswijk

Kasteel Heeswijk (Heeswijk Castle) was originally built around 1080 by inhabitants of the valley of the river Aa as a motte, a moated refuge.’Count Almericus van Heeswijk’ ís the first (1156) known castle dweller. In the 13th century the castle becomes the property of the family ‘Van Bentheim’, who enlarged the castle at the end of that century.

In subsequent years, the castle had several owners and it was rebuilt and expanded many times. In 1834 Belgian ‘André baron van den Bogaerde van Terbruggen’ bought Heeswijk Castle and of course it was rebuilt again. He and his descendants were art collectors and decorated the castle with all kinds of art and the castle was partly used as a museum; its nickname was ‘Musée de Bogaerde’.

The last noble descendant died in 1994 and since that time the castle is owned by The Heeswijk Castle Foundation. Nowadays the castle, gatehouse and coach house are used for cultural activities and/or are housing a café, restaurant and conference rooms. The castle can be visited during a guided tour, while the garden and surrounding park are free of charge.