Jaap van 't Veen's photos with the keyword: Het Loo Royale Estate

The Paleispark (Palace Park) is a part of Kroondomein Het Loo (Het Loo Royal Estate). With an area of 650 hectare the park is ideal for strolling and walking. It lies adjacent to “Het Loo Palace” and around Castle Het Oude Loo . Traditionally this park was for the relaxation of the royal residents of the palace. and their guests. The origins of the park can be traced back to stadtholder Willem III, who purchased hunting lodge Het Oude Loo in 1684 together with 200 hectare land. “Het Loo Royal Estate” was also very important for Queen Wilhelmina. She purchased many acres of land and donated this to the State in 1959, retaining the rights of usage for the reigning monarch. This explains the name for the whole area: “Het Loo Royal Estate”. The palace park is only a small part of “Het Loo Royal Estate”. The park features ponds, a tea pavilion (main image and PiP1), which was often used by Queen Wilhelmina, a bath-house (PiP2), a royal horse cemetery, an old shooting range, a hunting lodge and several follies. The park is open - against a small fee - the whole year round, the part around Het Oude Loo is open for visitors only during the months April and May.

The Groene Poeltje (Little Green Puddle) is situated just outside the village of Hoog Soeren in a small valley of a hill named Pomphul . The valley with the puddle has probably already had an attraction and significance for the inhabitants of this elevated part of the Veluwe in prehistoric times. The nearby burial mounds in prove that people lived here from an early age. Due to the high altitude of Hoog Soeren, obtaining sufficient drinking water was often a problem in the past. Around 1800 a pump was installed in the valley of Pomphul. When in summer the rain barrels and wells in Hoog Soeren were dry, the villagers had to fetch water from Groene Poeltje with a barrel on a barrow. The trip with the heavy barrow back up to the village was quite a job. In 1927 the village became its own water piping. Since the 17th century, however, a water pipe made of lead, wooden and earthenware pipes ran from Pomphul to the gardens of Het Loo Palace . The construction of this 13-kilometer long pipeline was commissioned by king Willem III. The difference in height of about 30 meters caused an enormous water pressure. The final result were 20 fountains, each 4 meters high and one fountain 13 meters high; the highest spouting fountain in Europe !!

Hoog Soeren: quiet village during ( ↑ ) and before ( ↓ ) the corona crisis. Even before the beginning of our era, Germanic tribes had settlements in the area where the village of Hoog Soeren is situated. The early 20th century excavated urns from burial mounds are reminders of this. Hoog Soeren is one of the oldest settlements in the Veluwe and originated on high dry parts of the Veluwe. The proximity of some fens made an existence here possible. Early 9th century the village was mentioned as Suornom or Suornum. It had several other names before the village became in the mid 19th century its current name. This may be derived from the Old Saxon “sôr”, which means “arid” or “dry”. Not strange as Hoog Soeren is located on a height of 85 meters, a high and dry part of the Veluwe, the largest nature area in the Netherlands. Hoog Soeren is surrounded by the woods of the Kroondomein Het Loo (Het Loo Royal Estate) and is a protected village area. It has only three paved roads with a name, all other houses along dirt roads have as address the name of the village with a number. Until the end of the 19th century, Hoog Soeren was an agricultural community, which developed into a settlement for forest workers, foresters and gamekeepers. In the 1930’s many local people had to sell their farm and land. From that period on, a village with civilian houses gradually came into being and became a popular settlement for wealthy people from the western part of the country. A number of farms were transformed into residential houses, but many new houses were built as well. In the first half of the 19th century the area also became a tourist attraction - with some hotels and guesthouses - and an attractive place to live and stay for wealthy people. Nowadays Hoog Soeren has about 250 permanent inhabitants, living in 100 houses. It has no school either a shop, but a lovely little village church, which was built in 1904.

The Kathedraal (Cathedral) is a work of art by Marinus Boezem. It was donated to the Kroondomein Het Loo (Het Loo Royal Estate) by the then Queen Beatrix on the occasion of her 60th birthday to underline the connection of the House of Orange with this nature reserve. The artwork was unveiled in 1999. The work of art consists of 40 bronze tree trunks on a concrete foundation. They have been placed exactly according to the floor plan of Reims Cathedral, on a surface area of 125 by 35 meters. The stumps are casts of a by the artist modeled clay model. The Kathedraal is one of the most hidden and inaccessible works of art in the Netherlands. Located in the middle of the woods - not signposted - of the Kroondomein Het Loo it can only be reached on foot or by bicycle.

Kasteel Het Oude Loo (Castle Het Oude Loo) is dating back to the early 15th century when it was a farm, which later was fortified. When it came into the possession of the Bentinck family the moated castle as we see it today was built and enlarged between 1538 and 1540. In those days it was used as a hunting lodge by Karel, Duke of Gelre. In 1684 Prince Willem III van Oranje, Stadtholder of Holland and Zeeland acquired the castle. He also used it as a hunting lodge. Soon the castle became too small for his hunting parties and he built Paleis Het Loo (the Loo Palace) in 1686-88. In 1795, when the French occupied Holland, the castle was used as a military hospital and the castle fell into neglect. In 1806 Napoleon Bonaparte appointed his brother Louis Napoleon as King of The Netherlands. Louis resided in the castle during summers. He filled up the moat around the castle. In 1904 Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands ordered the restoration of the castle. This was done by the famous Dutch architect Cuypers. In the 1950's and 1960's other restoration works were carried out. Since 1968 the castle has been owned by the Dutch state. In 1973 it became a national heritage site. Kasteel Het Oude Loo - located within the Paleispark - is nowadays used by the Dutch royal family as country house and guest residence. The castle itself is not open for the public, but the surrounding fenced garden/park can be visited during April and May.

The Paleispark (Palace park) is a part of Kroondomein Het Loo (Het Loo Royal Estate). With an area of 650 hectare the park is ideal for strolling and walking. It lies adjacent to Paleis Het Loo and around Kasteel Het Loo . Traditionally this park (PiP 5 and 6) was for the relaxation of the royal residents of and their guests. The origins of the palace park can be traced back to stadtholder Willem III, who purchased hunting lodge Het Oude Loo in 1684 together with 200 hectare land. Het Loo Royal Estate was also very important for Queen Wilhelmina. She purchased many acres of land and donated this to the State in 1959, retaining the rights of usage for the reigning monarch. This explains the name for the whole area: Kroondomein Het Loo (Het Loo Royal Estate). The palace park is only a small part of Het Loo Royal Estate. The park features ponds (PiP1), a tea pavilion (main image and PiP2), which was often used by Queen Wilhelmina, a bath-house, a royal horse cemetery (PiP3), an old shooting range, a hunting lodge (PiP4) and several follies. The park is open - against a small fee - the whole year round, the fenced part around Het Oude Loo is open for visitors only during the months April and May.