- Loevestein
Castle Loevestein ("Slot Loevestein" in Dutch) is a
medieval castle built by theknight Dirc Loef van Horne in1368 . It was built at a strategic location in the middle of theNetherlands , where the Maas andWaal rivers come together (just west of current day villagesPoederoijen and Brakel, in the municipality ofZaltbommel , inGelderland ). Originally it was simply a large stone building, used to charge toll for boats on the rivers. In the 17th century it was expanded into a more modern fortress withearth walls , twomoat s, anarsenal , and housing for a commander and soldiers. The castle soon became aprison forpolitical prisoners . A famous resident was Hugo de Groot (Hugo Grotius ) who was serving out a lifelong sentence since1619 . In1621 Hugo de Groot managed to pull off a daring and famous escape in a book-chest.Until the Second World War Loevestein Castle was part of the
Nieuwe Hollandse Waterlinie , the main Dutch defense line.Currently the castle is used as a medieval museum.
In literature
In
Alexandre Dumas, père 'sThe Black Tulip , the main character Cornelius Van Baerle is imprisoned in the Loevestein.External links
* [http://www.slotloevestein.nl home page (in Dutch)]
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