The Fortress of Voorne, also known as the Jacoba Fortress, is in the city of Oostvoorne in the Dutch province of South-Holland. The name Jacoba Fortress comes from its use in the early 15th century by Jacqueline (Jacoba in Dutch!), Countess of Hainaut. She used it as her summer residence. The oldest part of the [read more]
The Historische Kring Voorhout (HKV) wants to rebury Jacqueline, Countess of Hainaut in the cemetery of the Maartenskerk in Sint-Maartensdijk, according to the Countess’s last wishes. She is currently buried in the court chapel in the Binnenhof in The Hague with other family members. She was born in the castle of Le Quesnoy in Hainaut [read more]
The current Castle of the Count was built in 1180 by Count Philip of Alsace. He modelled it after crusaders castles he had seen while he participated in the Second Crusade. Before the current construction, there was a wooden castle on the site. The castle was the seat of the Counts of Flanders until it [read more]
The Binnenhof (or Inner Court) in The Hague was once the residence for the Counts of Holland and was also used for the Princes of Oranges. It is now home to both houses of the States General of the Netherlands, as well as the Ministry of General Affairs and the office of the Prime Minister of [read more]
On my recent trip to Gouda I also learned about Gouda’s famous city hall. (You may now Gouda from its Cheese Markets but those are in the summer!) Building began in 1448 and ended in 1459 and it’s made from Belgian limestone. Improvements were made in 1497 for the visit of Philip the Handsome. It [read more]
Lock of hair from Jacqueline of Hainaut, though the Rijksmuseum doubt its authenticity. It was supposedly from the excavation in the chapel in the Binnenhof, but nobody was reported to have been found, but they apparently did find this. So either the body is still there somewhere, or the lock of hair is fake. Snuffbox [read more]
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