Castle Buren
[2] Tuff stone, originating from the German Eifel, was widely used for castle construction since the eleventh and twelfth centuries.
Due to its strategically important location, the Lordship of Buren had strong rulers for centuries.
The Lords of Buren, who were the first to inhabit the castle, regulated water management, were the local lawmakers, and organized the oldest buildings along the river Korne.
They held high military and political positions, serving as commanders and advisors to emperors, guardians of hereditary princes, and stewards in large parts of the Netherlands.
Frederik van Egmond had it repaired and transformed into a comfortable residential palace in the early sixteenth century.
The castle became a 'Palazzo in Fortezza', a structure where a palace or noble residence is incorporated or built within a fortress of fortified complex.
Count Floris van Egmont (1570–1539) brought Alessandro Pasqualini from Bologna, Papal States, to Buren in 1537.
In six years, the castle was transformed into a luxurious Florentine Renaissance-style palace, with four corner towers and one hundred seventy rooms.
Together with the outer bailey, the double moat, and three drawbridges, along with four bastions and gun emplacements, they provided grandeur and security.
With its streets perpendicular to each other, all leading to the city wall, Buren still retains the form of an Italian-French bastide (fortified town) to this day.
In 1545, Count Maximilian received a high-profile visit from Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, accompanied by, among others, his twelve-year-old page, William, Prince of Orange (1533–1584).
In 1551, the Archbishop of Cologne blessed the marriage of Prince William of Orange and Countess Anna of Egmond-Buren in the chapel of Buren Castle.
[2] Unfortunately, he was abducted on the orders of King Philip II of Spain and spent much of his life in Spanish exile.
Due to Philip William's forced stay in Spain, his brother Maurice, Prince of Orange (1567–1625) assumed control of the County of Buren.
Maurice led the struggle for freedom of the Netherlands against Spain and could spare little attention to Buren Castle.
It was intended to impress the numerous high-ranking guests, including Queen Henrietta Maria of England (1609–1669).
William II (son of Frederick Henry) and his wife Mary Stuart showed no interest in Buren.
The castle was largely stripped of its furnishings, the gardens became overgrown, and the building fell into disrepair.
King-Stadtholder William III had the most beautiful pieces transferred to his newly built hunting lodge, Soestdijk Palace.
The gardener and plantation master Cornelis van Langelaar (1676–1748), appointed in 1705, gradually rose to higher positions within the Domain Council, the management authority on behalf of the successive stadtholders.
[1] Large quantities of wood, stone, and tiles, monumental fireplaces and doors, stairs, ornate pilasters and gates were sold and ended up in farmhouses or served as building materials for houses in Buren.
Various remaining building fragments are located in the Egmond Hall of the Buren & Orange Museum.
In the Oranjemuseum in the town of Buren, there is a large model that very accurately depicts the castle as it appeared at its peak.
