Villa Mariënhof

Villa Mariënhof is a historic mansion with a garden located along the Bredaseweg in the Dutch city Tilburg.

It was built on the north side of the Bredaseweg, where ribbon development of large detached houses with gardens started to take a hold in the 1930s.

[3] The government organization Staatsbosbeheer inherited the property from Charles Janssen, Jos' son, in 1986 with the request to conserve the mansion for at least 25 years.

[4][5] It subsequently served as a regional headquarters for that organization, and it was renovated in the late 1980s, adding among other things a fire escape.

According to the Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed, the building has cultural-historical importance as it serves as an example of the construction of estates along the arteries entering industrial towns.

That price did not include the lot on which the mansion stands, as Staatsbosbeheer planned to lease this to a seller (erfpacht).

[4] Because the estate agent did not manage to sell the property, Staatsbosbeheer dropped the preference for residential usage and a private seller later that year, although the zoning plans still required an alteration to allow for extensions or other uses.

[9] The mansion was designed by Johan Wilhelm Hanrath, a Dutch architect from Hilversum, in the traditionalist and rationalist styles.

A leaded window above the door shows Noah's Ark, the dates "1890 - 2 december - 1940" and the signature of stained glass artist Pieter Wiegersma.

The kitchen and scullery have floors with a chessboard pattern and panelling of white glazed tiles with images.

[10] The forested garden with a size of 18,000 m2 (190,000 sq ft) was designed by landscape architect Leonard Springer, who was also responsible for the Leijpark in Tilburg.

[2] Another lawn is located directly behind the house and is surrounded by weeping beeches, silver lindens, and oak trees.

Bald cypresses, larches, and Douglas firs were planted at the former location of the kitchen garden and orchard.

Front and east side facades with the sunroom visible
Teahouse, seen from the road