Why you should visit the Ruins of Brederode

Last summer I finally visited the Ruins of Brederode, only a few kilometers from my house.

Isn’t it strange how these things work?
I live in Haarlem for almost 20 years now and paying the Ruins a visit had been in the back of my mind all this time. But as is often the case, if something is so within your reach, you keep thinking: “Oh well, no hurry, I can do that any day…”.

Fortunately in this case this turned out to be true. Numerous are the occasions though, in which whatever I was planning to visit did not exist anymore by the time I actually went for it.
Then again; missing out is just a concept in our mind, isn’t it?

Anyhow, together with a friend I went there on a beautiful summer day and we spent a delightful 1-2 hours in and around the ruins.

It was really a beautiful summer day. Being Holland, of course it still was pretty windy;-). Hence my Coupe Hurricane.

While I was high up in one of the structures, friend H. was taking a break. Do you see the art exhibit around him?

What are the Ruins of Brederode

Brederode Castle (Dutch: Kasteel Brederode), also called the Ruins of Brederode (Dutch: Ruïne van Brederode), is located near Santpoort-Zuid. Which is near Haarlem. Which is near Amsterdam. Just saying;-).

The castle was founded in the second half of the 13th century by William I van Brederode.

It was at first not more than a tower, but around 1300 Dirk II van Brederode had the tower pulled down and replaced with a proper castle.

Scale model of the castle as it once was.

During the next centuries, several wars brought severe damage to the castle. It was demolished, rebuilt, damaged again and finally plundered by German soldiers in 1492.

That was the end of it and in 1568 it fell to the States of Holland. Ever since, the ruins have been property of the State.

In the 19th century the ruins were one of the first buildings to be restored by the government, and they became the first national monument of the Netherlands.

Why you should visit the Ruins of Brederode

1. The Ruins of Brederode are located in a peaceful, green area which is worth a visit by itself.
2. The contrast of the red bricks of the Ruins with all the greens of the meadows and trees and the blue skies is very photogenic.
3. How often can you walk around in what once was a proper castle? The huge fireplaces and thick walls speak to your imagination. It’s not hard to imagine how it must have felt to live here in those days.
4. Imagining how life was in those days is made even easier by all the information and explanations on site. I found it very interesting.
   

   You find all sorts of information and explanations in and around the ruins.

   

5. The views from high up in the towers are pretty.
6. When we were there, the castle and the grounds formed the stage for an art exhibition of sculptures, small and large. I don’t know wether in 2016 there will be an art exhibition as well. There was one during the past 7 years, so it’s very well possible.
   

   If you look closely, you can see sculptures scattered in the gardens here and there.

   

7. The Ruins of Brederode are open to the public thanks to a small group of enthusiastic volunteers, which I find admirable.

When and how to best visit the Ruins of Brederode

• opening hours and dates: wednesdays, fridays, saturdays and sundays. More details (in Dutch) below.
• There are coffee-concerts on a number of sundays. The upcoming one is by a tango-orchestra! If only I were in Holland on that date… I would attend for sure, being a tango-afficionada! Check out the concert-schedule below:

  

• website: heerlijkheid-brederode.nl
• art: I have not been able to find any info for 2016. Check their website.
• cost: 3 euro for adults, so no reason to skip this sight.
• how to get there: the adress is Velserenderlaan 2, 2082LA, Santpoort-Zuid. You can get there by car (free parking available). From Haarlem you can also go there by bike. It’s about 7 km.
  

  Bike route from my home in Haarlem to the Ruins of Brederode.

• itinerary; combining it with other attractions in the area.:
  

  The Ruins of Brederode are easy to combine in a half-day or day-trip with Haarlem, Elswout Estate (read more here) and/or the dunes and Bloemendaal beach.(read more here)

• eat/drink: you can have coffee, tea or a soda in the most simple setting, but that’s about it. I guess you could bring your own picknick along and have it at one of the tables that are set up. Or you can choose to have your drinks, lunch or dinner elsewhere en route.
• accessiblility: children and dogs are welcome. The site is not really accessible for wheelchairs and there are steps to be climbed.

Have you ever visited a (former) castle? Where was this? Was it any good?