Breda Castle is a castle in the city of

Breda Breda () is a city and municipality in the southern part of the Netherlands, located in the province of North Brabant. The name derived from ''brede Aa'' ('wide Aa' or 'broad Aa') and refers to the confluence of the rivers Mark and Aa. Breda has ...

, in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

History

In the 12th century, a fortress was located at

. The city of Breda came into existence near the fortress. In 1353, the Duke of Brabant sold Breda to

Jan II of Polanen Jan, JaN or JAN may refer to: Acronyms * Jackson, Mississippi (Amtrak station), US, Amtrak station code JAN * Jackson-Evers International Airport, Mississippi, US, IATA code * Jabhat al-Nusra (JaN), a Syrian militant group * Japanese Article Numb ...

(Baron of Breda). He reinforced the castle with four towers and a channel. His daughter

Johanna of Polanen Johanna van Polanen (also spelled as ''Jehenne''; 10 January 1392 – 15 May 1445) was a Dutch noblewoman. She was the daughter of John III of Polanen, Lord of Breda, and his wife, Odilia of Salm. The House of Polanen was a side branch of th ...

married in 1403 the German count

Engelbert I of Nassau Engelbert I of Nassau (, in Dillenburg3 May 1442, in Breda) was a son of Count John I of Nassau-Siegen and Countess Margaret of the Mark, daughter of Count Adolph II of the Marck. Early years Engelbert of Nassau was a student in Cologne, ...

. Their son John IV of Nassau enlarged the castle.

Henry III of Nassau-Breda Count Henry III of Nassau-Dillenburg-Dietz (January 12, 1483, Siegen – September 14, 1538, Breda), Lord (from 1530 Baron) of Breda, Lord of the Lek, of Dietz, etc. was a count of the House of Nassau. He was the son of Count John V of Nassau ...

changed the castle into a Renaissance palace in 1536. He died in 1538 and his son

René of Châlon René (''born again'' or ''reborn'' in French) is a common first name in French-speaking, Spanish-speaking, and German-speaking countries. It derives from the Latin name Renatus. René is the masculine form of the name ( Renée being the feminin ...

finished the castle and built a chapel in 1540. René of Châlon died without any children and the castle became property of his German cousin,

William I of Orange William the Silent (24 April 153310 July 1584), also known as William the Taciturn (translated from nl, Willem de Zwijger), or, more commonly in the Netherlands, William of Orange ( nl, Willem van Oranje), was the main leader of the Dutch Rev ...

, during his battle with the Spanish, it had a military function again (

Dutch revolt The Eighty Years' War or Dutch Revolt ( nl, Nederlandse Opstand) (Historiography of the Eighty Years' War#Name and periodisation, c.1566/1568–1648) was an armed conflict in the Habsburg Netherlands between disparate groups of rebels and t ...

). In 1667 the Treaty of Breda was signed by England, France and the

Republic of the Seven United Netherlands The United Provinces of the Netherlands, also known as the (Seven) United Provinces, officially as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands (Dutch: ''Republiek der Zeven Verenigde Nederlanden''), and commonly referred to in historiography ...

. This ended the second English-Dutch war. The Stadtholder - later King

William III of England William III (William Henry; ; 4 November 16508 March 1702), also widely known as William of Orange, was the sovereign Prince of Orange from birth, Stadtholder of County of Holland, Holland, County of Zeeland, Zeeland, Lordship of Utrecht, Utrec ...

- built on the castle between 1686 and 1695, but he and his successors spent little time there. During the period of French occupation in the 18th century, the castle was a military barracks and military hospital.

William I of the Netherlands William I (Willem Frederik, Prince of Orange-Nassau; 24 August 1772 – 12 December 1843) was a Prince of Orange, the King of the Netherlands and Grand Duke of Luxembourg. He was the son of the last Stadtholder of the Dutch Republic, who we ...

placed it at the disposal of the Royal Military Academy in 1826.

Thomas Vincidor Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the A ...

built three wings and later King

William II of the Netherlands William II ( nl, Willem Frederik George Lodewijk, anglicized as William Frederick George Louis; 6 December 1792 – 17 March 1849) was King of the Netherlands, Grand Duke of Luxembourg, and Duke of Limburg. William II was the son of William ...

built the fourth wing. The entrance gate is from the 16th century.

Breda Congress

Between 1746 and 1748 it was the site of the

Breda Peace Talks The Congress of Breda, also known as the Breda peace talks, were a series of bilateral negotiations between Great Britain and France, held in the Dutch city of Breda from 1746 and 1748. The discussions led to the agreement of terms that later be ...

between Britain and France during the

War of the Austrian Succession The War of the Austrian Succession () was a European conflict that took place between 1740 and 1748. Fought primarily in Central Europe, the Austrian Netherlands, Italy, the Atlantic and Mediterranean, related conflicts included King George's W ...

. The talks formed the foundation for the eventual peace settlement at Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle. Image:0191Stadhouderspoort, Kasteel van Breda.JPG, Stadtholder’s gate Image:147Binnenplaats Kasteel van Breda.JPG, Courtyard of Breda Castle Image:Breda Spanjaardsgat spinola.jpg, Spanjaardsgat, water gate Image:P1010172Blokhuis.JPG, Blokhuis Image:Huis van Brecht park.jpg, Castle of Breda Image:De inname van Breda door Prins Maurits op 4 maart 1590 in vier scènes - The capture of Breda by Prince Maurice in 1590 in 4 scenes.jpg, Capture of Breda castle in 1590 Image:156Huis van Brecht.JPG, House of Brecht

References

*Helsdingen, H.W. van, ''Gids voor de Nederlandse kastelen en buitenplaatsen'', Amsterdam 1966

External links

Virtuele rondgang Kasteel van Breda
{{in lang, nl Castles in North Brabant Rijksmonuments in North Brabant Buildings and structures in Breda History of Breda Palaces in the Netherlands

History

Breda Congress

See also

References

External links