The Catshuis (English: Cats House), initially known as Huis Sorgvliet (Sorgvliet House), is the

official residence An official residence is the House, residence of a head of state, head of government, governor, Clergy, religious leader, leaders of international organizations, or other senior figure. It may be the same place where they conduct their work-relate ...

of the

Prime Minister of the Netherlands The prime minister of the Netherlands ( nl, Minister-president van Nederland) is the head of the executive branch of the Government of the Netherlands. Although the monarch is the ''de jure'' head of government, the prime minister ''de facto'' ...

. Built between 1651 and 1652 for

Jacob Cats Jacob Cats (10 November 1577 – 12 September 1660) was a Dutch poet, humorist, jurist and politician. He is most famous for his emblem books. Early years Jacob Cats was born on 10 November 1577 in Brouwershaven as son of Adriaen Cornelis ...

as private villa, it was renamed after him after his death. The Catshuis lies in

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital o ...

on the road to

Scheveningen Scheveningen is one of the eight districts of The Hague, Netherlands, as well as a subdistrict (''wijk'') of that city. Scheveningen is a modern seaside resort with a long, sandy beach, an esplanade, a pier, and a lighthouse. The beach is ...

. It has been the official residence of the Prime Minister of the Netherlands since 1963, although Dries van Agt was the last premier to live there. Prime Ministers since then have preferred to live in their own homes, such as the current Prime Minister

Mark Rutte Mark Rutte (; born 14 February 1967) is a Dutch politician who has served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands since 2010 and Leader of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) since 2006. After a business career working for Unileve ...

, who lives in a flat in the centre of The Hague, closer to his official office, the

Torentje The Torentje ( Dutch: ''Het Torentje''; English: "The Little Tower"), located at the Binnenhof in The Hague next to the Mauritshuis museum, has been the official office of the Prime Minister of the Netherlands since 1982. History This small oct ...

in the

Binnenhof The Binnenhof (; en, Inner Court) is a complex of buildings in the city centre of The Hague, Netherlands, next to the Hofvijver lake. It houses the meeting place of both houses of the States General of the Netherlands, as well as the Ministry ...

complex. The Catshuis residence is mainly used to house political meetings and receive official guests.

History

As Huis Sorgvliet it was built on the site of a former farm, probably part of the living quarters were incorporated in the left wing, by

(1577–1660), a prominent poet and politician who lived there from 14 July 1652. Originally it had only one storey. In 1675 estate Sorgvliet came into the possession of Hans Willem Bentinck, chamberlain of the future King-Stadholder William III (1650–1702). His son, Willem Bentinck, had a bronze bell and tower installed in 1738. To conform with modern norms of security, logistics, climatisation, hygiene, comfort and technical aspects of management, it was extensively renovated from 1999 to 2004.

Sources

*Introductiedossier Ministerie van Algemene Zaken (in Dutch)
Catshuis
{{coord, 52.090, N, 4.285, E, display=title, source:nlwiki Official residences in the Netherlands Prime ministerial residences