The Prinsenhof (

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

; literally "Princes' Court") or Hof ten Walle ("Court at the Walls") was a historic building in

Ghent Ghent ( nl, Gent ; french: Gand ; traditional English: Gaunt) is a city and a municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the East Flanders province, and the third largest in the country, exceeded in ...

East Flanders , native_name_lang = , settlement_type = Province of Belgium , image_flag = Flag of Oost-Vlaanderen.svg , flag_size = , image_shield = Wapen van O ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

which served as the official residence of the

Counts of Flanders The count of Flanders was the ruler or sub-ruler of the county of Flanders, beginning in the 9th century. Later, the title would be held for a time, by the rulers of the Holy Roman Empire and Spain. During the French Revolution, in 1790, the co ...

from the 15th century after the

Gravensteen The Gravensteen (Dutch; literally "Castle of the Counts") is a medieval castle at Ghent, East Flanders in Belgium. The current castle dates from 1180 and was the residence of the Counts of Flanders until 1353. It was subsequently re-purposed as a c ...

fell into disuse. It was used by the Counts of Flanders since at least 1366, having previously been the home of the financier Simon de Mirabello. It was completely rebuilt by

Philip the Good Philip III (french: Philippe le Bon; nl, Filips de Goede; 31 July 1396 – 15 June 1467) was Duke of Burgundy from 1419 until his death. He was a member of a cadet line of the Valois dynasty, to which all 15th-century kings of France belonge ...

(1396–1467) who lived there in his youth.

Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, french: Charles Quint, it, Carlo V, nl, Karel V, ca, Carles V, la, Carolus V (24 February 1500 – 21 September 1558) was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519 to 1556, King of Spain (Crown of Castile, Castil ...

was born there in 1500. Today only the

postern A postern is a secondary door or gate in a fortification such as a city wall or castle curtain wall. Posterns were often located in a concealed location which allowed the occupants to come and go inconspicuously. In the event of a siege, a postern ...

gate survives. File:Aula principis gandivi.jpg, Engraving of the ''Prinsenhof'' from ''

Flandria Illustrata ''Flandria Illustrata'' is a historiographical and topographical work from 1641 by the Flemish canon Antonius Sanderus. It contains historical descriptions of the main towns and villages of the former County of Flanders, in addition to the lives ...

'' (1641) File:Gent STAM Prinsenhof doopstoet Karel V anoniem 17e eeuw 12-10-2010 12-00-50.png, An anonymous 17th century painting depicting the ''Prinsenhof'' in the lifetime of

File:Prinsenhof, Gent (1823).PNG, Gateway to the ''Prinsenhof'', depicted in 1823 File:Hoftenwalle.JPG, Modern-day view of the entrance gate to the ''Prinsenhof''

External links

{{coord, 51.0592, N, 3.71574, E, region:BE_type:landmark, display=title Buildings and structures in Ghent County of Flanders Tourist attractions in Ghent

See also

External links