Doorwerth Castle is a fine example of a waterburcht (moated castle), with the thick outer walls providing protection together with the water. The castle is situated on an ideal spot.
Robber baron
The castle is first mentioned in 1260. The rapacious practices of the lord of the castle, Berend van Dorenweerd, were a thorn in the sides of the Count of Gelre and the Bishop of Utrecht. In the course of a siege, the then wooden castle was destroyed and burnt. Soon afterwards, the castle was rebuilt by Berend’s son, Hendric, this time with sturdy outsize bricks, baked from local river clay.
Tower-house
The oldest part of the stone castle consisted of a rectangular tower-house. This was surrounded by a moat and can still be recognised as the present east wing. The south wing was built on to the small castle during the 14th century. At the start of the 15th century, Reinald van Homoet was the lord of the castle. He built the outer defences and the massive tower house on the north side. The last significant expansion took place in the middle of the 16th century, with the extension of the south wing and construction of the tower in the southwest.
Medieval
The subsequent owners of the castle rarely lived there. Consequently, they were not inclined to modernise everything, which is probably why Doorwerth still has its medieval exterior. The castle suffered its worst attack more recently. It came under heavy fire during the liberation of the south of the Netherlands in September 1944.
Rebuilt
After the war, little remained but a sad pile of rubble. It took no less than 37 years to restore the castle to its former glory. Since 1983, it has again been possible to admire it in all its magnificence, and Doorwerth is one of the loveliest medieval castles of the Netherlands.
