Egmond Abbey

The abbey at Egmond was founded around 950 and was the oldest and for centuries the most important monastery in the county of Holland - the counts were buried here, the Egmond annals were written here, and the library produced manuscripts including the Gospels of Egmond, the oldest illuminated manuscript made in the northern Netherlands, now in The Hague. In 1573, during the revolt, the abbey was destroyed by the Geuzen to prevent the Spanish using it, and it stayed a ruin for three and a half centuries. Benedictines returned in 1935 and built a new abbey on the site, plain brick in the manner of the period, and the community is there now, making beer, candles and pottery which are sold at the shop. There is a small museum on the abbey's history and the medieval foundations are marked in the ground.

What you actually see

• A foundation of about 950 - the oldest abbey in the county of Holland.
• Destroyed in 1573 - pulled down during the revolt and ruined for 350 years.
• A 1930s rebuild - plain brick abbey with Benedictines in residence again.
• Abbey products - beer, candles and pottery made and sold on site.

When to go

April to October. Half a day.

Honest expectations

Almost nothing medieval survives above ground - the buildings are twentieth-century. It is a working monastery and access is limited to the church, shop and museum. The village is small.

Nearby

Egmond aan Zee and the dunes are west; Alkmaar is east.