Kasteel Ammersoyen

Ammersoyen was completed in the 1350s on the Maas in the Bommelerwaard and it is one of the best-preserved castles of its type in the country: a square block with four round corner towers, a courtyard and a moat, the standard plan of the period, built in one campaign rather than accumulated. It was damaged in 1590 and altered afterwards, served as a convent from 1876, and burned in 1944. The restoration that followed, running from 1957 to 1975, took the decision to remove the later alterations and take the building back to its fourteenth-century state, which is a debatable approach and produced a very legible medieval castle at the cost of four centuries of subsequent history. The interiors hold an exhibition on the castle and medieval life and the towers are climbable. The village and church are beside it.

History

Historians generally agree that the Van Herlaer family completed the castle in the 1350s, on a branch of the Maas; a few years later the river was rerouted, leaving the castle surrounded by its moat. Dirk van Herlaer built it, and after his death in 1354 it passed to his eldest son Gerhard and then to Gerhard's brother Arent (Wikipedia, Ammersoyen Castle).

What's there

• A square four-tower plan - built in one campaign in the 1350s, the classic type.
• A restoration back to the 14th century - later centuries removed in the 1957-1975 work.
• Climbable corner towers - the wall walk and the moat below.
• A castle that burned in 1944 - restored after the fire.

When to go

April to October. Half a day.

Practical notes

The restoration deliberately erased post-medieval layers, which visitors interested in later periods will notice. Seasonal opening, closed Mondays. The village is small.

Nearby

Zaltbommel is east; Den Bosch is south.

Key facts