Slot Loevestein

Loevestein was built around 1360 by Dirc Loef van Horne at the point where the Maas and Waal met, to tax and control river traffic, and it was later absorbed into the Hollandse Waterlinie as a strongpoint - it is part of the Dutch Water Defence Lines on the UNESCO list. From 1619 it was used as a state prison, and its most famous inmate was Hugo Grotius, jurist and founder of modern international law, imprisoned for life for his part in the religious and political conflict of the period. In March 1621 his wife Maria van Reigersberch arranged his escape in the chest used to bring him books, carried out past the guards; he reached Paris and wrote On the Law of War and Peace. The chest at the castle is a copy - several museums claim the original. The castle is reached by ferry, which is the right approach.

What you actually see

• A castle of about 1360 - built to control the river junction, later a defence-line fort.
• The Grotius escape - the book chest carried out past the guards in 1621.
• A state prison - the castle's use from 1619 onward.
• A river confluence - the Maas and Waal meeting below the walls.

When to go

April to October. Half a day.

Honest expectations

The book chest shown is a replica and the location of the original is disputed. Ferries are seasonal and stop in ice or high water. Closed Mondays outside summer. The road approach is long.

Nearby

Woudrichem and Gorinchem are across the water by ferry.