Professor van der Hoeve Estate

From the eighteenth century onwards, the area around Zundert was discovered by regent families who fled the big city. Especially in summer, the heat and stench were unbearable. In the nineteenth century, the habit of spending the summer in the countryside really took on great proportions. More and more bourgeois families followed the example of the aristocracy. By also purchasing a country estate, they were able to give their family a quasi-aristocratic status. There was another reason why citizens founded estates. For a long time, until about 1875, the wealthy bourgeoisie in the Netherlands had little interest in new technical developments. She continued to rely on trade. In these circles, the focus remained on a 'crafty' business. Rather than investing their profits in innovation, they invested in land and reclamation. Heathland was also for sale at very low prices. In addition, the municipality of Zundert became more easily accessible through the construction of a road from Antwerp to Breda (1800-1813), a so-called Napoleonsweg. In 1807 Govert van der Hoeven acquired a complex of estates under Zundert, including De Moeren, Oude Buissche Heide and Pannenhoef, together it was more than 2000 hectares, which is 20 km²! In 1817, Govert had the country house De Moeren built on the Het Anker estate, in the classicist style that was popular at the time.

Toineke