Castle Oud Wassenaar

The former castle Oud-Wassenaar was the summer residence of Betsy van der Hoop and her husband Guillaume Groen van Prinsterer.

In 1871, C.J. van der Oudermeulen, stable master in the extraordinary service of King William III and, among other things, the Water Board of Rhineland, bought the country estate Oud Wassenaar. According to the cadastral map from 1822, the country house was then situated on the Schouwweg in a park layout with a partly formal avenue structure such as the Oud Wassenaarseweg, Groen van Prinstererlaan and Lindelaan. The old castle was demolished in 1872. The formal part of the estate, along the straight avenues, was parcelled out into a villa park and built on in the following years.

In the years 1876-1879, a new large house was built on the same site, commissioned by Van der Oudermeulen, with a stepped gable, side wings and towers. It was designed by the neo-Renaissance architect Constantijn Muysken, who had studied Italian architecture in the preceding period.

The hall measures 182m² and is surrounded by twelve columns of Scottish granite. Around the hall are the 'white salon', the hunting room with separate bar, the ballroom and the two French salons. The extension at the rear of the castle was designed by Co Brandes. Between 2001 and 2005 the exterior of the building was restored. The anchoring was in poor condition and dormers broke due to rust. Almost all the lead, zinc and slate has been renewed. The restoration of the extension and the interior has still not been carried out due to lack of money.

The castle is located in a large park; The park is owned by the apartment owners. Around 1877, a design for/sketch of the former country estate was made by the German garden and landscape architect Eduard Petzold. This design has not been carried out.

The hotel

In 1910 the castle was used as a hotel and restaurant. The operation was difficult, and the building was sold several times. During World War II, the Nazis used the house to accommodate foreign guests.

After the war, the castle was refurbished. The guestbook features famous names such as Winston Churchill, Paul-Henri Spaak, General Montgomery and Oe Thant. Many large parties were given, including a wedding party for Princess Margriet and Pieter van Vollenhoven in 1967. Parties and celebrations are organized and it has been one of the non-municipal wedding locations of Wassenaar for several years.

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