Muiderslot, the Netherlands

The Muiderslot or Muiden Castle is a medieval castle located at the mouth of the river Vecht in the town of Muiden in the province of North Holland, the Netherlands. The castle was built by Count Floris V of Holland around 1280. After his death in 1296 was the castle captured by the bishop of Utrecht, Willem van Mechlen who afterwards destroyed it. In 1370 was the castle rebuilt by Duke Albrecht, Count of Holland. The present appearance of the Muiderslot dates from 1387 when the northeast wing was added.



In 1433 the castle passed to the Burgundian house which owned the Muiderslot until 1477 the castle passed to the city of Amsterdam which added a moat at the end of the 15th century. From the 16th century onward the Muderslot became the residence of the bailiff. Between 1609 and 1647 the castle housed P.C. Hooft, a famous author, poet and historian who took over sheriff and bailiff duties for the area Het Gooiland. He invited to the Muiderlot his friends, scholars, poets and painters such as Vondel, Huygens, Bredero and Maria Tesselschade. This group became known as Muiderkring and regularly met at the castle. At the end of the 18th century the castle for a short period served as a prison but was later abandoned and fell into neglect. At the end of the 19th century was the Muiderslot restored and is today opened to the public as a national museum (Rijksmuseum).