Drakensteyn Castle

Castle Drakensteyn
Lage Vuursche, the Netherlands
A model of Drakensteyn in Madurodam
Engraving by Hendrik Spilman after Jan de Beijer (1750)
Castle Drakensteyn
Coordinates	52°10′47″N 5°13′38″E
Type	Castle
Site information
Owner	Princess Beatrix
Open to the public	No
Condition	Good
Site history
Built	1640 (1640)
Built by	Gerard van Reede

Drakensteyn (sometimes "Drakesteijn" or "Drakestein") is a small castle at 9 Slotlaan in the hamlet of Lage Vuursche, in the municipality of Baarn, Netherlands. It is owned by Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands, the country's former Queen who abdicated in 2013. Beatrix bought the castle in 1959, when she was the heir to the Dutch throne, and took up residence in 1963. After her marriage in 1966 she continued to live there with her husband, Prince Claus and later their three sons as well. After Beatrix succeeded her mother Juliana as Queen of the Netherlands in 1980, the family moved to The Hague in 1981.

On January 28, 2013, it was announced that Beatrix would take up residence at the castle after her son, Willem-Alexander, ascended to the Dutch throne on April 30, 2013. On February 2, 2014, Beatrix moved in to the castle.

A house called Drakesteijn at this location was first mentioned in 1359, but the current building was constructed in the years 1640–1643 for a Gerard van Reede. It should not be confused with the nearby Klein Drakesteijn ("Little Drakesteijn"; located at 4 Kloosterlaan), which was built in 1780.

The royal connection aside, its most distinctive feature is its octagonal shape. It is surrounded by a moat that can be crossed via a bridge. Its style can be described as Classicist.

See also

• List of castles in the Netherlands

External links

• Page on the Royal House site
• Media related to Drakensteyn at Wikimedia Commons