Kruiningen Castle

Kruiningen Castle is a former castle which was situated in the village of the same name, in the province of Zeeland in the Netherlands.

When exactly Kruiningen Castle was built is unknown. It was the seat of the Lords of Kruiningen. The first Lord of Kruiningen; Wouter van Kruiningen, was first mentioned in 1198. The castle itself was first mentioned in 1304 when William the Good, as William III, Count of Holland, aided the Lords of Kruiningen financially for the upkeep of their castle. Apparently the castle had been damaged in the years before, during fights between John II, Count of Holland, and Guy, Count of Flanders.

In the beginning of the 80 Years' War, the last Lord of Kruiningen, Maximilian, sided with the Spanish Crown and entered military service. After his death in 1612 the castle went to his daughter, Louise. After she and her husband, Philippe de Recourt, baron of Liques, also sided with the Spanish, the castle was forfeited by the Dutch Republic.

After the Peace of Münster, in 1648, the States of Zeeland sold the castle to Gerard van der Nisse and the dilapidated Kruiningen Castle was restored. Later the castle passed to the De Huijbert family through marriage. In 1702 it was inherited by Pieter Anthonie de Huijbert. By then, the castle was not inhabited by the family anymore and had fallen into a state of disrepair. In 1721 Pieter Anthonie had the dilapidated castle demolished.

Depictions of the Kruiningen Castle show it to have been a rectangular, moated, castle with 3 square corner towers. A larger building was situated in the 4th corner.

At present nothing remains of Kruiningen Castle.

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