Netherlands · 16th century
Castle Biljoen lies between the Veluwe and the IJssel near Velp. This Noble House from the 16th century was rebuilt by Alexander van Spaen (1619–1692) into the present day castle with four equal corner towers.
The castle is thought to have its original as a large farm, first mentioned in 1076. In 1530 Charles, Duke of Guelders made it into a castle, including the towers. In the 18th century the family Van Spaen built the castle into its current state.
In 1795, French troops were quartered in the castle. After they left was plundered, the interior being largely destroyed. It was restored with ornamental plaster and ceiling paintings (among other things).
The estate was originally called Broekerhof, and was a place where taxes were collected. In 1076 it was donated by Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor to the Sint-Pieter Chapter in Utrecht. In 1530 it was sold to Charles, Duke of Guelders. He in turn had to sell it again in 1535 because of debts. It came into possession of Charles' general Roelof van Lennep. Roelof's son Carl, mayor of Arnhem, inherited it in 1546. His son Roelof inherited it in turn in 1567. After family divisions it was sold to the baronial family Van Spaen in 1661. In 1849 baron Van Hardenbroek allowed Anna Pavlovna of Russia to use it temporarily. In 1872 it was inherited by the family Lüps, until 2008.
On July 25, 2008 part of the inventory of the castle was sold at Christie's in Amsterdam.
Text adapted from “Biljoen Castle” on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Biljoen Castle ranks #4,466 of 9,035 worldwide in the atlas's castle fame ranking, and #43 of the 198 mapped in Netherlands. Founded 1530, it is older than 40% of the atlas's dated landmarks, one of 886 atlas entries founded in the 16th century. 11 more atlas landmarks stand within 25 km. The nearest day-trip guide is Arnhem, 5 km away. See how Netherlands compares in the castle statistics.
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