Southern Netherlands
Art, History & Archaeology Sites & Museums

Located on the Vrijthof in Maastricht, the impressive Basilica of Saint Servatius dates largely from the 11th and 12th centuries. Medieval church enthusiasts will be interested in its various Romanesque sculptural elements. The site itself has had an ecclesiastical presence for a longer period, with Saint Servatius reportedly buried here in 384, after which an early medieval structure grew up around it, later replaced by the present church. It remains an active place of Roman Catholic worship and hosts concerts throughout the year.

Bouvigne Castle existed in some form from at least the 16th century, when it is recorded in historical documentation. In 1614, William of Orange bought the property and transformed it in accordance with the Renaissance styles that were popular at the time, thus resulting in its present appearance. Although the castle, as well as its accompanying chapel and coach house, is unfortunately not open to the public, today’s visitors can still explore the three early 20th-century gardens, one each in the English, French, and German styles.

Marking the spot where a motte-and-bailey fortification stood in the 11th-century, Heeswijk Castle displays a thousand years of architectural development. Over the course of the Middle Ages a defensive stone castle emerged, one that was besieged and conquered in 1629. In the 1830s, the wealthy baron André van den Bogaerde van Terbrugge assumed ownership of the castle and oversaw its further transformation with the addition of Neo-Gothic elements that help give it its fairy-tale appearance. Open since the 1950s, it showcases the lives of the elite individuals who resided here.

First recorded in 14th-century documents, Schaloen Castle remained in the same family for several generations before Louis of Nassau occupied it in 1574. Not long after, in 1575, Spanish troops demolished the castle, which was then rebuilt in the 17th century, with only a few Gothic elements surviving. In 1894, the Dutch architect P.H.J. Cuypers oversaw substantial renovations of the structure, resulting in its present Neo-Gothic appearance. Schaloen is now a private residence and hotel, offering visitors the rare opportunity to spend the night in a castle.

Opened to the public in 2005, this structure in the Zeeland village of Colijnsplaat is a modern reconstruction of an ancient Roman temple. The original was excavated at nearby Ganuenta, which in the second century AD was a regional centre for trade on the fringes of the Roman Empire. The temple was originally dedicated to the local goddess Nehalennia; it is unclear whether this divinity was of linguistically Germanic or Celtic origin, but it appears likely that she attracted worship from speakers of both language groups.

Among the most famous names in Dutch history is the Post-Impressionist painter Vincent Van Gogh. The Van Gogh Village of  Nuenen comprises 23 outdoor buildings or landscapes associated with the artist, with visitors able to walk the streets where Van Gogh lived between 1883 and 1885. After visiting the Vincentre Museum, make your way around the village of Nuenen, discovering the 14 locations immortalised through depiction in Van Gogh’s artworks. At night, the cycle path is lit up to resemble one of Van Gogh’s most famous works, ‘The Starry Night’.