Slowly but surely, Wouw Castle comes to life. Hard work has been going on for months to restore the moat, the defensive walls and the remains of foundations. The contours of the spot where the four-hundred-year-old castle once stood are already clearly visible.
Looking with half-closed eyes and a little fantasy, you can imagine from a distance how the Lords of Breda and Bergen op Zoom must have lived in the thirteenth century. Or perhaps how Prince Maurits took over the castle in 1605.
The castle, built from monastic jokes, had walls of up to one and a half meters thick in that period. The structure had several towers, a hall, rooms, a chapel and a prison. There were several outbuildings on the site, such as a brewery and a bakery.
To stop the enemy, the castle was given a double moat. Unfortunately, the castle turned out to be unable to withstand the invention of gunpowder. It was destroyed in the Eighty Years’ War. After a brief revival, the castle disappeared from the landscape.
Last year the municipality of Roosendaal, the Kasteel van Wouw foundation and the Brabantse Delta Water Board started the reconstruction of the castle. A project of 1.3 million euros. The moat is used to store water.
The site will soon be open to the public and there are already weekly guided tours.