Easy hikes and walks around Slingeplas

Very beautiful surroundings and good restaurant

Very beautiful surroundings and good restaurant

HISTORY OF THE VESTING PARK The Fortress Park is a listed historical park located on the former fortifications and bastions "Treurniet" (= do not mourn) and "Vreesniet" (= do not be afraid) in the northwest of the city. In the 18th and 19th centuries, the ramparts and almost all of the bastions were demolished, and most of the canals were filled in. (Source: Information panel at the park entrance) Bernard Andreas Roelvink was the administrator of Governor William V. His residence was expanded in 1764 into the administrator's house, the present-day St. Bernardus Church. The remains of two bastions (Treurniet and Vreesniet) and the land between them were granted to the Roelvink family on a hereditary lease in 1782. Around 1850, he had an English garden with a teahouse laid out for himself at "Vreesniet." The Roelvink family used to drink their tea there. (Source: Information panel at the teahouse) Following the arrival of the French in 1795, administrative changes took place. The Bredevoort estate was divided. St. Bernardus House was built on the grounds of the outer bailey of Bredevoort Castle. It was commissioned by Jan Satink, a lieutenant colonel in the National Regiment of the Dutch Army. (Source: Hotel de Heerlyckheid website) Around 1900, when tuberculosis (TB) became the number one public health problem, Father Bernardus Mulder purchased the steward's house (dating from 1764) and its garden in 1897 to establish a hospital. Under the direction of the Franciscan Sisters of Thuine, the "Roman Catholic Sanatorium St. Bernardus Foundation" was founded in 1902. The former English Garden was used as a health resort for TB patients. Several sunbathing pavilions (of which only two white carriage houses remain today) were erected along the city moat (Grote Gracht). Around 1900, an orchard was planted in the monastery garden, approximately at the level of the Treurniet Bastion, and in 1912 the nuns had the Lourdes Grotto built in the English Garden. (Source: Information panel in Vestingpark) From 1933, the former administrator's house and its park were used as a retirement home. In 1938, the Sisters of Thuine were replaced by the Sisters of St. Joseph from Amersfoort. In 1985, the Sisters of St. Joseph had to leave Bredevoort permanently. St. Bernardus House was renovated and expanded in 1988 by the St. Bernardus Nursing Home Foundation, which also used the building as a retirement home. In 2008, the nursing home moved to a new location.

The "house" is a former teahouse belonging to the Roelvink family. It's charmingly furnished, just as a 19th-century teahouse would have been. One can easily imagine the Roelvink family arriving at any moment for their afternoon tea. It's locked, but the interior is clearly visible through the glass panes. Simply beautiful and an idyllic spot. ... BACKGROUND 1764: Bernard Andreas Roelvink was the administrator of the Stadtholder William V. His residence was expanded into the administrator's house in 1764 (the present-day Boutique Hotel & Brasserie "DE HEERLYCKHEID"). 1782: The remains of two bastions (Vreesniet and Treurniet) and the land between them (the present-day fortress park and orchard) were leased to the Roelvink family in 1782. Around 1850: B.A. Roelvink had an English garden laid out on the grounds for himself and his family, which was very fashionable at the time. 1862: The teahouse was built on the former Vreesniet bastion and is now picturesquely situated on a slight rise in the fortress park, which is bordered to the northwest by the Grote Gracht (former moat). (Source: Information signs at the teahouse and in the fortress park)

B.A. Roelvink had this beautiful teahouse built for himself and his family in 1862. It's charmingly furnished, just as a 19th-century teahouse would have been. One can easily imagine the Roelvink family arriving at any moment to enjoy their afternoon tea. It's locked, but the interior is clearly visible through the glass panes. Simply beautiful and an idyllic spot. ... BACKGROUND 1764: Bernard Andreas Roelvink was the administrator of Governor William V. His residence was expanded into the administrator's house in 1764 (the present-day Boutique Hotel & Brasserie "DE HEERLYCKHEID"). 1782: The remains of two bastions (Vreesniet and Treurniet) and the land between them (the present-day fortress park and orchard) were leased to the Roelvink family in 1782. Around 1850: B.A. Roelvink had an English garden laid out on the grounds for himself and his family, a style that was very fashionable at the time. 1862: The teahouse was built on the former Vreesniet bastion and is now picturesquely situated on a slight rise in the fortress park, which is bordered to the northwest by the Grote Gracht (former moat). (Source: Information signs at the teahouse and in the fortress park)

You can enjoy delicious food at Grachthaus, Kruittorenstraat 1 in Bredevoort. From here you have a beautiful view of the Great Canal and Vestingpark. In summer, you can sit outside on the terrace and soak up the sun.

The large moat is a former defensive ditch in the northwest of the town of Bredevoort. Its shape still clearly reveals the course of the former ramparts and the Treurniet and Vreesniet bastions. Today, the Vestingpark is a picturesque park with paths, a bridge, old trees, a teahouse, a grotto, and a tree trail. In 1784, the former administrator, Bernard Andreas Roelvink, leased the remains of two bastions (Vreesniet and Treurniet) and the land between them (the present-day fortress park and orchard). Around 1850, he had an English garden laid out there, bordered to the northwest by the large moat.

A picturesque park with paths, a bridge, old trees, a teahouse, a grotto, and a tree trail. The renovated white pavilions offer a comfortable place to sit and relax. In 2015/16, the garden underwent extensive renovations, including the removal of diseased trees and the planting of new saplings. A suspended concrete walkway, over two meters wide, was constructed through the park, with its concrete elements protruding approximately 25 cm above the ground. (Note: When I visited in winter, the walkway was unusable due to icy conditions and the risk of slipping!)