This could very well be the beginning of a royal fairytale about our Dutch royal family. For this eleven-year-old Johanna married the German Count Engelbrecht van Nassau over six hundred years ago, thereby laying the foundation for the House of Orange-Nassau, the Dutch Royal House.

Where can you find a real castle in the city centre? In Breda, of course. In the fourteenth century, Jan van Polanen I had the existing fortress transformed into a real castle with towers and a moat. After the marriage of Johanna van Polanen to Engelbrecht van Nassau, Het Kasteel van Breda became the residence of the Nassaus. 
Hendrik III van Nassau travelled extensively through Southern Europe and was impressed by the Renaissance art in Italy. He and his Spanish wife Mencìa de Mendoza had the castle renovated into a Renaissance palace.

Even in the centuries that followed, much of the castle was demolished and remodeled, and with the arrival of the Royal Military Academy, about two hundred years ago, the castle lost its Renaissance appearance.

Because the castle is located on military grounds, it is only accessible during tours by Gilde de Baronie.

Every resident of Breda instantly feels a 'ha-fine-home-again' sensation when they see the beautiful nearly hundred-meter-high tower of the Grote Kerk rising in the distance. The church is built in a rich Brabant Gothic style, and particularly Hendrik III of Nassau contributed significantly to its construction during the first half of the sixteenth century.

Nine Nassaus and the first prince of Orange are buried here and were given magnificent tomb monuments. Willem of Orange also had his spot reserved next to his first wife Anna van Buren and their little daughter. Unfortunately… Breda was occupied by the Spaniards when Willem was shot dead in Delft. He, along with all subsequent Orange Nassaus, found their final resting place in the Nieuwe Kerk in Delft. 

When you enter the gate to the Beguinage, you can hardly imagine that you are in the heart of the city. What a peace! 
The history of the Breda beguinage community goes back 750 years. This makes it one of the oldest institutions in our country. Beguines were unmarried, devout women who primarily worked in healthcare and education.  The last beguine, Sister Frijters, passed away in 1990, but even now there are only unmarried women living in the Beguinage. 

In the herb garden, you will find about three hundred different herbs. 

The Valkenberg city park is currently a real hotspot in Breda. While the water from the fountains sparkles in the sun, walkers seek refreshment on a bench by the pond. Students enjoy the sunshine or kick a ball around. Geese try to snag a grain during every picnic, and children have fun in the small playground.

This is a stark contrast to the past when the park was still part of the Castle of Breda. The castle residents and their guests practiced falconry while the ladies walked among the seventeen statues.

A Nassau hotspot outside the city, but certainly not the least. Count Hendrik III of Nassau had the Mastbos sown over 500 years ago with seeds from Scots pine from Germany. It is one of the oldest production forests in the Netherlands. Today, it is a diverse nature reserve with beech avenues, pine forests, fens, and heathlands.