Het Prinsenhof

Stedelijk museum het prinsenhof is located in the former palace of prince William of Orange.

William of Orange started and led the rebellion against the Spanish king, which eventually led to the establishment of the Republic of the seven united Netherlands. He is therefore considered the founding father of the country.

William was one of the wealthiest noblemen of Europe and had many properties in various countries. But because he rebelled against the Spanish king, he had a price on his head. He chose the old St. Agatha monastery in Delft as his main residence, because the city was extremely well defended and Delft was located only a short distance from the seat of power in The Hague.

Unfortunately the city defences did William no good, because on march 18th 1584, he was shot in the hallway of his palace. Bullet holes can still be seen where it happened.