There is one palace in The Hague, The Netherlands, that I really would like to visit one day. There are however only a few days a year that it is open, on Fridays. As I don’t live close and it is a weekday, it is really difficult to plan. Even more: tickets are usually sold out rather quickly. I will be in The Hague in July, but unfortunately not when it is open.
Architect Daniel Marot built the Kneuterdijk Palace in 1717 in the Louis XIV style for Count Johan Hendrik van Wassenaer van Obdam (1683-1745). In 1816 it became a royal residence when King Willem I of the Netherlands bought it. Until 1840 it served as a residence for the later King Willem II and Queen Anna Paulowna of the Netherlands. They made quite a few changes to the building, and had the facede painted white. Also several buildings in the Tudor style were added.
Only the Gothic Hall has survived, designed after the great dining hall of Christ Church, Oxford, of which the later king was an alumnus. Willem II used it to present his collection of paintings. The Gothic Hall is the place where the wedding of Princess Sophie was held and where King Willem II in 1848 signed the Constitution, which deprived him of many of his powers. Nowadays it serves as a concert hall.
The palace was used by Willem, the Prince of Orange 1858-1879. Princess Juliana occasionally used the building in the 1930s as her office. Queen Wilhelmina sold the building in 1937. After World War II Dutch war criminals were tried in the former ballroom. Afterwards it was used by the Dutch Ministry of Finance. Since 1983 it is being used by the Council of State. A renovation was finished in 2011. You might recognise the place as the one in which the Princess of Orange, Catharina-Amalia, was introduced to the Council of State in December 2021.
The Kneuterdijk Palace this year will be open on 3 March, 7 April, 9 June, 14 July, 11 August, 15 September, 20 October and 24 November 2023.
Tickets can be bought here. The palace can only be visited with a guide. Groups are maximum 25 people.
The costs are € 12 (adults) or € 6 (children 6-12 years old)
Tip from a visitor: the building is also open at Open Monumentendag (European Heritage Days). Check the site for the yearly dates.
