Prince Frederick's Style

Do you like to maintain a sense of continuity in the interior design of your home? Prince Frederick of the Netherlands did just that on a grand scale. Bridges, official residences, retaining walls, farms, and his own country homes: many of the architectural elements on the nine estates in Wassenaar were given a uniform appearance. In addition to being beautiful, this ensured that everyone immediately knew they were on Prince Frederick’s property.

De Paauw was the first country residence in Wassenaar that Prince Frederick purchased. He bought it in the spring of 1838 and was really looking forward to getting to know his new house and park in the countryside. In August, he celebrated his father King William I’s birthday there. That might not sound so remarkable, but in fact, it was—because the previous owner’s household effects were still there! This furniture wasn’t put up for sale until December of that year; as a result, the prince lived surrounded by someone else’s belongings for a few months. 

Expansionism

After De Paauw, Prince Frederick went on to purchase another eight country estates by 1854, namely: Raaphorst, Ter Horst, Eikenhorst, Backershagen, and Groot Haesebroek, including Drie Papegaaien, Wildrust, and Het Zwarte Hek. As a result, his property stretched from the Veurseweg in Voorschoten to the dunes and covered no less than 886 hectares. The prince wanted to increase the diversity of the buildings, enhance the natural beauty, and merge his estates into a single entity. Consequently, many buildings from different periods were renovated to reflect a unified style.

Court Architect Wentzel

For the structures on the estate, Prince Frederick brought the German architect Hermann Wentzel to the Netherlands in 1851. The prince knew him from the Prussian court in Berlin, where he had grown up. Wentzel served as his court architect for twenty years. He began by expanding and embellishing De Paauw into a Prussian palace. The last project he worked on was the renovation of Ter Horst. He created a sense of unity by adapting existing elements and constructing all new bridges and official residences in the same style. 

The chalet style

Wentzel adopted the chalet style, a romantic architectural style that was very popular in the 19th century. During that period, people were particularly enchanted by the “pristine” chalets found in the mountainous regions of Switzerland, for example. The style is characterized by overhanging roofs and richly decorated carvings along the rooflines and gables. The decorations featured a pattern of openings resembling lace. This is therefore referred to as openwork or lacework. Wentzel often combined the chalet style with other architectural styles, resulting in an eclectic design.

The Retaining Wall

When Prince Frederick purchased the Backershagen country estate, there was already a beautiful teahouse on a high, artificially constructed hill. It lay along the route the coach took when the prince traveled from Eikenhorst via Backershagen to De Paauw. But the hill was at risk of subsiding. He therefore commissioned Hermann Wentzel to build a retaining wall. The wall was decoratively finished with a brick parapet featuring openwork.
Take the time to walk to the retaining wall so you can admire this beautiful, large-scale structure up close. And you’ll have a view of another unusual feature: the hermitage on a peninsula that represents a hermit’s cave. Such follies were part of a landscape park design where walkers were continually surprised by intriguing features. Today, the teahouse is a private residence.

The Shooting House

Prince Frederick was passionate about hunting and had a beautiful shooting house on the De Horsten. It is a picturesque, octagonal building, and a statue of a pheasant used to perch proudly on its thatched roof. A glass gallery was attached to the building. About 100 meters away was a rail along which a dummy hare or pheasant would glide. From the shooting house, Prince Frederick and his guests could shoot at the moving target for practice and enjoyment. Today, the shooting house serves as a tea pavilion: you can enjoy a drink while taking in its rich history. On the walls, you can still admire hunting trophies and antlers. 

Ter Horst

As mentioned earlier, Prince Frederick was an avid hunter, so he had the dilapidated Huis ter Horst restored into a small hunting lodge in the Gothic style. Architect P.F.W. Mouton was commissioned to carry out the work. After an exhausting hunting expedition, the prince and his companions would come here to recover from their exertions and enjoy a hearty meal. The facade features a stepped gable that is slightly off-center, with decorative elements above the doors and windows. Unfortunately, the prince was unable to enjoy the lodge for very long; the house was completed in 1876, and Prince Frederick died in 1881.
Throughout the hunting grounds stood two-meter-high columns inscribed with the text: “Hunting grounds of HRH Prince Frederick.” It couldn’t be clearer!

Discover it for yourself!

The Parks Route features many buildings that are true gems. The examples described above are just the tip of the iceberg. Come explore the parks and admire the bridges, official residences, boundary markers, country estates, and much more!