De Haar Castle is probably the most visited castle in the Netherlands, after Muiden Castle. This Gothic fairy-tale castle we see today however was built from 1892 till 1912 with incorporation of the large 15th century ruins of the original castle.
De Haar Castle was founded in the 14th century on sediment deposits along a blind arm of the river Rhine. It was first mentioned in 1391. Originally the owner of De Haar Castle was a member of the Van de Haar family, who as a manservant of the Prince-bishop of Utrecht, had enough prestige to have a fortified residence built for himself and his family. What this residence looked like was never registered. In 1449 the castle became property of the Van Zuylen family through the marriage between Josyna van de Haar and Dirk van Zuylen. It probably got its pentagonal shape after the castle was destroyed in 1482 as a result of the quarrels between the bishop and the city of Utrecht.
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