Introduction
10km (6 miles) SE of the Hague; 14km (9 miles) NW of Rotterdam; 35km (22 miles) W of Gouda; 30km (19 miles) SW of Leiden; 55km (34 miles) SW of Amsterdam
Delft (pop, 96,000) is perhaps the prettiest town in all of Holland. The facades of the Renaissance and Gothic houses here reflect age-old beauty, and a sense of tranquillity pervades the air, and linden trees bend over its gracious canals. Indeed, it's easy to understand why Old Master Jan Vermeer chose to spend most of his life surrounded by Delft's gentle beauty.
A good part of Holland's history is preserved in memorials in Delft. William the Silent, who led the Dutch insurrection against Spanish rule, was assassinated in the Prinsenhof and now rests in a magnificent tomb in the Nieuwe Kerk; and every member of the House of Oranje-Nassau since King Willem I has been brought here for burial. Two of Holland's greatest naval figures, admirals Maarten Tromp and Piet Hein, are entombed in the Oude Kerk.
Of course, to many...
more local info
-
-
Museum Paul Tétar van Elven
The 19th-century artist van Elven (1823-96) lived and worked here, and the furnishings are just as he left them. The 17th-century-style studio...
-
- Museums
-
-
-
Stedelijk (Municipal) Museum Het Prinsenhof
The Prinsenhof (Prince's Court), on the banks of Delft's oldest canal, Oude Delft, dates from the late 1400s and was originally a convent. This...
-
- Museums
-
-
-
De Koninklijke Porceleyne Fles
The Delft Blue embossed with the DE PORCELYNE FLES stamp you came to town to find is made here by a traditional and painstaking method. Watch the...
-
