Palace Huis Ten Bosch, The Hague


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Stefan said:
Actually the german President's don't live at Bellevue Castle. The only one who lived there weas Roman Herzog. The others have/had a Villa in Berlin-Dahelm at their disposal where they live.
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Ah that fooled me. A few weeks ago I gave seen a documentary about Schloss Bellevue ("and it's secrets") on ZDF, including footage of Bundespräsident Herr Roman Herzog and his spouse Frau Christiane allowing the camera inside the Schloss and following them...

Villa Dahlem looks like a nice place to live but I bet this is purely for living, all official acts and represenations take place at Schloss Bellevue? I suspect the Bundespräsident tries "to escape from office" because when you live in a private wing of the Schloss, you are still living at the office, so to speak.
 
The Inner Court (where the Second Chamber, the First Chamber, the Council of Ministers and the Hall of Knights are) needs an equally major renovation as Huis ten Bosch Palace. The costs will be astronomic.

When Parliament decides the works will go ahead, people will see that these projects simply come with a price tag, like the renovations of the Royal Palace Amsterdam, the Rijksmuseum, the Mauritshuis in the Hague, the Catshuis in The Hague (residence of the Prime Minister) etc. were arch-expensive projects too. The people will realize that the costs for the renovation of Huis ten Bosch palace is not something unique but comparable with all named projects.

:ermm:
 
eya said:
So the dutch people must be a very happy because the renovation of the Huis ten Bosch Palace the cost only 59 million euros?:)ohmy:)
What are you doing exactly ? Attempts to justify the unjustifiable?
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It looks "injustifable" and people will nag about it, but when you look at the given examples all restorations of historic buildings come with mysteriously awful big prize tags. No idea why it is cheaper to build three new palaces than restore an old one but tja... it is.

By the way, every year the State donates hundreds of millions for the upkeep of A-listed monuments. It does not matter if the State owns it or not. It can be privately owned or onwed by a (family) foundation and be applicable for state subsidy because it is seen as part of the national patrimonium and worth to be saved for history. For an example, the restoration of a private property under way: Château Neubourg near Maastricht before and after the restoration (still not finished). It does not matter if the owner is rich or not, anyone can fill in an application for subsidy.
 
eya said:
That all you say is logical. And is logical of course all this palaces and historic buildings to need renovation. But is just (for me at least) very scandalous this prize tags.
But anyway the every state know better what can i say.
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Indeed.We are a above wealthy state that takes care of it's heritage,we are proud of that,yes.And it's not scandulous at all if one wishes to keep up the place and pass it on to future generations...unlike Tatoi,sad enough,...People might nag as they do,but they will forget about it soon enough.The Head of State needs an apropiate representative dwelling,and that is what the State has to provide.After all,the State pinched it all from the RF in the 1790's...
 
Sounds like they need to compare contractors......haha. I cant imagine the cost of these kinds of places but Im all for it.
 
eya said:
Yes you have right saying how all this places must to keep up and to pass the next generations.
Also how people always forget . Yes that is happen the people always forget and this is sad sometimes.
About Tatoi very sad indeed. But with the history we have my country just can't do it nothing different .
Generally agree with you i don't say something else just can i continue to think is scandalous that prizes? :sad:
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NAI!:)

And I say its peanuts in light of what it represents and the wealth we live in...It is worth it,every penny!
 
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Some nice wintry photos of the Palace Huis ten Bosch in The Hague.

PPE Agency
 
An Ard Ri said:
Some nice wintry photos of the Palace Huis ten Bosch in The Hague.

PPE Agency
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"23-12-2016 The Hague Palace Huis ten Bosch in The Hague, the new residence to be of the Dutch King and Queen in 2017. "

Beautiful pictures!!
 
Objectives of the extensive restoration of Huis ten Bosch Palace, the future private residence of the King, were/are also the huge paintings by Aert Schouman (1710-1792) which are in use as wallhangings for one of the salons of the palace.

The paintings depict the Menagerie of Prince Willem V of Orange-Nassau, Stadtholder of the United Provinces (father of King Willem I of the Netherlands). Because of the restoration of the palace (as a private residence usually not accessible for public), it is now temporarily possible for the public to see the wallhangings of King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima: a selection of 5 panels will be exhibited in Dordrechts Museum.

Queen Máxima will visit the exhibition and receive the first book which describes these colourful artworks in detail: picture

The panels form a decor of the salon, as if the Stadtholder was in the nature, surrounded by animals: picture and picture. That sensation will not be reached with only 5 panels in the exhibition (some are still in the restoration studio, or too vulnerable for transport)
 
When is the Palace restoration due to be completed?
 
An Ard Ri said:
When is the Palace restoration due to be completed?
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The planning is that the works are done by the end of 2018. But these kind of projects seldom go as planned.

What was your impression of the palace and the Oranjesael?
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The first impression is formed by the entree, the driveway and square, which all are smaller than for palaces abroad, as is the palace itself. We went there in winter & on a grey day which made the garden look more depressing than it actually is. The trees in the garden are not very special or old, as they were only planted after the war.

There is some charm in the relatively small proportions of the building and an understated elegance in the severe facade. I can imagine that the small size makes the palace a nice place to live.

Of the inside of the palace we got to see the basement, staircase and the Orange hall. Again, things seemed smaller than on photographs. But the Orange hall was more stunning in reality than on photos and in an excellent condition. It is special to be surrounded by paintings & history from all sides. I could have spent a day in the hall, checking all little details and such. It surely is the finest hall of its kind in this part of Europe, only rivalled by the ceiling of Westminister's Banqueting Hall by Van Dyck.

From what we got to see I did not see the need for maintenance. But if things are well painted one seldom does.
 
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An Ard Ri said:
When is the Palace restoration due to be completed?
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The 60 million Euro costing renovation of Huis ten Bosch (minus the already earlier restored Oranjesael - the main hall) is scheduled to be finished in the end of 2018. This means that then the King will have lived for 5 years in his private villa before moving to Huis ten Bosch. But that is his own choice. He could have lived in another residences. I think the King is attached to the cosy family life in lush and green Wassenaar before making the move to the splendid 17th C salons of Huis ten Bosch.
 
Thanks. Yes, when I see interiors from "abroad" and then the Dutch ones, it seems to me the Oranges remained faithful to the original designs. A 17th C palace with 17th C salons. Or with salons and appartments in later 18th and 19thC style but with respect for the original building. There are no bonbonnières with opulent whirls and curls, it all remains relatively subdued but the quality is often telling: the paintings of Jabob Jordaens, the stucco by Daniel Marot, the marble sculptures by Artus Quellinus, the facades by Pieter Post, it were all outstanding craftsmen and it shows, to my humble opinion.
 
"12-04-2017 Palace Huis ten Bosch in The Hague, the new residence to be of the Dutch King and Queen.
The renovation of the exterior, interieur, security and gardens are estimated for 59 million euro and will be ready end 2018, beginning 2019."

PPE Agency
 
The costs are gigantic and the strange thing is: the last major restoration ended in 1983 and it is remarkable that the whole palace has to go back in scaffoldings again, after only some three decades. For a couple of months the magnificent central hall (already restored for a fortune, a few years ago) was open to the public. The rest of the palace did not make the impression that a 60 million Euro renovation was needed...
 
There seems to be some serious restoration work taking place at the Palace,I look forward to seeing the finished results!
 
An Ard Ri said:
There seems to be some serious restoration work taking place at the Palace,I look forward to seeing the finished results!
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Serious indeed!A repeat of the works carried out on the Royal Palace here in Amsterdam soem years ago,once finished the works started soon afterwards again as asbestos et tout still had to be removed.It took years to clean up and restore the whole caboodle much to the dismay of the then Queen Beatrix.And right she was.Same happened here,the concoctions of the 80's won't do in this day and age.
 
I suppose the king and queen will get concoctions of the 2010s instead. The king said that their private area will get 'openslaande deuren' to the garden. These doors are the dream of any bakfiets moeder with her own bouwkavel in Amsterdam IJburg.

Anyway, I am sure the government building service would not have allowed the demolition of any old walls, especially not to the exterior.
 
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To my best knowledge there are already "openslaande deuren" to the garden, at the backside of Huis ten Bosch Palace. There is a platform or balcony between the souterrain and the "ground floor" (which is more the first floor) if my memory does not fool me.
 
Indeed, but the king said they would be installed in their private appartments on the groundfloor. I suppose that the private area will be in a wing of the palace, as it was the case with Queen Beatrix.
 
Ach ja, as long as it is tastefully done and completely in line with the exterior of the monument, I am fine with it. After all it is also a house for the royal family, and no museum ;-)
 
True, perhaps a few personal touches makes the building even more interesting in the long run. The added doors in the Oranjesael by Cateau Schimmelpenninck seemed to have survived the test of time...
 
Some Recent photos of the work being carried out at the Palace Huis ten Bosch in The Hague.

PPE Agency
 
The palace will be in sparkling state, that is for sure (but it never looked in poor state, I must say). In WWII the park was completely destroyed as it was used by the Germans to launch VI and VII missiles to the United Kingdom. As a consequence the allied forces regularly bombed the site, with heavy damage to palace and park.

Picture of the completely destroyed park, with bunkers, and a damaged Huis ten Bosch.

In the 1950's a provisoric garden was created: picture.

Today still the same lay-out exists, but of course the trees have grown.: picture.

I have understood also the garden will be restored/restyled, whatever the name. I am curious how that will look. A return to a formal garden à la Het Loo looks unlikely to me.
 
It seems that the garden will be rather modern. At least if the flower beds on the left of the photo are meant to stay.
 
The restoration of Huis ten Bosch will be more expensive again. The original budget was 35 million Euro. Then it became 59 million Euro. Now it has been set on 63 million Euro.

Reasons: initially only parts of the palace outdoor steps would be replaced, now the whole exterior steps will be completely renewed. The same with the roof: initially parts of the roof would be replaced, but by hindsight the whole roof will be renewed as there is woodrot in beams bearing the roof. There needs to be more asbestos removed than initially expected. Closer inspection learned that some stucco works needs more attention than initially foreseen etc.

Luckily the economy is booming and the State has a Budget Surplus, so there is not that much rumour about the astronomic costs for the private residence of the King. It remains a mystery that a palace which had been extensively restored in the 1980's needs such an immense operation again.
 
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