Vestingstad Ravenstein

Fortified town Ravenstein has a long history under many different rulers. The town originated in the 14th century in the border area between Brabant, Gelre and Cleves. A fiefdom of the Duke of Brabant built a castle near the Meuse to collect tolls. For a long time, the fortified town of Ravenstein was not Dutch but also not Brabantian: it belonged to the Duchy of Cleves. After all, the city of Ravenstein was the capital of the Land of Ravenstein. For a long time it was also a refuge from Catholic monasteries displaced by Calvinist occupiers. In 1814 it joined the Kingdom of the Netherlands.