475 years of Orange Marriage (1551) in Buren

475 Years of Willem & Anna is a two-day event on July 10 and 11, 2026, in which visitors return to the year 1551. On July 8, 1551, William of Orange married Anna van Egmond, later known as Anna van Buren, in St. Lambertus Church in Buren. Do you know why the city of Buren is an Orange City? Our Prince Willem-Alexander rode the Elfstedentocht under the name WA van Buren. Have you ever been to Buren?

Neighbors (General)

Buren is a town in the province of Gelderland. Buren is located in the Neder-Betuwe region and is centrally situated near the larger towns of Tiel and Geldermalsen. Buren has 2.655 inhabitants (CBS: January 1, 2023).

 

Coat of Arms of Buren

The coat of arms was officially granted on October 7, 1818, augmented on September 14, 1978, and modified on August 24, 1999. The origin of the coat of arms is unknown. In any case, it is derived from the coat of arms of the Van Buren family. Whether there is a relationship with the Van Arkels is unknown. The coat of arms was borne by, among others, Allard van Buren (1345–1402) and Anna van Buren, the wife of William of Orange. It has been known as the city coat of arms since the 16th century. The county of the same name also bore the coat of arms. Van den Bergh mentions a seal of the county from 1633 and a seal of the city from 1669 and 1745, both bearing the coat of arms and surmounted by a five-leaved and eleven-purple crown, respectively.

 

The lions in the second coat of arms bear the old arms of Beusichem and Zoelen. These were removed again after the merger with Maurik and Lienden. When applying for the latter coat of arms, the municipality wanted to replace the five-leaved crown with a crown of three leaves and two pearls. The municipality considered this a count's crown and thus a good symbol for the County of Buren. However, crowns on government coats of arms have no equivalent in noble crowns, and therefore the five-leaved crown was retained.

 

The Cage (story)

Buren obtained city rights in 1395 from Knight Allard, Lord of Buren and Beusichem. In 1435, Duke Arnold of Egmont began the siege of Buren; the city was captured and Lord Willem van Buren was driven out, because he had declared himself an enemy of the Duke in 1418. The Duke was so pleased with his conquest that he made the following famous statement: "Buuren will be my very best." However, ironically, in 1465 the Duke was captured by his own son and taken to Buren, where he lived in captivity for six years. In 1572, Buren joined the Union of Dordrecht. In 1575, the Siege of Buren by Gilles van Berlaymont followed. The fortifications of Buren are still largely intact. There are still ramparts, walls, and one city gate: the Culemborg or Huizer Gate.

In Buren stood one of the largest castles in the Netherlands, the House of Buren, whose last inhabitant was Frederik Hendrik, Prince of Orange. The castle was dismantled piece by piece in the 19th century, and ornaments and building stones were sold. Stones from Buren Castle were used, among other things, in the construction of the Hondsbossche Sea Wall. Over the centuries, the town of Buren fell into serious decline. It was not until 1946, with the arrival of Mayor Rudolf van Sandick, that the restoration of the town began, a process that would take nearly half a century to complete. Restoration architect Kees Royaards drew up the plans for the restoration on behalf of Monumentenzorg, approaching the medieval town as a whole—as an ensemble of monuments, slums, and new construction. The original street plan from 1395 was preserved. With the support of the inhabitants, Van Sandick and Royaards saved Buren from demolition. The book 'De rijke van een arme stad' by Coosje Berkelbach and Menno Schenke was published in 2021 regarding the background of the restoration process.

 

Relationship with the House of Orange

Buren is entitled to call itself Oranjestad due to its ties with the royal family. William of Orange married Anna van Buren there in the St. Lambertus Church in 1551. A statue of William of Orange and Anna van Buren stands by the church. As a result, Princess Beatrix and King Willem-Alexander are Countess and Count of Buren. Consequently, the windmill on the ramparts bears the fitting name De Prins van Oranje (The Prince of Orange). The “Museum Buren & Oranje” is located in the Old Town Hall on the Market Square.

The House of Orange sometimes uses the pseudonym Van Buren when they want to remain incognito. This happened, among other occasions, during the 1986 Elfstedentocht, in which Willem-Alexander participated under the name WA van Buren.

 

Anna van Egmond / Anna van Buren

Anna van Egmond, best known as Anna Countess of Buren (Grave, March 1533 — Breda, 24 March 1558), Countess of Buren, Lingen and Leerdam; Lady of IJsselstein, Borssele, Grave, Cranendonck, Eindhoven, Jaarsveld, Kortgene, Sint-Maartensdijk and Odijk, was the only daughter of Maximiliaan van Egmont and Françoise de Lannoy and was the first wife of William of Orange.

After the death of her father Maximilian in 1548, Anna became the new Countess of Buren. On his deathbed, Maximilian had already arranged the marriage between her and William. The marriage took place on July 8, 1551, whereby William received the title Count of Buren. However, Anna retained her rights of inheritance, and William could therefore not lay claim to the possessions of the county. After the marriage, the couple went to live at the castle in Breda.

Three children were born from the marriage:

• Mary of Nassau (1553-1554)
• Philip William (1554-1618)
• Mary of Nassau (1556-1616)

The couple intended to travel to Dillenburg in 1558, but Anna fell ill and the trip was cancelled. In March, she died from the illness at the age of 25. She is buried in a crypt beneath the mausoleum of Engelbrecht II of Nassau in the Grote or Lieve Vrouwe Kerk in Breda. The County of Buren was inherited by her son, Philip William.

From the letters Willem and Anna wrote to each other, it appears that they had a good marriage. The nickname the prince had for his wife was Tanneke. The statue of Willem van Oranje and Anna van Buren stands in front of the St. Lambertus Church in Buren.

 

600 years of the city of Buren

In 1995, the Gelderland town of Buren celebrated 600 years of city rights. The Lord of Buren, Knight Allard, granted the town these rights in the year 1395. This historic anniversary was celebrated on a grand scale at the time with various festivities and anniversary activities in the region. Furthermore, the special anniversary book “600 jaar stad in het land van Buren” (written by RN van Rijnberk) was published for this occasion. The festivities were also captured in documentaries and open-air plays commemorating the history of the town and its city rights.

600 years of the town of Buren—that calls for a celebration! The anniversary activities, prepared by many residents, start in January. The reconstructed town gate at the Kornebrug forms the entrance to the festively decorated and illuminated town. History is brought to life in a grand parade featuring themed floats, and there is a competition for the honor of best town crier. The open-air play 'Buren binnen wal en poort' will be performed four times.

 

Lienden

Lienden is a village in the Betuwe, belonging to the municipality of Buren, in the Dutch province of Gelderland. The village is best known for its fruit cultivation. In 2023, it had 5.905 inhabitants, making it the largest settlement in the municipality of Buren. Lienden was an independent municipality until January 1, 1999.

Lienden was an independent municipality until 1999. It was formerly a lordship, half of which was owned by the Abbey of Elten until 1811. The other half changed hands several times, most recently in 1709, to the Court of Audit of Gelderland. On January 1, 1812, the municipality of Lienden was formed, encompassing the hamlets and villages of Aalst, De Marsch, Ingen, Meerten, Ommeren, Kesteren, and Lede en Oudewaard. On January 1, 1818, the municipality was reduced in size; Lede en Oudewaard, together with the part of the Wolfswaard situated south of the Rhine, became an independent municipality. Kesteren was merged with the municipality of Heusden (Gld) under the name Kesteren. On January 1, 1999, the municipality of Lienden was dissolved and merged with the municipality of Buren.

 

Thanks to Peter Janssen of www.frankeerstempel.nl for the stamps in this blog.

 

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They know how to celebrate in Buren, as the City of Orange. On July 8, 1551, William of Orange married Anna van Egmond in the Lambertus Church in Buren. A big celebration is being held on July 10 and 11, 2026, in Buren. Will you be joining us? Details about the celebration on July 10 and 11, 2026:

https://www.burenstad.nl/site/buren-in-de-ban-oranjehuwelijk

https://www.burenstad.nl/site/huwelijk-willem-en-anna

 

Previous Royal House blogs:

https://www.postzegelblog.nl/tag/koninklijk-huis/