the Commander, Haarlem, Guida per visitatori e cosa fare nei dintorni

The Commander is a stop on Kruisweg in Haarlem, in the Netherlands, tied to the story of the Spanish siege of the city in 1572 and 1573. It brings back two names from that struggle, the nobleman Wigbolt Ripperda and the Haarlem woman Kenau Simonsdochter Hasselaer, who each became part of the city's memory of the Eighty Years' War.

The story behind it

Wigbolt Ripperda came from the old noble Ripperda family and sided with Willem van Oranje when the Dutch Revolt began. He was the military commander of Haarlem during the siege, when the city held out for months against Spanish forces. After the city surrendered in 1573, he was executed, and he is remembered in Haarlem as its defender.

Kenau Simonsdochter Hasselaer was the daughter of Simon Gerritsz, a beer brewer in Haarlem. Tradition remembers her as a woman who took part in the defence of the city. Her name later took on two opposite meanings in Dutch. It was used as an insult for women seen as masculine, but it can also describe a courageous, decisive and independent woman. In their own ways, she and Ripperda both play a part in the story of the battle for Haarlem.

What to look for

• Notice how the name of the stop points you to the commander of the siege, and think about what it meant to lead a city under attack for months.
• Look at the street around you and compare today's Haarlem with the walled town that the Spanish army surrounded in the 16th century.
• Keep Kenau in mind as you walk, and ask yourself which of her two meanings in modern Dutch you find fairer to her memory.
• Watch for other signs of the city's past on the way here, such as street names, old brickwork and plaques that connect Haarlem to its history.

Tips for your visit

• Plan on a short stop of ten to fifteen minutes here, longer if you read up on the siege beforehand.
• Daylight is best, since you can read the surroundings and the details more easily.
• Haarlem's centre is compact, so you can easily combine this stop with other places linked to the siege and the old city.
• This is a stop in the street rather than a museum, so there is nothing to enter. Check current opening hours for any nearby sights you want to go inside.

See it on a quest

You reach the Commander on foot as one stop of The Battle for Haarlem: Defend the City, a self-guided route through the city built around the siege. The app tells you about each place as you arrive and sets a puzzle in what is in front of you, so you look at the street more closely than you would on your own. You can start any time with no guide or group, and one ticket covers the whole group.