The Muider Circle

The group of artists and thinkers around P.C. Hooft reflected on language, beauty and the world around them. All his guests liked to be inspired by the castle. In the 19th century, this group of friends became known as the “Muiderring. It is partly a real story and partly a myth: after all, they did not all meet at Muiderslot at the same time. Nevertheless, the Muidersring is a symbol of the flourishing era of art and culture in seventeenth-century Holland.

Who are the friends of P.C. Hooft?

The friends of P.C. Hooft are well-known artists, writers, poets, scholars, politicians and administrators. Such as Constantijn Huygens, Hugo de Groot, Joost van den Vondel, Gerbrand Bredero, Gerardus Vossius, Caspar van Baerle, Roemer Pieterszoon Visscher and his daughters Anna and poet Maria Tesselschade.

Maria Tesselschade

Maria Tesselschade can often be found at the Muiderslot. She is an intelligent and creative woman. Thanks to a modern education, she knows a lot about literature, speaks French, Italian and a little Latin. She paints, poems, plays various musical instruments and can beautifully engrave glass and arrange flowers. She inspired P.C. Hooft to write many poems and (love) letters. Her nickname is therefore ‘the muse of the Muider Circle’.

The story of the Muider Circle is unfortunately a made-up story…. The reality is that the friends never all visited the Muiderslot together at the same time. They did visit Hooft, but scattered over a long period of time. In the 19th century, this romantic image of a group of friends emerged and the idea of the Muiderslot became a symbol of the heyday of art and culture in the 17th century. The paintings of the Muiderkring that can still be seen today in the Knights’ Hall of the Muiderslot were also created during the same time.

In 1954 a new Muider Circle was founded and is still in existence. Today the Muiderkring consists of seven sections of seven members each, active in seven areas: literature, history, drama, music, visual arts, government and business. The circle meets twice a year in the Knights’ Hall of the Muiderslot. Then, too, there are readings, performances and a dinner.