Trijn van Leemput [SEP] date of birth
Trijn van Leemput
Trijn van Leemput (c. 1530–1607) was a Dutch heroine of the Eighty Years' War against Spain. According to local legend in Utrecht, she led a large group of women on May 2, 1577 to the castle of Vredenburg and gave the signal to begin demolishing the castle.
The castle of Vredenburg had been built by emperor Charles V after annexing Utrecht in 1528, and was manned by a Spanish garrison. On November 8, 1576 the Pacification of Ghent was signed and the Eighty Years'
the city government opposed demolition, so as not to offend the emperor. On 2 May, the population took the matter into their own hands. According to legend, a group of local women led by Trijn van Leemput stormed the castle and Trijn gave the signal for the castle to be destroyed by removing the first bricks from the castle walls. Despite doubts about the historical accuracy of this tale, a statue of Trijn van Leemput was erected on the in Utrecht in 1955.
The demolition of the castle lasted until 1581