Nederlands
A landmark in bezuidenhout
The Goede Raad Church in this street had a particularly high peak. For the residents the clock on the tower was as a landmark in the district.
The Goede Raad Church in this street had a particularly high peak. For the residents the clock on the tower was as a landmark in the district.
The Bezuidenhoutseweg was originally a country road leading to the Wervelaan, now called Laan van Nieuw Oost-Indië. The road was lined with country houses from wealthy residents of the Hague. This included Zandvliet, where currently a school with the same name is located, and Huis ter Noot near the former Ministry of Agriculture.
The Rhijnspoor Railway Station, currently Den Haag Centraal, was opened in 1870. The arrival of the railway together with the space available in Bezuidenhout and its location near The Hague city centre made the Bezuidenhoutseweg an attractive place to build houses. The first side streets, Eerste Van den Boschstraat and Tweede Van den Boschstraat, were also constructed around 1870 and ten years later horse-drawn trams made their way into the neighbourhood. The road was widened on several occasions to cope with the increased traffic and the row of trees in the centre of the road was cleared in 1926.
The Bezuidenhoutseweg was only mildly affected by the bombing, but the Roman Catholic Church of Onze Lieve Vrouwe van Goede Raad was very badly damaged. This church with its striking, tall steeple was a landmark in the neighbourhood. The current church was erected in the fifties on almost the same location. After the war many of the old buildings were demolished to create space for new buildings such as the offices for the Social and Economic Council.
Editor: Stichting 3 Maart '45
"my father survived the bombing"
