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X-t(r)eam

At the location above you will find the residence of knight Hoen, there is nothing to find concerning this cache.

Herman II van Hoensbroeck Herman II van Hoensbroeck, today known as knight Hoen, was a son of Nicolaas I Hoen from the Huis Hoensbroeck (House Hoensbroeck) and Catharina Chapelle and lived from 1340 until 1404. He was knight, first lord of Hoensbroeck, Spaubeek and Visschersweert from 1388 until his death in 1404 and, succeeding his father, he became sheriff of Maastricht in the Hof van Lencullen from 1388 until 1397. The family of Herman called themselves from 1388 Hoen van den Broeck and later Van Hoensbroeck and became one of the most distinguished noble families of Limburg. Herman Hoen built the Gebrookhoes, nowadays known as Kasteel Hoensbroek (Castle Hoensbroek) and was the first resident.

Coat of arms of family Van Hoensbroeck

The secret of knight Hoen

Knight Hoen and his men

A number of stories of knight Hoen are recorded by historians and preserved, others are told by residents of Hoensbroek from generation to generation. But there is a stories that has been kept as a secret for a long time, it is only known by a small number of people. If it had been up to knight Hoen himself, this story would have always been a secret. As said, knight Hoen was the first lord of Hoensbroek. He ruled over his territory and was closely involved in justice. This, however, does not mean knight Hoen was behaving accordingly.

Seven centuries long, the round tower of Castle Hoensbroek stands proudly in the hilly countryside. During this time the castle underwent a lot of changes, decayed, partly collapsed and was rebuild again. What always remained was the medieval round tower, with his dark windows and narrow loopholes. The walls could not be burned down by fire, not even destructors dared to try to knock down the three meter thick walls. From this heavy tower the guards could keep a close look on the roads around the castle. This was necessary, since knight Hoen was not very popular in the surrounding cities and villages. Also the bishop of Luik said a couple of times that the Lord of Hoensbroek could expect a heavy punishment if he would not stop with his nightly raids. The men of knight Hoen were not afraid. You could find them on every road, hidden in the dense and high brushwood. Always ready to jump out with their sharp pikes and daggers. Patiently waiting for the carriages of merchants, loaded with merchandise.

Knight Hoen with the loot

Knight Hoen on his horse

On one day knight Hoen decided to go by himself. He hid himself with some men behind some bushes, which were growing on the side of a sunken lane. This time they did not have to wait long. In the distance they could hear the sound of some carriage wheels. At the moment the carriage drove by, they jumped screaming out of the bushes towards the carriage. However, knight Hoen did not know that the merchants came well prepared this time, since they were warned by villagers for knight Hoen and his men. They did not come alone. They asked strong men from the village to come with them and hid them in their carriage. This proved to be too much for knight Hoen and his men. They were overpowered by the force of the men and, when the dust was settled, our knight and his men laid on the ground. The merchants were very happy, certainly when they noticed knight Hoen himself was present. Finally they could take revenge and they did. They put knight Hoen on his head and he was mocked by all villagers, who had come running from their town when the news started spreading. They took all his possessions and sent him back to the Gebrookhoes without any clothes. A bigger embarrassment was not possible.

Some months later some of the possessions of the knight were found. Between the bushes, next to the same sunken lane where they were surprised by the merchants, his men found his helmet plume, banner and harness. They quickly brought it back to their lord. The other stuff of his gear was never found. Only some people from the village claim they know where it was hidden. They swore that they would not tell and that no one would ever know. Could they be wrong? The stories goes that knight Hoen and his family would have kept the location of his belongings close with them. If they were involved in the conspiracy is never proven. Nobody ever found it and knight Hoen denied they whole story.

Found possessions

About the geocache • Search only for this geocache during daylight hours. • Search only for this geocache with proper climbing equipment. • It is NOT allowed to pull someone up in to the tree. This is very harmful to the tree and this is not intended! Respect nature. • Logging this geocache is your own responsibility. Please mind your own safety! It is not necessary to log every geocache. • Pictures of your activities are highly appreciated.

Reference:
Kasteel Hoensbroek