Homestead, Oud Gastel, Noord Brabant

The government want to take off the 'Noord' and call the province just plain 'Brabant', to which everyone agrees, except that we need to take the feelings of the Belgians in consideration, because they, too, have a province called Brabant; in fact, the capital, Brussels, is in it. This name is common because the entire area, from our province down into Belgium, including Antwerp and Brussels, used to be property of the Duke of Brabant, who used to be one of the, if not the, most powerful man in Europe and the wealthiest, too; so much so, that the Eighty Years War between Spain and the Low Countries (The Neth, Belgium and Luxembourg) was fought largely on his land. It was such a rich area in terms of everything and so every ruler coveted it. These days, while North and South Holland are the seats of power and industry, Noord Brabant is seen as the engine behind the throne.

Anyway, this homestead was owned by one of hubby's uncles. Two of his unmarried male cousins still live there and run the place. We don't know much about them; you know how it sometimes goes with cousins. It was built between 1910 and 1912 by hubby's grandfather, and my father-in-law and all his siblings were born here. In the immediate area, many of their family had farms -- uncles, 2nd and 3rd degree cousins, etc. As generations passed away, the properties were inherited by their children but also by in-laws or folks who married into the various branches. These farms are still in operation. The last time I dropped by ALL of them, though, was when I was busy with family tree research. I must say, though, that I am glad the main bulk of that project is finished. What a self-imposed assignment it was! And such fun to do!

Grey day today, but no matter. In an hour, we'll be commisserating with dear old Smaug.