The Old Tower of Stiphout

Path already quite sucking after a night of rain

This tower is a remnant of the former Sint-Trudokerk. The first written mention of the church dates from 1342, when the church was struck by lightning and burned down. Then the Miracle of Stiphout also took place, which made this church a much-visited place of pilgrimage. The church was rebuilt, but during the passage in 1587 of the Count of Hohenloh, one of the armies that fought for the Prince of Orange during the Eighty Years' War, the church was destroyed again. After 1648 the church became Protestant. The Catholics held their worship services in a barn church. They remained churches in it, even when they got the old church back, since it was dilapidated. The church was demolished in 1823 and the stones were used to embellish the barn church. The tower remained standing at the edge of the village. It is a flat tower from about 1400.In 1884 lightning struck again, whereupon fire broke out and only the stone ruins remained standing. In the same year, the Catholics moved into their new church, which, however, was placed at a considerable distance from the Old Tower.In 1938 the Oude Toren became a national monument, and in 1978 it was restored, during which the spire was also rebuilt.