This historic windmill is at Knooppunt 5, the fifth node of the South Limburg cycling network. Though it is known as the Gronsveld Windmill, it is actually within the city limits of Maastricht, near the road (and cycle paths!) that lead south to the nearby town of Gronsveld.

Construction of this windmill was ordered by the local ruler, Count Joest Maximillian of Gronsveld, in 1618, but it was not completed until 1623. The base around the bottom of the windmill was not built until 1766.

At first I didn’t understand why this is called a Tower Windmill, but after flipping through some Dutch windmill photos on the internet I came to realize that it really is shaped like a tower and looks quite different from a typical Dutch windmill which is shaped more like an inverted cone.

Apparently there are only four or five tower windmills left in the Netherlands, so this one has the status of a protected monument.

The windmill and Knooppunt 5 of the South Limburg cycling network

Despite its advanced age, the Gronsveld Windmill still grinds grain for the local farmers and for people who like to bake their own bread.

The windmill was not moving when I was there (on a Tuesday), but they say it is open to visitors who wish to see it in operation every first and third Saturday of the month if the wind is strong enough, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

In the Second World War the windmill suffered fire damage after a grenade explosion. Restoration work was carried out in 1959 and again in 1972.

Address: Rijksweg 90, 6228 XZ, Maastricht

My photos in this post are from 2012. I revised the text in 2019.

See more posts on Maastricht, the southernmost city in the Netherlands.