Windmill ' 't Slot ', Gouda

't Slot = short for 'het slot' = 'the castle'
'Slot' is connected with the German 'schloss'
The second one in Gouda!  (Yup, that city famous for the cheese.)
The windmill used to be at the highest point of the local castle, which stretched from the windmill down to the nearby harbour, as Gouda is situated along the banks of the river Gouwe.  Haven't yet done any research, but 'goud', which sounds like the disease 'gout', means 'gold', and 'gouw' means 'shire'.  A lovely combination would be the 'shire next to the river of gold', which would really be stretching it.

The castle used to be 'owned' by Jacoba van Beieren, that (in)famous Burgundian duchess who married four times, but her third marriage was legally rocky as her second husband was still very much alive.  Who was that?  Jan van Brabant, who apparently was incapable of ruling his dukedom (combination of inept, inebriated, and incapacitated).  Her third marriage, which was to Humphrey of Gloucester (brother of Henry V?), didn't work out either because he preferred her lady-in-waiting, and he sailed back to England and didn't come back and rescue her.  Anyway, a significant battle was fought at the castle between Mistress Jacoba and her very famous nephew, Duke of Burgundy Philip the Good.  Her archers performed excellently, so she won the skirmish, but he won the war.  When years later Gouda switched allegiances from the Burgundian Habsburgs to the House of Orange, the castle was demolished, and the extras will show you what is left today, and why it has become a little problematic to shoot the windmill.

Housework, gaming, some writing.  A new MOOC will begin on Monday.  AW went to see the oncologist at the local clinic, who reviewed all the recent tests which he took.  They are periodic tests because he is a COPD patient who has had some issues in the past.  Result of the interview -- for the first time, everything is as it should be, including salt, sugar, cholesterol, blood pressure, lung performance, the basics.  We are both more than happy.  The only thing to work on now is his back, plus maintenance of his general condition.  Yet another thing to be thankful for.