Dutch royal family offer castle to Ukrainian refugees

The royals will use their holiday home to provide refuge to 30 Ukrainians fleeing the war

The Het Loo Palace in Apeldoorn, Netherlands. Getty Images

The Dutch royal family have announced they will open up one of their castles to eight Ukrainian families who have fled the war.

Up to 30 refugees will be housed in the 15th-century castle on the Het Loo Palace estate in Apeldoon, which is about an hour’s train ride east of Amsterdam.

The castle is mostly used by the Dutch royal family as a country and guest house. Part of the castle has been allocated to Ukrainian families, while the rest will remain open for private use.

The Het Loo Palace estate is a heritage site, with sprawling gardens that feature a maze. The area is often referred to as the Versailles of the Netherlands.

King Willem-Alexander of The Netherlands and Queen Maxima of The Netherlands attend Prinsjesdag, the annual opening of the parliamentary year on September 21, 2021 in The Hague, Netherlands. Getty Images

Since the start of the Russian invasion more than a month ago, more than 3.6 million Ukrainian refugees have fled the country, according to the UN, 12,000 of whom have ended up in the Netherlands.

The Dutch royals are not the only European royal family to offer help to the people of Ukraine. Earlier this month, Denmark's Queen Margrethe announced the royal family would be making a large donation to aid those affected by the conflict.

"There is war in Europe again," the monarch said in a statement posted on the Danish royal family's official website.

"It makes me immensely sad to witness what is now happening in Ukraine. The progress and the hope that flourished in Europe after the fall of the Berlin Wall now crumbles before our eyes."

The post announced that Margrethe and Prince Henrik's Foundation would donate about $190,000 to those affected by the war in Ukraine.