Het Rode Huis

Het Rode Huis is a brick house in the woods beyond the hills, on the edge of the village. First associated with Miss Trunchbull, it is revealed to have belonged legally to Juffrouw Engel since her father’s death. When Juffrouw Engel moves there, the house becomes her recovered childhood home and a setting for her close friendship with Matilda.

Setting and discovery

The house is described as a pleasant brick country house, set apart from the school in the woods behind the hills. After Miss Trunchbull leaves the school and fails to appear the next morning, the substitute head, Mr. Dophoed, goes to the house to investigate. The doorbell and his knock bring no answer; inside, the rooms are silent and empty of people, though the furniture remains. Upstairs, he finds that the clothes, underwear, and shoes have been removed from the bedroom. The contrast between the furnished house and the emptied wardrobes leads him to conclude that Miss Trunchbull has run away, and he reports her disappearance to the school board.

Ownership and return

Two days later, Juffrouw Engel receives a registered letter from a local notary. Her father’s will has unexpectedly come to light, establishing that she has been the legal owner of the property since his death. The house, known as Het Rode Huis and until recently occupied by Miss Trunchbull, is identified in the document alongside the savings her father left her, which have remained safely in the bank. The notary asks Juffrouw Engel to come to his office so that the house and money can be put in her name.

Juffrouw Engel acts on the letter, and within three weeks she moves into the house where she grew up. The furnishings and paintings from her earlier life are still there. The return gives the house a double history: it has been occupied by someone else, but it was Juffrouw Engel’s home and property all along. Its restoration is concrete as well as legal—she regains the place and the belongings that make it recognizable as her childhood home.

A home shared with Matilda

After Juffrouw Engel moves in, Matilda visits Het Rode Huis every day after school, and the two develop a close friendship. The house thus becomes more than the setting for Juffrouw Engel’s return: it is where her bond with Matilda takes shape away from the school day. A few weeks later, they are drinking tea in the kitchen when Matilda tells Juffrouw Engel that she has tried to move something with her eyes, but cannot; she feels no heat behind her eyes and believes her power is gone. The domestic calm of the kitchen frames the disclosure, making Het Rode Huis the place where Matilda can share a startling change with a trusted adult.