Her name is often mentioned in the same breath as Vredenburg Castle, which was built by the Spanish king Charles V. Spain and the Netherlands were at war, and the Spanish army was firing its cannons into the city. Once the Spanish had been driven out, the people wanted to demolish the castle, but the Utrecht city authorities took a long time to arrive at an official decision on the matter. So on 2 May 1577, Van Leemput took matters into her own hands. She assembled a group of women, and, armed with pickaxes – the tool with which Van Leemput was later so often depicted – they marched on Vredenburg Castle. There they started to demolish the building, and more and more of their fellow citizens joined them. Van Leemput remains a symbol of strength and courage.
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