Medieval castles in Belgium
Ooidonk Castle
Ooidonk Castle is the residence of the current Count t"Kint de Roodenbeke. A fortress was first built on the site of the present castle in 1230, intended to defend the city of Ghent and to fortify the river Leie. This fortress was owned by Nikolaas van Hoendunc, lord of Nevele. After it was destroyed by Louis de Male, count of Flanders, Jean de Fosseux rebuilt and enlarged the fortress from 1381 onwards, adding moat ...
Founded: 1579 |
Location:
Deinze, Belgium
Spontin Castle
Spontin Castle is a medieval castle in the village of Spontin in the municipality of Yvoir. It has massive walls, its towers topped with slate and a moat with drawbridge. Spontin was built in a bend of the Bocq, whose water flows around the castle along some cascading waterfalls. The castle belonged to the noble family of Beaufort. Between 1266 and 1284, Pierre de Beaufort built the main tower which is the core of the c ...
Founded: 13th century |
Location:
Yvoir, Belgium
Ter Leyen Castle
Ter Leyen Castle is surrounded by a moat and a beautiful garden. It was built in the early 15th century as a fortified manor farm. The present appearance is Renaissance style. Today Ter Leyen can be booked for weddings and events.
Founded: 15th century |
Location:
Boekhoute, Belgium
Vêves Castle
The Castle of Vêves, close to the village of Celles, is an exceptional heritage site due to the pristine state of preservation of and one of Belgiums the most remarkable examples of late mediaeval military architecture. According to tradition, the site has been occupied by castles since the time of Pippin of Herstal (7th century). In the later Middle Ages, the area fell under control of the Beaufort family, which oversaw ...
Founded: 1410 |
Location:
Houyet, Belgium
Schoten Castle
The water-encircled Schoten castle started as a farm in the 13th century. The first record of farm dates from 1232. In the 15th and 16th centuries it was owned by the family Van Brecht from Breda. They began the construction of the present castle in 1548 and in 1611 the building got its present form. The building was acquired in 1950 by the city of Schoten and in 1955 it was converted into a cultural center.
Founded: 13th century |
Location:
Schoten, Belgium
Écaussinnes-Lalaing Castle
In 1184 Baldwin V, Count of Hainaut, built the first castle on the current site in Écaussinnes. The lords of Écaussinnes and their heirs the de Lalaings altered the original structure several times over the centuries. In 1450 Marie de Lalaing married Jean II de Croÿ, descendant of the Counts (later Princes) of Chimay. By a quirk of inheritance, the castle later became the property of the Lalaing family again. They so ...
Founded: 1184 |
Location:
Écaussinnes, Belgium
Beloeil Castle
Belœil château has been the residence of the Prince de Ligne since the 14th century. The château lies in the middle of a magnificent Baroque garden designed in 1664. The château and gardens can be visited during spring and summer. Belœil became possession of the Ligne family in 1394. At the beginning of the 15th century the local castle was chosen as the principal residence of the family. The old castle was a fortif ...
Founded: 1394 |
Location:
Beloeil, Belgium
Ham-sur-Heure Castle
Ham-sur-Heure Castle was first mentioned in the 13th century when it passed, through marriage, to the Condé family. In the 15th century the castle was owned by the d'Enghien family. In 1487, when the last family member died without heirs, the castle went to the De Merode family. In 1540 the castle was visited by Charles V, the Holy Roman Emperor. Around this time the castle was probably enlarged and strengthened. In 16 ...
Founded: 13th century |
Location:
Ham-sur-Heure-Nalinnes, Belgium
Mirwart Castle
Mirwart Castle is built on a rock rising above the Valley of the Lomme. The oldest parts of the castle date back to the 11th century. It was a stronghold belonging to the duchy of Lorraine. The lords of Mirwart had many bloody conflicts with other feudal lords of the region, such as the lords of Bouillon and Orchimont. The lords of Mirwart came into conflict with the monks of the powerful Saint-Hubert Abbey, suppo ...
Founded: 11th century |
Location:
Saint-Hubert, Belgium
Freÿr Castle
The castle of Freÿr with its gardens form one of the most magnificent natural sites in Belgium. It has been classified as one of Wallonia"s major heritage sites. Dating back to the Middle Ages, Freÿr was a keep given in fief by the Count of Namur to Jean de Rochefort Orjol in 1378. His granddaughter Marie married Jacques de Beaufort in 1410. Their descendants have kept the estate until the present. ...
Founded: 1571 |
Location:
Hastière, Belgium
Montaigle Castle Ruins
Montaigle Castle was built in the 14th century, and destroyed by Henry II of France in 1554. It stands on a rocky spur overlooking the valleys of the Molignée and of the Flavion. The site was used during the Late Roman period for a Belgo-Roman fortification. The ruins are open to visitors, convention spaces are also available.
Founded: 14th century |
Location:
Onhaye, Belgium
Crèvecœur Castle
The ruins of the Château de Crèvecœur are located in Bouvignes-sur-Meuse, part of the Belgian city of Dinant. The ruin field can be visited freely all year round at your own risk. Already at the end of the 11th century, Godfrey I, Count of Namur had a fortress built at Bouvignes. His son Henry the Blind had heavy walls built around it. Archaeologically identified fire marks are associated with a siege of Bouvignes ...
Founded: 1320 |
Location:
Dinant, Belgium
Reinhardstein Castle
Reinhardstein Castle is located in valley of the Warche, in the village of Ovifat in the municipality of Waimes (Weismes). It was built in 1354 for Wenceslaus of Luxembourg, while still Count, by his vassal Reinhard of Weismes. In 1550 following the marriage of Anne Naussau to Guillaume of Metternich, Reinhardstein became the property of this important Rhineland family, until the French Revolution. Abandoned, it f ...
Founded: 1354 |
Location:
Waimes, Belgium
Chimay Castle
Chimay Castle has been owned by the Prince of Chimay and his ancestors for centuries, and it is open to the public for tours during part of the year. Although the castle was significantly damaged by a fire in 1935, the structure was subsequently rebuilt, and renovations continue under the current generation of the princely family. Chimay Castle, the home of the Princes of Chimay for many generations, is an ancient strong ...
Founded: 11th century |
Location:
Chimay, Belgium
Reuland Castle
Reuland Castle in Burg-Reuland, near the border of Germany, was probably built after 1148 by the von Reuland nobles. The castle was sold in 1322 to Count John the Blind and the King of Bohemia. On May 24, 1384, King Wenzel of Luxembourg designated Edmund von Engelsdorf the Secretary of the Treasury of Luxembourg, and donated the Castle and the Reuland Domain to him. The castle"s origins can be traced to th ...
Founded: 1148 |
Location:
Burg-Reuland, Belgium
Rupelmonde Castle Ruins
Rupelmonde Castle was built by the Counts of Flanders in the 12th century directly opposite the mouth of the river Rupel into the Scheldt river to defend these rivers. It was a large fortress with 17 towers circled by a moat. From this castle toll was levied from passing ships. Later on the castle was also used as a state prison. This caused the castle to play a important role in the history of the region. In 1678, when ...
Founded: 12th century |
Location:
Rupelmonde, Belgium
Tavigny Castle
Tavigny Castle dates to th late Middle Ages, and it may have been only a refuge tower that is now the central part of the castle. Its walls are long 10 meters, thick 2 meters and they had plenty of arrow slits. The lordship of Tavigny belonged at first to a family who wore already its name, but in 1360, it was already owned by the Ouren family, a powerful Middle-age family from the dutchy of Luxembourg. The central tower ...
Founded: 11th century |
Location:
Houffalize, Belgium
Poilvache Castle
Poilvache Castle is a ruined medieval castle in the Walloon municipality of Yvoir, overlooking the village of Houx from a clifftop on the river Meuse. The present ruins date from the 15th century, although there has been a fortification on the site since the time of Charlemagne. The Liégeois town of Poilvache, a thriving walled town, protected by a castle, with a prosperous economy and its own mint, and allied to Duke P ...
Founded: 15th century |
Location:
Yvoir, Belgium
Cortewalle Castle
Cortewalle Castle dates back to the 15th century, and is one of the oldest in the Waasland. It is built of white sandstone, in Flemish Renaissance style. For centuries it was in the possession successively of the Triest, Goubau and de Brouchoven de Bergeyck families, until the Brouchovens sold it to the municipality of Beveren, who use it for the storage of the extensive and important De Bergeyck archives. Today Cortewal ...
Founded: 15th century |
Location:
Beveren, Belgium
Den Dool Castle
In the Middle Ages, Den Dool castle served as a summer residence for the abbots of the Abbey of Sint-Truiden. The first mention is from 1282. Around 1340 the first abbot, Amelius van Schoonvorst, was there as a refugee during the wars of Liège against prince-bishop Engelbert van der Mark. In 1361 the castle and farm were burned down by knight Hendrik van Halbeek. The castle was restored between 1443 to 1470. and again in ...
Founded: 13th century |
Location:
Houthalen, Belgium