Château Bilquin de Cartier
Description
Origins of the Château Bilquin de Cartier can be traced back to the around 1635, when the Honoré family built a castle on the Sambre river bank. The place had formerly been occupied by a seigneurial manor which was destroyed on 21 July 1554.
In 1667, the unfinished Spanish fortress of Charleroy was captured by Louis XIV's troops during the War of Devolution. As the castle in Marchienne was located in neutral territory (under authority of the Prince-Bishopric of Liège), it was used as a hospital for both French and Spanish soldiers.
In 1695, the castle was bought by Guillaume de Bilquin, a wealthy forge owner, who completes and enhances it. Later the castle became the property of the Cartier de Marchienne family. It was severely damaged by a fire in 1932, and bought over by the municipality of Marchienne-au-Pont in 1938, ending more than two centuries of ownership by the Cartier family.
The castle today hosts a public library on the ground floor (Bibliothèque Marguerite Yourcenar), and administrative services of the Walloon region on the first floor.