Château d'Hardelot, Condette, France

Building located at Condette, the castle of Hardelot is a manor house remodeled in the 19th century in the neo Tudor style, on foundations from the first half of the 13th century.

The first castle at this site was built in the 12th century by the Counts of Boulogne. The curtain walls date back to that time. The present castle was built by Philip I, Count of Boulogne and son of Philip II of France, in 1222. He also built Boulogne-sur-Mer Castle to a rather similiar plan; a more or less circular castle with projecting circular towers but no keep.

In 1848 Hardelot Castle was bought by the Englishman Sir John Hare. He rebuilt one of the best remaining towers into a Tudor-style mansion. Large receptions were given here and the writer Charles Dickens, a friend of Hare, often visited the castle.

Located on the edge of the regional nature reserve of the Condette marsh, near the forest and the dunes of Ecault, it now houses the Cultural Center of the Entente Cordiale, managed by the Department of Pas-de-Calais. The rooms of the castle are fully furnished and retrace the tumultuous relations between France and Great Britain.

User Reviews

James Wilkinson (14 months ago)
Great value at €3 entry

Alessandro Balocco (3 years ago)
Very nice and quaint place. We had a brief coffee stop at the cafe at the entrance and then we visited both the castle, the gardens and we had a walk around to nearby lake. The Castle is small but the rooms are pleasantly decorated. It is a great way to spend a couple of hours within the castle and its surroundings. I would definitely recommend this.

Kate Cooke (3 years ago)
Stunning little Chateaux, really well kept with beautiful gardens and extremely reason price. Good for a couple of hours, more if you eat and walk around the lake.

Michiel Kerstens (3 years ago)
Nice garden to leisurely stroll around. Castle itself is a bit small and holds a mish mash collection, representing the living conditions of its famous historical owners. There are thorny leaves on the assorted flat surfaces and chairs to prevent you from sitting down. Very cheap entry fee compared to other sites (adult 3 Euro) . Café was closed (Covid).

Frank Vvk (3 years ago)
I went by foot to this place starting from Hardelot-plage in July 2021. The castle is very nice located and it is very well maintained. When I was there, it was closed, but you could enter the courtyard and climb up some stairs at the walls. Perfect to take some nice pictures! The yard outside of the castle is amazing too, very nicely landscaped and well done… you can walk around here and take some extra nice pictures! Definitely worthy to pay a visit to this Castle when you are in the surroundings!

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Photo from Flickr, copyright Mark1792

Historic Site of the week

Rosenborg Castle

Rosenborg Palace was built in the period 1606-34 as Christian IV’s summerhouse just outside the ramparts of Copenhagen. Christian IV was very fond of the palace and often stayed at the castle when he resided in Copenhagen, and it was here that he died in 1648. After his death, the palace passed to his son King Frederik III, who together with his queen, Sophie Amalie, carried out several types of modernisation.

The last king who used the place as a residence was Frederik IV, and around 1720, Rosenborg was abandoned in favor of Frederiksborg Palace.Through the 1700s, considerable art treasures were collected at Rosenborg Castle, among other things items from the estates of deceased royalty and from Christiansborg after the fire there in 1794.

Soon the idea of a museum arose, and that was realised in 1833, which is The Royal Danish Collection’s official year of establishment.

Château d'Hardelot

Address

Details

More Information

Rating

Interesting Sites Nearby

User Reviews

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Exploring the History of Northern Poland

Discovering Slovenia's Historic Wonders

Historical Gems of Costa Verde

Historic Site of the week

Rosenborg Castle