Belfry of Mons

Mons, Belgium

The belfry of Mons is one of the more recent among the belfries of Belgium and France. It is classified as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO since 1999. It is the only one in Belgium that is constructed in baroque style. With an altitude of 87 meters, it dominates the city of Mons, which is constructed on a hill itself.

The building was designed by architecture Louis Ledoux. He led the works from 1662 until his death in 1667. The work was continued from 1667 to 1669 by Vincent Anthony. This belfry is both a prestigious construction and a functional building as it served to warn in case of fire or, during the Second World War, to give alerts against incoming bombardments.

The belfry of Mons does not have all possible belfry characteristics like the presence of a jail or rooms serving the Justice department, but the Hainaut province is not a region with belfries that are as typical as the ones in Belgian Flanders and in French Flanders.

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Address

Rue des Gades 7, Mons, Belgium
See all sites in Mons

Details

Founded: 1662-1669
Category:

More Information

en.beffroi.mons.be
en.wikipedia.org
www.belgium-tourism.be

Rating

4.4/5 (based on Google user reviews)

Interesting Sites Nearby


St. Nicholas Church (52,2 km)
La Grand-Place (52,1 km)
Brussels Town Hall (52 km)
Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium (51,8 km)
Saint Jacques-sur-Coudenberg (51,9 km)
Royal Palace of Brussels (52 km)
Church of Our Blessed Lady of the Sablon (51,6 km)
Cathedral of St. Michael and St. Gudula (52,5 km)
Chapel Church (51,5 km)

User Reviews

miguel cuenca (11 months ago)
Nice views
Thanos Zach (12 months ago)
Beautiful architecture but... 20 euro for the entrance?? Are you serious? With this price I can visit Coliseum, or Acropolis of Athens or the Eiffel Tower! The price here should be 7 euro maximum and free entrance for montoise students!
Victor Ginzburg (13 months ago)
very nice and cozy old town, the belfry is a must, great views all around, although the elevator ticket is a bit expensive, ten euros.
Viviane Côté (2 years ago)
Nice history of the belfry inside on each floor. Too bad we couldn't get all the way to the top. No views from the Belfry.
Adam Kruvand (2 years ago)
Mons is the storybook European town you would expect to see in a movie. The Belfry is a world heritage site and looks like it was built for that movie. It's chimes every 15 minutes creates the quintessential soundtrack to your visit. At the top of the Mon, it's visible from most of town. A meticulous restoration inside and out proves the locals are proud to have it. A small museum inside provides the best view of Mons as well as a close up of the bells.
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Gisselfeld Castle

Gisselfeld, a former monastery, is Denmark's fifth-largest estate. The three-storeyed Renaissance-style building has stepped gables, loopholes and a projecting tower over the main gate. The grounds include a moat, a well-kept park, lake, waterfall, gardens, greenhouse, and a fountain. The estate measures 3,850 hectares, including Hesede, Edelesminde, Brødebæk and Gødstrupgård, of which 2,400 hectares is forest.

Gisselfeld is first mentioned at the end of the 14th century when the owner was Bo Falk. At that time, there was a small manor situated some 2 km northwest of the site of today's main building. It stood next to an older fort, possibly the now demolished Valgestrup. Today's estate was founded by Peder Oxe til Nielstrup who built the manor from 1547 to 1575. It originally consisted of four interconnected red-brick wings, three storeys high with thick outer walls, a number of loopholes and large stepped gables. A protruding gate tower stands at the centre of the left wing. The fourth wing, now demolished, housed a chapel.

After Peder Oxe's death, his widow Mette Rosenkrantz til Vallø became the owner of the estate. After her death in 1588, her niece Karen Banner inherited Gisselfeld. She married Henrik Lykke til Overgaard whose family ran the estate until Kai Lykke was executed and relieved of all his rights in 1661. After a short period of ownership by the Crown, in 1670 the property was presented to Count Hans Schack as a reward for the part he played in the Swedish wars. In 1688, his son Otto Diderik sold the estate to Adam Levin Knuth whose family maintained ownership until 1699 when Christian V's illegitimate son took it over. As a result of his will, on his death in 1703 the manor should have become a convent but this did not happen until the death of his widow Dorothea Krag in 1754. Since 1755, under the name of Danneskiold-Samsøe his descendants have run the estate as 'Gisselfeld Adelige Jomfrukloster I Sjælland' (Gisselfeld Convent in Zealand for Virgins of Noble Birth). The 11th in line, Hele Danneskiold-Samsøe, has run Gisselfeld since 2010.

Today Gisselfeld houses a hotel, restaurant and provides event services.

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