Falnuée Castle, Gembloux, Belgium

Falnuée Castle, locally known as Château-ferme de Falnuée, lies south of the village of Mazy, in the province of Namur. Falnuée Castle started out as just a square keep, serving as a watchtower, in the valley of the Orneau river. It was probably built around 1285 but only first mentioned in 1343. Then it was held in fief by Henri de Falnuée from the Count of Namur; William I. It protected Namur's border with the Duchy of Brabant, together with nearby Mielmont Castle and Villeret Tower.

In 1456 Jean, the bastard of William I, took over the fief by force. His descendants then held possession of it until the mid-17th century. From then on several families followed who owned or were ceded the castle, until the French Revolution at the end of the 18th century. The last Lord of Falnuée was a General-Major Albert-Eugene de Meldeman who died in 1814. From then on the castle became purely a farm.

In 1987 the castle farm was bought and turned into an 18-hole golf club. At present the buildings of the castle farm are all used by the golf club.

References:

castles.nl

Church of St Donatus

The Church of St Donatus name refers to Donatus of Zadar, who began construction on this church in the 9th century and ended it on the northeastern part of the Roman forum. It is the largest Pre-Romanesque building in Croatia.

The beginning of the building of the church was placed to the second half of the 8th century, and it is supposed to have been completed in the 9th century. The Zadar bishop and diplomat Donat (8th and 9th centuries) is credited with the building of the church. He led the representations of the Dalmatian cities to Constantinople and Charles the Great, which is why this church bears slight resemblance to Charlemagne's court chapels, especially the one in Aachen, and also to the Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna. It belongs to the Pre-Romanesque architectural period.

The circular church, formerly domed, is 27 m high and is characterised by simplicity and technical primitivism.

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Church of St Donatus