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

Sigmaringen Castle

Sigmaringen Castle was first mentioned in the year 1077 in the chronicles of Petershausen monastery. The oldest parts of the castle are concealed beneath the alterations made during the 17th and the 19th centuries. The secret of the earliest settlement built on this defendable rock will never be fully revealed: large-scale excavation work would be necessary, which the extensive land development renders impossible. Judging from the many Roman remains unearthed in the area around Sigmaringen, the 12th century keep known as the 'Roman Tower' could be traced back to a Roman predecessor.

The castle remains that have been preserved (gate, great hall and keep) date back to the Staufer period around 1200. The castle remains were integrated into subsequent buildings. The foundations of the castle buildings are to a large extent identical to the surrounding castle wall.

These remains give us a good idea of how the castle might have looked during the 12th century.

Falnuée Castle

Address

Details

More Information

Rating

Interesting Sites Nearby

User Reviews

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Finest Norman castles in Italy

Exploring the History of Northern Poland

Discovering Slovenia's Historic Wonders

Historic Site of the week

Sigmaringen Castle