de Borchgrave d'Altena is the name of a noble family from

's-Hertogenbosch s-Hertogenbosch (), colloquially known as Den Bosch (), is a city and municipality in the Netherlands with a population of 157,486. It is the capital of the province of North Brabant and its fourth largest by population. The city is south of th ...

and the

County of Flanders The County of Flanders was a historic territory in the Low Countries. From 862 onwards, the counts of Flanders were among the original twelve peers of the Kingdom of France. For centuries, their estates around the cities of Ghent, Bruges and Ypr ...

History

According to family tradition, the ancestors of this house were Viscounts of Castle

Altena Altena (; Westphalian: ''Altenoa'') is a town in the district of Märkischer Kreis, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The town's castle is the origin for the later Dukes of Berg. Altena is situated on the Lenne river valley, in the northern stretc ...

. This fact is not certain, but it is worth noting that the family already claimed in the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

the coats of arms of the noble family of

(two averted salmons). The first Borchgraves acted as servants of the city of

Den Bosch s-Hertogenbosch (), colloquially known as Den Bosch (), is a city and municipality in the Netherlands with a population of 157,486. It is the capital of the province of North Brabant and its fourth largest by population. The city is south of th ...

. After the

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

, the family moved to the

Southern Netherlands The Southern Netherlands, also called the Catholic Netherlands, were the parts of the Low Countries belonging to the Holy Roman Empire which were at first largely controlled by Habsburg Spain (Spanish Netherlands, 1556–1714) and later by the A ...

. In 1816, the family de Borchgrave d'Altena was admitted in the nobility of the

United Kingdom of the Netherlands The United Kingdom of the Netherlands ( nl, Verenigd Koninkrijk der Nederlanden; french: Royaume uni des Pays-Bas) is the unofficial name given to the Kingdom of the Netherlands as it existed between 1815 and 1839. The United Netherlands was cr ...

with the title of count. The Dutch branch is extinct, but the Walloon branch is still very much alive.

Famous members

*Jean Guillaume Michel Pascal de Borchgrave d'Altena (1749-1818), Member of Parliament *Guillaume Georges François de Borchgrave d'Altena (1774-1845), Member of Parliament *

Arnaud de Borchgrave Arnaud Charles Paul Marie Philippe de Borchgrave (26 October 1926 – 15 February 2015) was a Belgian-American journalist who specialized in international politics. Following a long career with the news magazine ''Newsweek'', covering 17 wars i ...

(1926-2015), Belgian-American journalist *Camille de Borchgrave d'Altena, married American heiress Ruth Snyder, granddaughter of

Charlemagne Tower Charlemagne Tower (April 18, 1809 – July 25, 1889''New York Times,'' July 26, 1889, page 4.) was an American lawyer and businessman active in acquiring land in the Schuylkill Valley in Pennsylvania and serving as an officer for coal and railr ...

*Elie de Borchgrave d'Altena, aka Elie Borgrave (1905-1992), Belgian abstract artist *Joseph de Borchgrave d'Altena (1895-1975), Belgian writer.

Isabelle de Borchgrave Isabelle Jeanne Marie Alice Jacobs, by marriage, Countess Isabelle de Borchgrave d'Altena (born 1946 in Brussels) is a prominent Belgian artist and sculptor, best known for her colorful paintings and intricately painted paper sculptures. She is ...

Émile de Borchgrave Baron Émile Jacques Yvon Marie de Borchgrave (1837–1917) was a Belgian historian and diplomat. Life Borchgrave was born in Ghent on 27 December 1837. He was educated at the College of St Barbara in Ghent and spent one year studying philosoph ...

References

{{surname Borchgrave Families of Belgian ancestry