The Castle of Vêves (french: Château de Vêves, ) occupies a rocky platform in

Wallonia Wallonia (; french: Wallonie ), or ; nl, Wallonië ; wa, Waloneye or officially the Walloon Region (french: link=no, Région wallonne),; nl, link=no, Waals gewest; wa, link=no, Redjon walone is one of the three regions of Belgium—alo ...

just outside the village of Celles, in the province of

Namur Namur (; ; nl, Namen ; wa, Nameur) is a city and municipality in Wallonia, Belgium. It is both the capital of the province of Namur and of Wallonia, hosting the Parliament of Wallonia, the Government of Wallonia and its administration. Namu ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

. It is classified as ''Major Heritage'' of

History

According to tradition, the site has been occupied by castles since the time of

Pippin of Herstal Pepin II (c. 635 – 16 December 714), commonly known as Pepin of Herstal, was a Frankish statesman and military leader who de facto ruled Francia as the Mayor of the Palace from 680 until his death. He took the title Duke and Prince of the Fr ...

(7th century). In the later Middle Ages, the area fell under control of the Beaufort family, which oversaw the construction of a stronghold here in about 1230. The present castle, in the form of an irregular pentagon and flanked by six round towers of varying size, dates largely from around 1410. Successive restorations modified especially the walls of the inner courtyard, one of which is lined with a distinctive

half-timbered Timber framing (german: Holzfachwerk) and "post-and-beam" construction are traditional methods of building with heavy timbers, creating structures using squared-off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden ...

gallery of two levels, and another of which was given a red brick facade in the

Louis XV Louis XV (15 February 1710 – 10 May 1774), known as Louis the Beloved (french: le Bien-Aimé), was King of France from 1 September 1715 until his death in 1774. He succeeded his great-grandfather Louis XIV at the age of five. Until he reache ...

style. The northern frontage is crowned with a small cupola containing a clock.

Brief description

The basic shape of the complex resembles an irregular triangle, enclosed by four large and two smaller towers. Its shape is given by the surface of the rock on which it was built. During the Renaissance it was completely rebuilt. In the time of Louis XV, the owners had further changes made, especially to the interior decoration, wood paneling, alcoves and exterior windows. On the courtyard side, two half-timbered galleries, one above the other, have been preserved. They connect the original, medieval living area with a wing of the 16th century. The individual rooms of the chateau are furnished with 18th century furniture from the estate of Countess Athénaïs de Mortemart.

References

*Countess Marie-Caroline d'Ursel, ''Cinquante châteaux evoquent l'histoire de Belgique'' (Brussels, 1972)

External links

Chateau de Veves websitePicture of the ChateauInterview with Count Hadelin de Liedekerke Beaufort, the owner of Chateau de Veves
{{DEFAULTSORT:Castle of Veves Wallonia's Major Heritage 7th-century establishments in Francia Buildings and structures completed in 1410 Historic house museums in Belgium Veves Veves Museums in Namur (province)

History

Brief description

See also

References

External links