The Château de Beaumont ( or ) was a castle in Beaumont,

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

. In the 15th century, it became the main seat of the

House of Croÿ The House of Croÿ () is an old European noble family of princely and historically sovereignty, sovereign rank, which held a seat in the Reichstag (Holy Roman Empire), Imperial Diet from 1486, and was elevated to the rank of Princes of the Holy Ro ...

, dukes of

Aarschot Aarschot () is a city and municipality in the province of Flemish Brabant, in Flanders, Belgium. The municipality comprises the city of Aarschot proper and the towns of Gelrode, Langdorp and Rillaar. On 1 January 2019, Aarschot had a total popu ...

. They turned the castle fortress into a palatial

renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

structure of unparalleled luxury and magnificence. The palace had its heyday under prince-duke

Charles III de Croÿ Charles III de Croÿ (1 July 1560 – 12 January 1612) was Seigneur de Croÿ, 4th Duke of Aarschot, 5th Prince of Chimay and 5th Count of Beaumont, Belgium, Beaumont. He played an important role on both sides of the Dutch Revolt. He was an avid co ...

, an avid collector, who filled its halls and galleries with an outstanding art collection. In 1655, the castle was destroyed by the French army of

Turenne Henri de La Tour d'Auvergne, vicomte de Turenne (11 September 161127 July 1675), commonly known as Turenne (), was a French general and one of only six marshals to have been promoted Marshal General of France. The most illustrious member of th ...

. Nowadays, only one tower remains of the complex, the Salamander tower ( or ). It is opened to the public and tells the story of a bygone time.

History

Counts of Hainaut

Around 1070,

Richilde, Countess of Hainaut Richilde, Countess of Mons and Hainaut ( 1018 – 15 March 1086), was a ruling countess of Hainaut from c. 1050 until 1076, in co-regency with her husband Baldwin VI of Flanders (until 1070) and then her son Baldwin II of Hainaut. She was also ...

(1020-1086) constructed a castle at Beaumont with a chapel dedicated to Saint Venantius.Karen S. Nicholas, 'Countesses as Rulers in Flanders', ''Aristocratic Women in Medieval France'', Ed. Theodore Evergates (Philadelphia : University of Pennsylvania Press, 1999), p. 116 Its aim was to defend the southern part of the

County of Hainaut The County of Hainaut ( ; ; ; ), sometimes spelled Hainault, was a territorial lordship within the medieval Holy Roman Empire that straddled the present-day border of Belgium and France. Its most important towns included Mons, Belgium, Mons (), n ...

. It stood on the edge of a small plateau on the right bank of the Hantes river, overlooking the valley. The castle consisted only of one

keep A keep is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word ''keep'', but usually consider it to refer to large towers in castles that were fortified residen ...

, the so-called Salamander tower. Under

Baldwin IV Baldwin IV (1161–1185), known as the Leper King, was the king of Jerusalem from 1174 until his death in 1185. He was admired by historians and his contemporaries for his dedication to the Kingdom of Jerusalem in the face of his debilitating ...

(1108-1171) and

Baldwin V Baldwin V (1177 or 11781186) was the king of Jerusalem who reigned together with his uncle Baldwin IV from 1183 to 1185 and, after his uncle's death, as the sole king from 1185 to his own death in 1186. Baldwin IV's leprosy meant that he could ...

(1150-1195), the tower and the castle were enlarged into a fortress, which was able to defend the new town developing on the plateau. Around 1340, at the start of

Hundred Years' War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a conflict between the kingdoms of Kingdom of England, England and Kingdom of France, France and a civil war in France during the Late Middle Ages. It emerged from feudal disputes over the Duchy ...

, the castle and the keep burned down, but were restored soon afterwards. Throughout the 15th century, thanks to its fortress and its solid walls, Beaumont escaped the devastation which accompanied the conflicts ravaging the region.

House of Croÿ

In 1453,

Philip the Good Philip III the Good (; ; 31 July 1396 – 15 June 1467) ruled as Duke of Burgundy from 1419 until his death in 1467. He was a member of a cadet line of the Valois dynasty, to which all 15th-century kings of France belonged. During his reign, ...

Duke of Burgundy Duke of Burgundy () was a title used by the rulers of the Duchy of Burgundy, from its establishment in 843 to its annexation by the Crown lands of France, French crown in 1477, and later by members of the House of Habsburg, including Holy Roman E ...

(1396-1467), granted the land of Beaumont to Antoine I de Croÿ, known as ‘the Great’ () (1383/1387-1475). Antoine played a key role in the Burgundian court and 15th century French politics. For example, he occupied the post of Governor General of the Netherlands and Luxembourg.Richard Vaughan, ''Philip the Good'', (Boydell Press, 2002), 196. Under the Croÿ family, the castle turned from a fortress into a palace. The château of Beaumont became their main seat and residence. At the same time, the village transformed as well into an important city. Antoine was succeeded by his son Philip I de Croÿ (1435-1511), who was raised together with

Charles the Bold Charles Martin (10 November 1433 – 5 January 1477), called the Bold, was the last duke of Burgundy from the House of Valois-Burgundy, ruling from 1467 to 1477. He was the only surviving legitimate son of Philip the Good and his third wife, ...

(1433-1477). He was an advisor to the Dukes of Burgundy and was also governor of

Luxembourg Luxembourg, officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, is a landlocked country in Western Europe. It is bordered by Belgium to the west and north, Germany to the east, and France on the south. Its capital and most populous city, Luxembour ...

and

Ligny Ligny (; ) is a village of Wallonia and a district of the municipality of Sombreffe, located in the province of Namur, Belgium. Previously its own municipality, a 1977 fusion of the Belgian municipalities made it an '' ancienne commune'' of So ...

. When Philip I passed away, he again was succeeded by his son,

William de Croÿ William II de Croÿ, Lord of Chièvres (1458 – 28 May 1521) (also known as: Guillaume II de Croÿ, sieur de Chièvres in French; Guillermo II de Croÿ, señor de Chièvres, Xevres or Xebres in Spanish; Willem II van Croÿ, heer van Chièvres ...

(1458-1521). William was the chief tutor and first chamberlain to

Charles V Charles V may refer to: Kings and Emperors * Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (1500–1558) * Charles V of Naples (1661–1700), better known as Charles II of Spain * Charles V of France (1338–1380), called the Wise Others * Charles V, Duke ...

(1500-1558),

Holy Roman Emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans (disambiguation), Emperor of the Romans (; ) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period (; ), was the ruler and h ...

and

King of Spain The monarchy of Spain or Spanish monarchy () is the constitutional form of government of Spain. It consists of a Hereditary monarchy, hereditary monarch who reigns as the head of state, being the highest office of the country. The Spanish ...

. William was married to Marie de Hamal, but their marriage was childless. Therefore, he was succeeded by his nephew, Philip II de Croÿ (1496-1549), the first

Duke of Aarschot The Duke of Aarschot (or ''Aerschot'') was one of the most important aristocratic titles in the Low Countries, named after the Brabantian city of Aarschot. The title was held by the House of Croÿ and the House of Arenberg. The present Duke is Leo ...

, who was then succeeded by his sons

Charles II de Croÿ Charles II de Croÿ (31 July 1522 – Quiévrain, 24 June 1551) was Seigneur de Croÿ, 2nd Duke of Aarschot, 3rd Prince of Chimay and 3rd Count of Beaumont, Belgium, Beaumont. Early life Charles, born on 31 July 1522, was the eldest son of Philipp ...

(1522-1551) and Philippe III de Croÿ (1526-1595),

Stadtholder In the Low Countries, a stadtholder ( ) was a steward, first appointed as a medieval official and ultimately functioning as a national leader. The ''stadtholder'' was the replacement of the duke or count of a province during the Burgundian and ...

Flanders Flanders ( or ; ) is the Dutch language, Dutch-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, la ...

Charles III de Croÿ

The last and most famous Croÿ prince living at the Château of Beaumont was

(1560-1612). He was born at the castle and also died here. Charles III played an important role of both sides of the

Dutch Revolt The Eighty Years' War or Dutch Revolt (; 1566/1568–1648) was an armed conflict in the Habsburg Netherlands between disparate groups of rebels and the Spanish government. The causes of the war included the Reformation, centralisation, exc ...

. Initially, he was Stadtholder of Flanders on behalf of the insurgents. But he decided to reconcile with the King of Spain and changed sides. He fought alongside

Alexander Farnese, Duke of Parma Alexander Farnese (, ; 27 August 1545 – 3 December 1592) was an Italian noble and military leader, who was Duke of Parma, Piacenza and Castro from 1586 to 1592, as well as Governor of the Spanish Netherlands from 1578 to 1592. Nephew to Kin ...

, and achieved various military victories. Charles III made the palace-fortress of Beaumont his favourite residence, next to his castle in

Heverlee Heverlee () is a sub-municipality of the city of Leuven located in the province of Flemish Brabant, Flemish Region, Belgium. It was a separate municipality until 1977. On 1 January 1977, it was merged into Leuven. According to the official websit ...

. The castle was restored, and beautiful gardens were created. Charles III was an avid collector of art: paintings, manuscripts, coins and metals. These collections were brought together at the château of Beaumont, were it filled the halls and galleries of the castle. Charles III is famous for the creation of his ‘Albums de Croÿ’, a collection of 2,500 detailed illustrated maps of all his domains and possessions. These Albums were housed in his library in the Salamander Tower. The Albums offer us today an important topographical insight into the cities and villages of 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 ...

. Although, Charles III was married twice, both his marriages remained childless. After his death in 1612, all his titles and possessions went to his sister Anne de Croÿ (1563-1635), who was married to

Charles de Ligne, 2nd Prince of Arenberg Princely Count Charles of Arenberg, duke of Aarschot (''jure uxoris''), baron of Zevenbergen, knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece, (22 February 1550, in Vollenhove – 18 January 1616, in Enghien) was the second Princely Count of Arenberg a ...

(1550-1612). Their granddaughter, Anne-Caroline of Arenberg, princess de

Chimay Chimay (, ) is a city and Municipalities of Belgium, municipality of Wallonia located in the Hainaut Province, province of Hainaut, Belgium. In 2006, Chimay had a population of 9,774. The area is 197.10 km2 which gives a population density ...

married Eugène de Hénin, count of Boussu. And from here, the ownership of Beaumont went into the Hénin-Liétard and Riquet de Caraman families. Both families also owned Chimay Castle and the title of ‘prince de Chimay’, which once also belonged to Charles III. The Caraman family sell their remaining possessions in Beaumont to a monastic order.

17th century

The 17th century was a century of misfortune. In 1632, the war was followed by the plague, which decimated Beaumont's population. In 1637, the city was besieged for the first time. The walls were weakened: the fire and cannonballs of modern artillery caused serious breaches. In 1655, French Troops under Turenne invaded the Netherlands. The city of Beaumont refused to cooperate, and in retaliation, the French troops set the city on fire. Barely thirty houses were spared. Also, the castle, the church, and the Salamander Tower were in ruins. Of three kilometres of ramparts, only a third remains. Out of four gates, only one postern remains. The castle was not restored. The princes de Chimay acquired a hotel at the market place in Beaumont, where they staid when visiting the city. In June 1815, before the

Battle of Waterloo The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo, Belgium, Waterloo (then in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium), marking the end of the Napoleonic Wars. The French Imperial Army (1804–1815), Frenc ...

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

staid here.

Today

Nothing remains of the castle, except for the ruins of the Salamander Tower. The keep houses a museum, which tells about the history of Beaumont and its fortifications. Its collections include reproductions of the famous maps of the Album de Croÿ. The location of the castle is now a park.

References

Literature

* * * * * * * * *

External links

* {{coord missing, Belgium Castles in Belgium Castles in Hainaut (province) House of Croÿ Former buildings and structures in Belgium Former palaces