Raesfeld () is a
municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality' ...
in the
district of Borken in the state of
North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia or North-Rhine/Westphalia, commonly shortened to NRW, is a States of Germany, state () in Old states of Germany, Western Germany. With more than 18 million inhabitants, it is the List of German states by population, most ...
,
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
. It is located approximately 10 km south of
Borken and 30 km east of the
Dutch border.
Raesfeld's landmark is the
moated castle
A water castle, sometimes water-castle, is a castle which incorporates a natural or artificial body of water into its defences.Forde-Johnston (1979), p. 163. It can be entirely surrounded by water-filled moats (moated castle) or natural waterbo ...
, originally built in the 13th century and extended and remodeled in
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 ...
style in the 17th century. It is now primarily used by the state of North Rhine-Westphalia as a center for the teaching of
craft
A craft or trade is a pastime or an occupation that requires particular skills and knowledge of skilled work. In a historical sense, particularly the Middle Ages and earlier, the term is usually applied to people occupied in small scale pr ...
s; the formal gardens have been lost, but the wildlife park has been restored and is part of the
European Garden Heritage Network.
The municipality of Raesfeld includes , a village within the that has an ancient
oak, the
Femeiche, thought to be 600–850 years old and named for
Vehmic court sessions formerly held under it.
Gallery
File:20140720 110754 Schloss Raesfeld, Raesfeld (DSC04114).jpg, Aerial view of Schloss Raesfeld on the outskirts of Raesfeld
File:20170423 Schloss Raesfeld, Raesfeld (07915).jpg, Schloss Raesfeld, east facade
File:Raesfeld, sculptuur Kappes Anna positie2 foto8 2016-07-19 13.22.jpg, ''Kappes Anna'' (Cabbage Anna) sculpture
Image:Erle, kerk in straatzicht foto2 2011-04-09 15.40.JPG, Erle, with church of St. Silvester
References
External links
Site of the municipality
Gallery about Raesfeld in general, and the castle
Gallery showing the castle
Borken (district)
{{Borken-geo-stub