The Castle of Vêves (, ) occupies a rocky platform in

Wallonia Wallonia ( ; ; or ), officially the Walloon Region ( ; ), is one of the three communities, regions and language areas of Belgium, regions of Belgium—along with Flemish Region, Flanders and Brussels. Covering the southern portion of the c ...

just outside the village of Celles, in the province of

Namur Namur (; ; ) is a city and municipality in Wallonia, Belgium. It is the capital both of the province of Namur and of Wallonia, hosting the Parliament of Wallonia, the Government of Wallonia and its administration. Namur stands at the confl ...

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 ...

. 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 was the de facto ruler of Francia as the Mayor of the Palace from 680 until his death. He took the title Duke and P ...

(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 () and "post-and-beam" construction are traditional methods of building with heavy Beam (structure), timbers, creating structures using squared-off and carefully fitted and Woodworking joints, joined timbers with joints secure ...

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 (), 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 reached maturity (then defi ...

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)

Château de Vêves The Castle of Vêves (, ) occupies a rocky platform in Wallonia just outside the village of Celles, Houyet, Celles, in the province of Namur (province), Namur, Belgium. It is classified as ''Major Heritage'' of Wallonia. History According to tr ...

History

Brief description

See also

References

External links