Leeuwergem Castle () is a

stately home 300px, Oxfordshire.html" ;"title="Blenheim Palace - Oxfordshire">Blenheim Palace - Oxfordshire An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a To ...

in the village of Elene in the municipality of

Zottegem Zottegem (, Sotteghem and Sottegem in older English and French language sources) is a city and municipality located in Belgium and more particularly in Flanders, in the province of East Flanders. The municipality comprises the town of Zottegem pr ...

East Flanders East Flanders ( ; ; ; ) is a Provinces of Belgium, province of Belgium. It borders (clockwise from the North) the Netherlands, Dutch province of Zeeland and the Belgian provinces of Antwerp (province), Antwerp, Flemish Brabant, Hainaut (provinc ...

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 ...

History

The present building was constructed between 1762 and 1764, on the site of an earlier castle of the first half of the 15th century. It was built for the

Ghent Ghent ( ; ; historically known as ''Gaunt'' in English) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the Provinces of Belgium, province ...

nobleman Pieter Emmanuel d’Hane (1726–1786), probably by Jean Baptist Simoens of Ghent (1715–1779). The interior and exterior is in the French

château A château (, ; plural: châteaux) is a manor house, or palace, or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking re ...

style, as the estate was built after examples in France. Today the castle is private property of the house of della Faille d'Huysse.

Gardens

The castle is known for its fine

baroque garden The Baroque garden was a style of garden based upon symmetry and the principle of imposing order on nature. The style originated in the late-16th century in Italy, in the gardens of the Vatican and the Villa Borghese gardens in Rome and in the ...

s and hunting forest estate. The gardens were designed between 1763 and 1775. The gardens can be visited on request. The 2016 film ''

The Exception ''The Exception'' is a 2016 romantic war film directed by David Leveaux (in his directorial debut) and written by Simon Burke, based on Alan Judd's 2003 novel '' The Kaiser's Last Kiss''. The film stars Jai Courtney, Lily James, Janet McTeer, ...

'' was filmed in the castle.Filmtotaal
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References

Castles in Belgium Castles in East Flanders Zottegem Tourist attractions in Belgium {{Belgium-castle-stub

History

Gardens

See also

References