Top 20 Castles around Affligem

You can take nice walks there

The eye-catcher of the Grote Markt is undoubtedly the belfry, which includes the old town hall and the district house. Together, they form a unique historical ensemble. The old town hall, dating from 1225, is the oldest preserved town hall in the Netherlands, recognizable by its high gable roof and round corner towers. The belfry was added in 1407 and is notable for its elegant octagonal tower with an open gallery. Inside, one of the oldest working carillons in the Netherlands hangs, which still resounds through the city every fifteen minutes. The tower has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1999. On the facade, you can see the motto "Nec spe nec metu" ("without hope, nor fear"), and the statues of the Counts of Flanders and Aalst. The clock face, dating from 1964, earned the tower the nickname "den Tettentoeren" (the Tette Towers) because of its striking shape. The district house, a late Gothic extension, was for centuries the place where the bailiff promulgated laws to the people. Five statues adorn the facade, including Justitia, Emperor Charles V, and Pieter Coecke, court painter and Aalst resident. Today, the city council still meets there monthly.

superb, well-maintained and very varied park

In 2015, the castle served as a setting for the filming of the movie Les Profs 2

Almaric de Bigard, who was the first lord of Bigard, lived there around 1110. In 1422, Guillaume Rongman, lord of Bigard, was made captain of the city of Brussels by Philip the Good. Guillaume Estor was appointed baker of Brabant by letters patent of Charles the Bold, then became alderman of Brussels in 1475. Jean Estor and his mother were judged heretics (for Protestantism) and executed on January 6, 1548, their property confiscated and the Lordship of Bigard sold to Gaspard Schetz, Lord of Grobbendonck, on February 14, 1549, for 17,800 pounds. The lordship was erected into a marquisate under the name of Boisschot, when Helen of Boisschot, married Charles Ferdinand, Count of Königsegg-Rothenfels, interim regent of the Netherlands. Count Ferdinand of Boisschot in the middle of the 17th century had many works done, and had new buildings built. In 1902, the whole was very dilapidated and Raymond Pelgrims de Bigard took thirty years to rehabilitate it.

One of the largest landowners of the lordship of Moorsel was the abbey of Affligem. On one of the abbey domains, Karel van Croy, cardinal-abbot of Affligem, and later bishop of Tournai, had a moated castle built as a country house and pleasure garden in the period from 1521 to 1526. He was, said, not very strict about keeping his vows. The castle of Moorsel is a large four-sided moated castle, built in Renaissance style and flanked by four corner towers with numerous loopholes; it is located in a beautiful park south of the Eksterberg. In 1564 it came into the hands of the counts of Hoorne, who sold it to Don Cayro in 1636 and it was elevated to barony. During that period, the castle was thoroughly restored, but the general layout was largely preserved. At the end of the 18th century, the building came into the hands of the de Meer family and later of the Van der Noot family. Through family ties with the Van der Noot family, the castle was donated to Mr. and Mrs. De Meulenaire–Dessin, who lived in it for a few years and then sold it to the current owners: Willy Michiels and his wife Lisette De Rijck. The castle was expertly restored by them and thus saved from ruin.

Groenenberg Castle and its park domain, located in Gaasbeek and Vlezenbeek, has been owned by the Flemish Community since 1981, which had it thoroughly restored in 1992. The domain was opened to the public on 17 July 1990. The castle was built around 1890, in an eclectic style. The 45 ha English landscape park was designed by Edmond Galoppin, one of the most famous landscape architects of that time. The park is characterised by winding roads, curved forest edges and extensive lawns, low flower beds, solitary trees and shrubs. Didactic identification plates have been placed on the most remarkable trees. The park is connected to the historic domain and castle of Gaasbeek.

History: Kruikenburg used to be a manor and later a county in Brabant. The manor consisted of the current municipality of Ternat together with the sub-municipalities of Wambeek and Lombeek. At the beginning of the 12th century, the lords of Wezemaal, whether or not on behalf of the duke in Leuven, tried to seize the forests and lands of Wambeek. Architecture: Kruikenburg is an imposing classicist castle that originally dates from the 12th century. The castle, like many other medieval defensive castles, has a U-shape. This U is formed by three wings surrounding a courtyard. There are round towers on the corners. Only the entrance tower is square. Name: The peculiar name 'Kruikenburg' is because there used to be a rough stone-cut jar with a weather bar on the top of the square entrance tower and the three round towers.