Bouillon Castle
| Bouillon Castle | ||
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 Bouillon Castle above the Semois |
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| Creation time : | 11th century | |
| Castle type : | Hilltop castle | |
| Conservation status: | Preserved essential parts | |
| Place: | bouillon | |
| Geographical location | 49 ° 47 '33.5 " N , 5 ° 3' 55.4" E | |
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The castle Bouillon is a hilltop castle above the Belgian town of Bouillon in a tight loop of the river Semois . The complex was built in the 11th century and converted into a fortress in the 17th century .
history
The period in which the castle was built is unclear. Its strategic importance lay in the control of the north-south route from Reims via Liège to Aachen between Upper and Lower Lorraine . The complex became a real castle under Gottfried III. expanded between 1050 and 1067. It was the center of the rule of the House of Ardenne . Gottfried V pledged the castle to Otbert von Lüttich in 1096 in order to cover the costs of the first crusade . The castle then became the property of the Liège Monastery. In 1134, Raymond de Bar captured the castle. The bishop Albero II of Liège had the castle besieged in 1141 and the Count of Bar had to cede it to the bishop again. Since 1330 the rule was called a duchy .
The influence of the Marck-Arenberg family increased as early as 1430, but they officially remained feudal men of the Liège bishop. In 1482 the family succeeded in taking the castle and dominion from the diocese, but in 1521 Charles V returned the castle and dominion to the diocese. The Marck-Arenberg family had owned the castle again from 1548. In the Peace of Cateau-Cambrésis in 1559, the castle was temporarily given to the diocese of Liège. When Charlotte de La Marck married Henri de La Tour d'Auvergne, duc de Bouillon , she passed into the possession of the La Tour d'Auvergne family .
In 1672 the castle was besieged and conquered by Louis XIV for twenty days . In 1678 it was reassigned to the La Tour d'Auvergne family, but in 1693 it was placed under French protection.
The fortress builder Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban expanded the castle into a fortress that could withstand modern artillery . It was not until 1795 that the castle and duchy of Bouillon officially came to France. The town and castle fell to the Kingdom of the Netherlands in 1815. As a result, the facility was heavily rebuilt. The castle has belonged to Belgium since the Belgian Revolution of 1830. In 1870 it was still serving as a hospital for the Prussian army. The fortress began to decline in the mid-19th century. Today it is a tourist attraction.
description
The system consists of three parts that are connected by bridges. Particularly striking is the double drawbridge over two neck trenches carved into the rock . A Gothic hall from the 13th century has been preserved.
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literature
- Gerhard Köbler : Historical lexicon of the German countries. The German territories from the Middle Ages to the present. 4th, completely revised edition. CH Beck, Munich 1992, ISBN 3-406-35865-9 , p. 72.
Web links
- Bouillon Castle on burgenwelt.de
- Château de Bouillon on bernievancastle.de (archived version)