House Velde

House Velde

House Velde is one of the most important architectural monuments in the city of Kempen on the Lower Rhine. The former manor is located approx. 3 km north of the city in the district of Schmalbroich between the residential areas Voesch in the east and Wall in the west south of the federal highway 40 .

The impressive Renaissance building is protected by large trees on the edge of the Schlootkuhlen nature reserve , which is characterized by a quarry landscape and small bodies of water, created by the former peat extraction .

Gatehouse tower

Haus Velde was first mentioned in the 13th century . It served to secure the Archbishopric of Cologne against the Duchy of Geldern . Later it belonged to von Spee .

The building complex that can be seen today dates in part from the early 16th century . Particularly noteworthy is the coat of arms on the main facade to the inner courtyard, which dates back to 1527 and bears the initials of the owners at the time, who were significantly involved in the redesign of the knight's seat , and whose structural changes have been partially preserved to this day. At the rear of the main house, the ruins of an old staircase have been preserved, which provided access to a defense tower in the inner part of the complex.

Of the outer fortifications, only the large watchtower that still protects the driveway today is preserved.

Through the centuries House Velde was some knights of the former Electorate of Cologne belonging Office Kempen as a fief left, so this the limit of the electorate to Duchy of funds secured. The castle in Kempen also testifies to the importance of the city of Kempen in the border region between the Electorate of Cologne and the Lower Rhine.

In the 20th century Haus Velde came to the city of Kempen, which sold the property to private investors. At the beginning of the 1970s, the new owners began massive conversions, extensions and renovations of the building complex and the surrounding land. Today Haus Velde is used as a permanently inhabited building and is privately owned. Access to the defense tower in the driveway is possible; a tour of the facility is not permitted.

Web links

• Photograph of the Velde House (1911)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Topographic map 1: 25000, sheet 4604 (Kempen) ( Memento of the original from January 14, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (Published 2010 by the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, accessed on April 14, 2012)  
2. ↑ GeoPortal Niederrhein  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (Internet application of the municipal computing center Niederrhein (KRZN), Kamp-Lintfort, accessed on April 14, 2012)  
3. ↑ Digital topographic map 1: 10000 at TIM-Online (Internet application of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia , accessed on April 15, 2012)
4. ↑ nature reserve "Schlootkuhlen" in the specialized information system of the State Office for Nature, Environment and Consumer Protection of North Rhine-Westphalia , accessed on 3 March 2017th
5. ↑ Oberquartier von Geldern ( Memento of the original dated September 27, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (Internet presentation of the " Overkwartier van Gelre " association (German), accessed on April 15, 2012)  

Coordinates: 51 ° 23 '35.1 "  N , 6 ° 24' 0.8"  E