Castle Elsloo
Coordinates: 50 ° 56 ′ 51 ″ N , 5 ° 45 ′ 27 ″ E
Kasteel Elsloo is a castle in the Dutch province of Limburg in the south of Elsloo, a district of the municipality of Stein . It is located in a spacious park that borders directly on the Julianakanal , a side canal of the Meuse . The castle was part of the historic village of Elsoo.
In its current state, the complex consists of a former brewery with an adjoining water mill . This is followed by a farm with barns and stables. The historic complex has been preserved except for the south wing. This was converted into a noble residence in the 17th century, but not rebuilt after several fires. The historic castle consists of a rectangular building that houses the watermill. The tower was added to the building in a later construction phase.
History and residents
The builders of the castle are the residents of a castle further west directly on the Meuse. In the early 15th century, the bank on which the castle stood was so badly undermined by currents that the building had to be abandoned. When the water level is low, the foundations can still be seen today. According to a legend, this castle was part of a larger early medieval complex that is said to have been plundered several times by the Normans . The place had the name Hasloa odes Escolum at that time , from which the current name Elsloo developed. There are old reports about the Viking camp Haslou , which among other things served as the starting point for the Viking raids in the Rhineland and where several thousand Norman fighters are said to have camped. But that would have been a lot for the time. However, the camp is consistent with medieval military writings that speak of an extensive exclusion zone around the castle and fortress. How long these activities lasted is completely unclear. It is also not finally certain whether the said camp was in Elsloo at all.
A Carolingian imperial palace was built in place of the early castle and served as a residence for King Lothar II and Emperor Karl the Bald . In documents from 1111 the castle is the residence of the Heren van Elsloo. mentioned.
The first name that has come down to us in writing is Arnoldus van Elsloo . The male line of the noble family van Esloo expires in 1285. The eldest daughter marries Gozewijn von Born , whose line now becomes the owner of Elsloo Castle. When this noble house died out after a short time, the castle was taken over by the Schoonvorst . After that, the De Gavre family took control of the castle. During the rule of this family, in the 15th century, the Meuse sealed the end of the castle and it collapsed together with the nearby church due to the erosion. The remains of the castle can still be inhabited for a long time, but they could no longer withstand sieges. The De Gavre are therefore building the new castle at its current location using the building materials from the old castle ruins.
In 1641 the Counts d'Arberg took possession of the castle and lived there until 1818 . Then the castle was bought by Count De Geloes . Through her marriage of Isaure De Geloes to the Marquis Charles Grimaldi , one of the princes of Monaco , this noble family is connected to the castle.
After a devastating fire in 1885 , the De Geloes family left Elsloo. The remains and the associated estate came into the possession of Leonard Hendrikus Jürgens , the famous margarine magnate of Oss , after being sold to the public in 1887 . After a large-scale restoration, he and his children use the castle and the adjoining estate as a summer residence for their families. A granddaughter of LH Jürgens sells the entire complex to the municipality of Elsloo.
The current owner is the municipality of Stein, where the former municipality of Elsloo was merged after the municipal merger in 1982. A hotel-restaurant is currently operated in the complex.
Web links
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- nl: Kasteel Elsloo - Dutch language Wikipedia