Thy-le-Château Castle

Thy-le-Château Castle, locally known as Château de Thy-le-Château, lies in the village of the same name, in the province of Namur in the Wallonia region in Belgium.

Thy-le-Château Castle was first mentioned at the end of the 12th century. Then it was owned by Henry IV, 'the Blind', Count of Namur. However, legend has it that the castle was built by Jean, a local lord, who had partaken in the taking of the city of Tyre during the Crusades in 1124 and who built Thy-le-Château Castle according to the plan of Tyre after his return.

In 1188 Thy-le-Château Castle was sieged by the armed troops of Baldwin V, Count of Hainaut, and taken by force. In 1190, Baldwin presented the castle to his brother William, called 'Saint-Sauve'.

In later centuries the castle passed through the hands of several families; de Neuville, de Werchin, de Barbençon-Jeumont, de Melun, de Ligne and de Croÿ.

In 1790 Thy-le-Château Castle stood empty and was burned by revolutionaries and fell to ruin. In 1830 the ruins were bought by the Hanseval family and used as barns. From then on various buildings were built against and within the ruins. In 1870 the main building was used as a brewery.

In 1910 the castle was bought by Louis Piret, a local ironmaster. In 1920 he started to restore the castle back to its medieval appearance. The newer buildings were torn down and archaeological excavations were carried out, the findings being used as a guideline to give the castle its medieval appearance. The restoration was completed in 1939.

On May 14, 1940, however, the German air force bombed a French military convoy that had halted near the castle. The castle was destroyed in the process. So, after World War II ended, Louis Piret again started to rebuilt Thy-le-Château Castle. It is the result of that restoration that we see today.

At present Thy-le-Château Castle is private property and is used for cultural activities.

A nice castle in a quiet village.

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