Ter Elst Castle

Ter Elst Castle, locally known as Kasteel Ter Elst, lies on an islet in a public park in the village of Duffel, in the province of Antwerp in the Flemish region in Belgium.

The history of Ter Elst Castle dates back to the 12th century. It was then owned by the Hildinckhusen brothers, the earliest known Lords of Duffel.

From 1356 until the French Revolution, the castle was owned by the Abbey of Tongerlo. The abbots transformed the castle into a beautiful estate, hosting important guests such as Margaretha of York on several occasions between 1477 and 1503, and her lover Philip the Beautiful, Duke of Burgundy. The latter asked the Abbey to sell the castle to him because he liked it so much, but the abbots refused.

Part of the castle was burned down in 1584, but it was rebuilt into an even more splendid manor. At the end of the 18th century, French revolutionaries confiscated and looted the castle.

In 1799, the castle was sold to Louis Hermans, a lawyer from Antwerp. He demolished three of the four wings of the castle complex but restored the remaining wing with its towers.

The final blow to the castle came during the Battle of the Nete in World War I. After the war, Governor Baron Holvoet sought to buy the castle to rebuild it and turn it into a city hall, but the city council rejected the proposal. As a result, the castle remained empty and gradually fell into ruin.

The city council purchased the ruins in the 1970s and partially restored them to their former splendor. In 1982, the ruins of Ter Elst Castle were opened to the public.

Ter Elst Castle is a beautiful site. When I visited, the castle grounds were closed, so I could only walk around the moat.

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