Horst Castle

Horst Castle is a castle in Sint-Pieters-Rode (part of Holsbeek in Flanders). The castle is well preserved and still has the traditional moat. The castle has a very large pond and moat. Outside the moat there is also a coach house, which was restored in the 1990s and converted into a tavern. Herita vzw manages the castle and takes care of its restoration and accessibility. Prominent in the building is the stucco work by 17th-century artist Jan Hansche. The castle domain is European protected as part of Natura 2000 area 'Valleys of the Winge and the Motte with valley slopes' (BE2400012).

History

The oldest known lords of Horst are Jan van Horst and his son Arnold (13th century). Together with his sons Arnold and Adam van Landwijk, Jan van Horst belongs to the Van Thunen family. Later, when they settled permanently in Horst, the family started to call themselves 'van Horst'.

In 1369 the lordship of Horst was sold to Amelric Boote. When Amelric died in 1405, his daughter Elisabeth inherited the lordship and sold it to her cousin Amelric Pynnock. Pynnock converted the fortified homestead into a moated castle. During the 1488-1489 uprising against Maximilian of Austria, the castle was destroyed. The then owner, Louis III Pynnock, rebuilt the castle with a loan from Maximilian of Austria, but nevertheless ran into financial difficulties. That is why he had to give Horst to Ivan van Cortenbach in August 1500.

At the end of the 15th century, the square keep, the auditorium and the camera were also built, which still exist today. Under Franchoys van Busleyden (1545-1555), the large cross windows were installed on the canal side, as a result of which the castle lost its fortified character. In 1587 Horst was destroyed by the Beggars. The forest, close to the castle (the current Horststraat) was then called the heresy. In the 17th century, the two western wings with service rooms below and show rooms above were added by Olivier van Schoonhoven. The chapel was also added at that time. Maria-Anne van den Tympel, the last lady of the castle, left in 1655install the stucco ceilings in the great halls of the west wing.

Castle parties are held every year, during which knight games are staged. In October 2007, Countess de Hemricourt de Grunne sold the castle domain together with the 113 hectares of land surrounding it to the Flemish Region. There was no money left to extend the leasehold.

Since the beginning of 2020, thorough restoration work has started on Horst Castle. This exposes the foundations of the castle. The spire is taken off for restoration. Subsequently, consolidation and stability works will be carried out. The renovation of the entrance gate and bridge, the facades, the chapel, the stairwell and the quay wall will start in 2023, with a planned completion date at the beginning of 2026. The renovation was estimated at 11.4 million euros. The Flemish government pays slightly more than 10 million euros of this. Subsequently, the interiors with Renaissance finishes are also restored.

Trivia

Horst Castle is the home of Willy Vandersteen 's cartoon character De Rode Ridder.

The castle was used several times for television recordings, for example for Buiten De Zone and Thuis.

Peter Van de Veire (Studio Brussels) hid in his hole for three days, following a search that could earn 7500 euros.

Also see

List of castles in Belgium

List of castles in Flemish Brabant

Sources, notes and/or references

Frédéric Collon, Armorial de Wavre et environs (Brussels, 1952), p. 92.

New contributions to the history of Sint-Pieters-Rode retrieved 8/30/09

Flemish government buys Rode Ridder castle for 2.6 million

Kristel Marien, Restoration Castle of Horst in Holsbeek starts after Easter holidays: "It's a huge job". VRT NWS (22 December 2022). Consulted on 22 December 2022.

external links

Pynnock Knights Horst Official Site. Accessed December 22, 2022.

Official site

Horst Castle, Inventory of Immovable Heritage

Construction around Horst Castle, Inventory of Immovable Heritage

Walk around Horst Castle

Media files

See the Horst Castle category of Wikimedia Commons for media files on this topic. History and Archeology