La Falize Castle

50.495941°N 4.818743°E / 50.495941; 4.818743

Château de La Falize was built in the 15th and 16th centuries with 20th century additions.[1] It is located about 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) north of the city centre of Namur just off the old Gembloux-Namur (N904 road) at the top of the steep northern valley slope of the river Meuse. It is in the province of Namur in Wallonia (one of the three regions of Belgium).

Etymology and geography

The name of the Château is derived from the Latin word falise (Cliff, French: falaise)[2] because of its position close to the top edge of a steep declivity of the valley sides of the river Meuse at the foot of which is city of Namur. Just south west of the Château the steep side of the Meuse valley is cut by the Houyoux, a tributary of the Meuse, which has created a smaller valley in the steep declivity of the Muse valley. The Houyoux is used by the land transport routes from Gembloux and Namur, to descend into the Meuse valley from the plain above.

History
Main article: House of Glymes

In 1638, King Philip IV of Spain, leased this manor in 1638 to Gilles I of Glymes, Lord of La Falize, for the sum of 1500 florins. Honore de Glymes-Brabant, son of Ignace-François de Glymes-Brabant, Lord of la Falize built most of the current structure in 1757.[2]

The Château was the headquarters of William of Orange during the Siege of Namur in 1695.[3]

Notes
  1. AdB 2013.
  2. Reiffenberg 1844, p. 658.
  3. MacKinnon 1833, p. 246.

References
  • AdB (6 January 2013), La Falize - Chateaux of Belgium (in French), ChateauxofBelgium
  • MacKinnon, Daniel (1833), Origin and services of the Coldstream guards, vol. 1, London: R. Bentley, p. 246, hdl:2027/nyp.33433006862340
  • Reiffenberg, Frédéric Auguste Ferdinand Thomas, Baron de (1844), "Falize (Liebiert délie), 232", Monuments pour servir a l'histoire des provinces de Namur, de Hainaut et de Luxembourg (in French), vol. 1, M. Hayez, p. 658{{citation}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

Further reading
  • Farcy, Philippe (November 2005), 100 Châteaux de Belgique, connus et méconnus (in French), vol. 4 (Aparté ed.)
  • Douxchamps, José (2002), Répertoire des châteaux de Wallonie (in French)
  • Douxchamps-Lefèvre, Cécile (2002), Châteaux de la province de Namur (in French)
  • "Château de la Falize - Rhisnes - 5080", Aerial Photography, www.globalview.be, 2011
  • Map 161
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