Wijnendale Castle
| Kasteel van Wijnendale | |
Wijnendale Castle (10 Nov 2004)
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 Location within Belgium
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| Established | 15th century |
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| Location | Torhout, West Flanders, Belgium |
| Coordinates | 51°04′44″N 3°03′34″E / 51.078925°N 3.059483°E |
| Type | Castle |
| Owner | Jean-Jacques Matthieu de Wynendaele |
| Nearest car park | On site |
| Website | City of Torhout official website |
Wijnendale Castle (Dutch: Kasteel van Wijnendale) is an historically important castle near the village of Wijnendale, now in the municipality of Torhout, in West Flanders, Belgium.
The present castle is largely a 19th-century reconstruction, but a part of the north wing is still 15th century. One wing is inhabited by the present owners; another wing is a museum, open to the public.
The first castle was built by Robert I, Count of Flanders, at the end of the 11th century and used as a base for military operations.
In the 12th and 13th century, Wijnendale became a regular place of residence for the Counts of Flanders and for Philip, Count of Flanders, in particular. In 1297 Guy of Dampierre signed a treaty here with the English King Edward I.
In 1298 Wijnendale was inherited by the Counts of Namur, and besieged and damaged in 1302 and 1325. It is probable that Blanche of Namur grew up here and that it was here that she met her future husband Magnus IV of Sweden in 1334.
After a period of neglect, Count John III of Namur sold the fiefdom and castle in 1407 to John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy, who gave it 3 years later to his son-in-law Adolph I, Duke of Cleves, as part of the dowry on his marriage to John's daughter Mary of Burgundy, the elder.
In 1463 the castle passed to the Lords of Ravenstein, a junior branch of the House of Cleves. Adolph of Cleves, Lord of Ravenstein, and his son Philip of Cleves-Ravenstein transformed the castle into a beautiful mansion.
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Wikipedia