CASTLE FRANCIMONT THEUX - LIEGE
Medieval Ruins of the Ardennes
The ruins of Castle Francimont in the northern Ardennes was originally
built in
the 11th Century, standing on a small rocky promontory
dominating the river valley of Hoegne as a fortification to
protect the Principality of Liege from its neighbors to the south and
west, the Dukes of Limburg, Luxembourg and the rival city of Stavelot,
with a first historical mention in 1155. The castle was extensively modified
in the 14th and 15th Centuries as a residence for the Prince Bishops
of Liege. It’s location near the waters of Spa, known as a bath
since the Romans and now for its its famous race
track (see Spa
Racing Car Museum), attracted visitors throughout the centuries,
Gustav II of Sweden and Czar Peter the Great.
Extensive
reconstruction in the 16th Century in the age of gunpowder greatly
expanded the castle
with extensive outer walls and an added canon
tower. Castle Francimont’s most notable place is history was the
adventure of the “600 Francimontois”. In 1468, when the people
of Liege rebelled against the Prince Bishop Louis Bourbon, ally of Duke
Charles the Bold of Burgundy (see Dijon
Dukes of Bourgogne),
during the night, 600 men attacked the forces of the duke and his ally
King Louis XI for France. They lost
the fight and Louis took a heavy revenge on the town of Theux, but their
courage was remembered by Wallonia. Near the castle entrance is a plaque
from WWI, when the Belgians were facing the advanced of Kaiser Wilhelm’s
army, King Albert of Belgium exhorted his troops in August of 1914 “and
you Walloons, remember the six hundred Francimontois”. The Belgians,
though courageously spurred on were ultimately about as effective against
the Germans as
they were against the French 150 years before (see Fort de Battice),
which is pretty much why German speaking Belgium and French speaking
Belgium
are
on either
side
of the Ardennes hills.
Shortly
after the saga of the 600, William de la Marck, "the Boar
of the Ardennes" killed Louis Bourbon in an ambush, and then was
himself assassinated in revenge. He was succeeded by Jean de La Marck
which resulted in a 17 year siege against Francimont by the Bourbons,
until the accession of Liege’s reputed greatest Episcopal Prince
Bishop, Erard de la Marck, who ordered the extensive additions to the
castle, creating the current form of, an enclosure of pentagonal walls
flanked by four bunkers, the round artillery tower through which the
fortress ruins are now entered via a wooden bridge, a chapel, kitchen,
and the latrine tower. The castle’s artillery defenses were ordered
destroyed by Louis XIV in 1676 and twenty years later the remaining roofs
and living quarters fell from an earthquake. What mostly remains today
are the walls and lower foundations of the high stone towers. In 1959,
the town of Theux bought the castle ruins for a symbolic single franc.
Visiting Francimont Castle
The
Francimont Castle is surrounded by a woodland park with picnic grounds
and hiking
and
biking pathways. The castle has a reconstructed medieval
treadmill for demonstrating the drawing of water from the 60 meter deep
well, and every other year hosts a medieval fair in August. It can be
reached from the Verviers-Trèves motorway, exit 7 or Liège-Luxembourg
motorway, exit 45. It’s open daily from 10am to 6 pm from May through
September and on weekends and holidays the rest of the year. Admission
is a very modest € 3 for adults and € 1.50 for students, children
under 4 are free. A stop at Francimont can be combined with a tour of
the sites of the WWII Battle of the Bulge which took place around it,
mostly to the south (see Battle
of the Bulge WWII Sites). © Bargain
Travel Europe
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Francimont
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SEE ALSO:
BOUILLON'S
CRUSADER CASTLE
CASTLE
CHATEAU LA ROCHE EN ARDENNE
GRAVENSTEEN - COUNT'S CASTLE - GHENT
