Vogelsanck Castle

The Vogelsanck domain is one of the oldest noble loans and most remarkable castles in our country. It originated around 1187. In its thousand-year history, the estate has only been sold once. The Portuguese count Jan-Willem de Souza y Pacheco left the castle and its royal rights to the baron Gilles de Villenfagne in 1741. This family still owns the domain. The domain is not accessible, but from the road we still get a fairly good view of this water castle with its different architectural styles. The buildings are built around a rectangular courtyard where four architectural styles are united: Maasland Renaissance (1673), the Louis XVI style of the east façade (1758), the neotudor style of the west façade (1875) and Maasland neoclassicism. The most impressive part is built in Maasland Renaissance style. It is recognizable by the natural stone window frames in cross shape.
The oldest part is the keep, which is somewhat secluded and connected to the south façade. The substructure in brown iron sandstone is said to date from the 14th century, the upper in Maas style with baroque elements from the 17th century. The Gothic castle chapel of 1445 was completely incorporated into the building, so that one cannot see the Gothic architecture from the outside. The part on the left is a renovation from 1875 in English Neotudor Gothic. The then Baron's wife with Irish roots gave the order. Because of her, one of the rare buildings in neotudor style was erected in our country.

Erfgoed Vlaanderen