Chateau d'Haltinne

The village of Haltinne is located in the 'Condroz' region and is part of the municipality of Gesves. Until the merger of the communes in 1977, it formed a separate full- fledged commune , comprising the villages of Strud and Haut-Bois .

Haltinne has a rich history , as evidenced by the discovery of flint , a stater (Greek coin ) and the Roman villa on its territory. Especially in the Middle Ages , Haltinne played an important role, as evidenced by an important rural market that settled there.

The domain of the castle of Haltinne covers 279.98 ha of farmland, woods and meadows. The brook 'Struviaux' and various springs supply water to four ponds and the moat of the castle.

From an architectural point of view, the castle of Haltinne is an exceptional heritage site . Its appearance today is the same as when it was built in the mid-1600s. The imposing towers, loopholes and moat are reminiscent of a military function, but we are indeed talking about a castle farm.

Not only the facades, roofs and moat, but also the monumental staircase of the castle are protected as exceptional heritage of Wallonia. This stone staircase has steps of two meters wide, with a wide banister also in stone. The massive character of this staircase contrasts with the statuettes representing the allegories of the four seasons.

The story goes that the drawbridge was replaced by a stone bridge after an accident: the horses in the owner's carriage, frightened by the sound of their hooves on the wood, stampeded, nearly driving the vehicle and crew into the moat were driven... The lord decided to remove the drawbridge.

Willem Vandenameele