Castle Fischbach

The Fischbach Castle is a castle in the municipality of Fischbach.

It belongs to the Grand Ducal family but is maintained by the Luxembourg state when the heir grand duke, the lieutenant representative, or a former grand duke resides there.

On March 2, 2022, it was classified as a national monument.

History
The Abbey of Echternach is the first owner of the Fischbach estate. The lordship of Fischbach is one of the oldest in Luxembourg. The first lord documented is Udo von Fischbech in 1050. During the Battle of Worringen (1288), the lords of Fischbech fought to the death.

In 1466, Angela von Fischbech married Henri von Boland, lord of Rollé and Esch-Sauer. In 1571, the castle was donated to Bernard II, lord of Orley, Lord of Lünster, and Meeseburg. In 1628, François de Cassal purchased a part of the castle, and his descendants bought the rest of the estate in 1674. During the Thirty Years' War, the castle was set on fire by Polish soldiers in the army of Francis of Lorraine in 1635.

In 1768, a blast furnace and a forge were put into operation next to the castle.

In 1803, Charles Joseph Collart purchased the Fischbech smeltery from Ignace-Antoine de Cassal et Bomal, the last lord of Fischbech (1777 to 1795), along with all his dependencies, including the Kéideng farm and the paper factory in the Fischbech smeltery. The castle Fischbecher was also part of the outbuildings. In 1812, his son Hubert Joseph inherited the castle and the Fischbech smeltery, and in 1822, his son, who also bore the name Charles Joseph Collart. He died young, so the Fischbecher estate was purchased after his death in 1836 by former foundry director Auguste Garnier. Garnier transferred it to SA Belge des hauts-fourneaux.

In 1847, Grand Duke William II purchased the estate and had some old industrial facilities demolished. In 1884, Adolphe von Nassau became the owner.

During World War II, the Nazis established the Künstlerheim Fischbach in the castle and plundered a large part of the facility and the artworks. Grand Duchess Charlotte lived in the castle from 1945 until her death. In 1987, heir grand duke Henri moved in with his family. When he became grand duke, he moved his residence to Schlass Bierg, while his parents moved from there to Fischbecher Schlass.

The wife of Grand Duke Jean, Joséphine-Charlotte, died there.

After the death of Joséphine-Charlotte in 2005 and Grand Duke Jean in 2019, heir grand duke Guillaume and heir grand duchess Stéphanie live with their son Charel in the castle.

Translated from Luxembourgish

Source: lb.wikipedia.org

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